Trump Faces Choice of Most Recent Loyalty
Versus Revenge in Bush vs. Paxton in 2022

Capitol Inside
June 3, 2021

Donald Trump will be the key to victory if Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush if he unseats Attorney General Ken Paxton in the GOP primary election in 2022 regardless of who may or may not receive the former president's official stamp of approval.

A progeny of the most famous political family in America, Bush can expect to have strong support from the old-guard party establishment from which the two presidents who are relatives came. Bush could have an all but endless supply of campaign cash from all around the country for the battle with Paxton in a race that has the potential to be one of the most expensive, competitive and brutal down-ballot contests in modern Texas history.

Paxton may have little chance to survive if he fails to land an endorsement from Trump after a brazen attempt to save him at the U.S. Supreme Court with a lawsuit that sought to overturn elections in four major battleground states that Democratic President Joe Biden won based on lies about voter fraud.

But the failure to score an official nod from the ex-president won't be fatal for Bush as long as he gets his fair share of love from Trump. The ex-president has a significant personal incentive to see Bush prosper after sucking up to him as a consequence of the humiliation and shame he might expect the state land chief's family suffer the more he's associated with challenger in the AG's race.

Paxton would seem to be more in line for an official Trump nod as a reward for the rescue ride and subequent role as a speaker at the rally that ignited the riot that killed five people including a police officer at the U.S. Capitol on January 6. The AG's wife - GOP State Senator Angela Paxton of McKinney - appeared by her spouse at the campaign event that set the stage for the mob attack by Trump supporters who were trying to disrupt the congressional certification of Biden's victory in 2020.

The decision on who Trump really wants to win no matter who he endorses could boil down to a choice on whethe he wants to reward loyalty or exact revenge.

Paxton appears to be as vulnerable as an incumbent in a statewide race here could possibly be as a candidate who's facing felony charges and a target of a FBI probe into accusations that former high-ranking assistants lodged last year with claims of illegal dealings with a donor in a scheme that featured an alleged mistress as well. The attorney general who's seeking a third term is married to State Senator Angela Paxton - a McKinney Republican who Democrats will be targeting in the 2022 general election.

After announcing his plans to run for AG last night with maximum fanfare, Bush seized on Paxton's personal problems without delay on Thursday in a Fox News interview that he used as a firing range with an exaggerated portrayal of the attorney general as the chief law enforcement authority in the state.

"For many years now, Texans know that their top cop has been under securities fraud indictment and very concerned about that, and last November it became clear with eight of his top lieutenants alleging everything from bribery to corruption that many at the grassroots level in our state want a change in leadership," Bush said on the show Fox & Friends. "I believe Texas Republicans should have a choice when it comes to their top cop."

Bush is taking a page from an old playbook that the Democrats conceived and Republicans replicated by running for attorney general on crime-fighting platforms even though that's not the central priority for a state agency that spends more time on civil law. But Bush will be playing up the law-and-order angle at every opportunity in an attempt to capitalize on personal turmoil that Paxton has attributed to political enemies trying to bring him down.

"This is about the fitness, the competence of running the state’s most important law firm," Bush argued. "It requires somebody to be above reproach. It’s really hard to claim the moral high ground on issues like human trafficking and illegal immigration and backing the thin blue line in our state if you yourself are facing significant criminal investigations and allegations."

Texas Legislators Oath of Office

I, (name), do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the duties of the office of a member of the House of Representatives of the 82nd Legislature of the State of Texas, and will to the best of my ability preserve, protect and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States and of this state, so help me God.

 

 

GOP leaders and lawmakers priorities in the 2021
session that ended on Memorial Day May 31, 2021

State Budget
House and Senate Priority

Electric Grid
House and Senate Priority

Unlicensed Gun Carry
House and Senate Priority

Abortion Heartbeat Ban
House and Senate Priority

Police Defunding
House and Senate Priority

Broadband Access Expansion
House Speaker Priority

Telemedicine Access Expansion
House Speaker Priority

Star Spangled Banner Protection Act
Lieutenant Governor Priority

Critical Race Theory
Lieutenant Governor Priority

Medical Marijuana Expansion
House Speaker Priority

Medicaid Eligibility for Children
House Speaker Priority

Homeless Camping Ban
House and Senate Priority

 

Election Integrity
House and Senate Priority

Pandemic Regulation
House Speaker Priority

Taxpayer Funded Lobby Ban
House and Senate Priority

Transgender Rights
Lieutenant Governor Priority

Social Media Censorship
Lieutenant Governor Priority

Lobbyist Sex Harassment Education
House Speaker Priority

Bail Reform
House and Senate Priority

Local Business Mandates Ban
Lieutenant Governor Priority

 

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