Impeached Texas AG Paxton Associate Arrested

Facts

• Nate Paul, the real estate developer linked to the investigation that led to Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s impeachment last month, was arrested Thursday by the FBI.¹
• Paul — charged with eight felony counts of financial crimes — is accused of misleading lenders to obtain business loans in 2017 and 2018. He was released on bail Friday and faces up to 30 years in prison and an $8M fine.²
• Paxton, who’s currently under suspension pending his trial in the state Senate, stands accused of using the attorney general’s office to aid Paul in a lawsuit and an FBI investigation of him in exchange for renovations done to Paxton’s home.³
• Paul, a millionaire whose firm, World Class Capital Group, was one of Austin’s largest owners of real estate, was subject to raids of his home and offices by the FBI and US Treasury Dept. in 2019, leading to the discovery of his alleged relations with Paxton.⁴
• Following a 2018 donation to Paxton by Paul, it was learned that senior aides in Paxton’s office accused him of taking bribes from the businessman. Paxton’s accusers resigned, were put on leave, or were fired, and an FBI investigation was still launched.⁴

Sources: ¹Associated Press, ²CNN, ³Reuters, and ⁴The Texas Tribune.

Narratives

• Narrative A, as provided by Dallas News. Paxton is being unfairly attacked by members of his own party in collaboration with Democrats. But even members of Paxton’s office have taken a leave of absence to defend him from this witch hunt, which has seemingly expanded to include Paul. These latest charges are unrelated to the case, calling into question their true motive. The lack of evidence will be obvious during the impeachment trial.
• Narrative B, as provided by Daily Beast. While on the surface, these charges seem unrelated to the Paxton case, they're just the tip of the iceberg. A lot will be revealed during the impeachment trial, and things are going to get ugly for both Paxton and Paul. The power of the attorney general's office has been abused for personal gain for far too long, and the issues can no longer go ignored.