In a new Second Reading Podcast, Jim Henson & Josh Blank look at the multiple factors that shaped the decision of (most) Republicans in the Texas Senate's to reject the House's impeachment charges against Ken Paxton – and consider some of the fallout.
Some results and articles referred to in the discussion
Texas views of removing Ken Paxton from office (August, 2023)
| category | Total |
|---|---|
| Yes | 47% |
| No | 18% |
| Don't know/No opinion | 35% |
| Category | Democrat | Independent | Republican |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yes | 71% | 42% | 24% |
| No | 8% | 14% | 32% |
| Don't know/No opinion | 21% | 44% | 43% |
| category | Approve | Disapprove | Don't know |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr. 2021 | 32% | 36% | 31% |
| June 2021 | 33% | 36% | 32% |
| Aug. 2021 | 35% | 38% | 28% |
| Oct. 2021 | 35% | 37% | 28% |
| Feb. 2022 | 32% | 35% | 33% |
| Apr. 2022 | 34% | 36% | 30% |
| June 2022 | 34% | 39% | 27% |
| Aug. 2022 | 37% | 38% | 25% |
| Oct. 2022 | 36% | 39% | 26% |
| Dec. 2022 | 41% | 37% | 21% |
| Feb. 2023 | 35% | 38% | 26% |
| Apr. 2023 | 39% | 35% | 26% |
| June 2023 | 30% | 41% | 28% |
| Aug. 2023 | 27% | 46% | 28% |
| Oct. 2023 | 32% | 42% | 25% |
| Dec. 2023 | 35% | 38% | 26% |
| Feb. 2024 | 41% | 37% | 22% |
| Apr. 2024 | 41% | 35% | 24% |
| June 2024 | 36% | 38% | 25% |
| Aug. 2024 | 33% | 38% | 28% |
| Oct. 2024 | 36% | 36% | 28% |
| Q8D | Approve | Disapprove | Don't know |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr. 2021 | 59% | 11% | 30% |
| June 2021 | 58% | 10% | 32% |
| Aug. 2021 | 61% | 11% | 28% |
| Oct. 2021 | 65% | 12% | 23% |
| Feb. 2022 | 55% | 13% | 31% |
| Apr. 2022 | 62% | 8% | 30% |
| June 2022 | 60% | 15% | 25% |
| Aug. 2022 | 66% | 13% | 22% |
| Oct. 2022 | 65% | 12% | 24% |
| Dec. 2022 | 73% | 7% | 19% |
| Feb. 2023 | 65% | 9% | 27% |
| Apr. 2023 | 65% | 13% | 23% |
| June 2023 | 51% | 19% | 30% |
| Aug. 2023 | 46% | 23% | 31% |
| Oct. 2023 | 50% | 20% | 30% |
| Dec. 2023 | 58% | 15% | 28% |
| Feb. 2024 | 61% | 16% | 23% |
| Apr. 2024 | 61% | 14% | 25% |
| June 2024 | 58% | 14% | 27% |
| Aug. 2024 | 54% | 13% | 32% |
| Oct. 2024 | 57% | 13% | 31% |
Speaker of the House Dade Phelan job approval (August, 2023)
| category | Total |
|---|---|
| Approve strongly | 5% |
| Approve somewhat | 15% |
| Neither approve nor disapprove | 27% |
| Disapprove somewhat | 11% |
| Disapprove strongly | 20% |
| Don't know | 22% |
| Category | Democrat | Independent | Republican |
|---|---|---|---|
| Approve strongly | 2% | 1% | 8% |
| Approve somewhat | 11% | 5% | 20% |
| Neither approve nor disapprove | 23% | 27% | 31% |
| Disapprove somewhat | 12% | 12% | 9% |
| Disapprove strongly | 33% | 25% | 10% |
| Don't know | 20% | 30% | 21% |
"Springer Said House didn't make strong enough case; expects FBI to pick up where Senate Trial left off, by Mike Eads in the Gainseville Daily Register
"Scoop: How GOP pressured Texas senators over Paxton's impeachment trial," by Mike Allen for Axios
"Texas AG Ken Paxton's star rises after acquittal," by Asher Price for Axios
About the Second Reading podcast. The podcast has been produced intermittently by Jim Henson for the Texas Politics Project, with production support from UT's Liberal Arts Development Studio, since 2016. You can find past episodes and subscribe to the Second Reading podcast in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Stitcher.