Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) on Wednesday appointed former Texas Secretary of State John Scott to temporarily serve as the state's attorney general after the House of Representatives voted Saturday to impeach Ken Paxton, a Republican, over allegations of misconduct and crimes.
The historic impeachment triggered Paxton's automatic suspension from office pending the outcome of a trial in the state Senate later this summer that could result in his permanent removal.
Scott, an attorney, has previously worked in the attorney general's office and recently served as Texas Secretary of State. Abbott appointed him as the state's chief elections officer in October 2021 and he served until December 2022, when he left the post before the state Senate would vote to confirm his appointment.
“John Scott has the background and experience needed to step in as a short-term interim Attorney General during the time the Attorney General has been suspended from duty,” said Abbott in a statement. “He served under me in the Texas Attorney General’s Office and knows how the Office of the Attorney General operates. Scott was the Deputy Attorney General for Civil Litigation and has handled cases at all levels of the justice system. His decades of experience and expertise in litigation will help guide him while serving as the state’s top law enforcement officer. I appoint John Scott for this role based on the Texas Constitution to serve for a temporary period during the Texas Senate’s resolution of the impeachment proceedings.”
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Scott briefly joined former President Donald Trump's legal team last year as it challenged the 2020 election results, although he withdrew after three days. His appointment as Texas' elections chief troubled voting rights groups as it came amid pressure from Trump and Republican activists to perform an audit of elections even though Trump won the state by 300,000 votes.
Texas Democrats were critical of the governor's appointment, saying Scott was an "election denier" with "anti-democratic values."
Scott also served as deputy attorney general when Abbott was attorney general. As a state litigator, he defended Texas' strict voter ID law, which was allowed to take effect after years of court challenges by Democrats and minority rights groups.
According to the governor's office, Scott "served as Texas Deputy Attorney General for Civil Litigation for then-Attorney General Greg Abbott, where he aided then-Attorney General Abbott’s efforts to hold the Obama Administration accountable and sue President Obama more than any other state Attorney General. Scott oversaw all civil litigation, including over 22,000 lawsuits involving Texas. Subsequently, Scott was appointed the first Chief Operating Officer of the Health and Human Services Commission. He oversaw the successful overhaul of the agency, its 56,000 employees, and its over $50 billion biannual budget. After returning to private practice, Governor Abbott appointed Scott as the Chair of the Board for the Department of Information Resources (DIR). At DIR, Scott developed the strategic plan for technology and security at Texas executive branch agencies and boards."
KEN PAXTON
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