Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has spent years dodging legal and public relations blows that could have driven others out of politics.
Yet the Republican has proven to be very cunning towards his political opponents and accusers, winning reelection and national prominence as a conservative crusader, even under suspicion of serious crimes.
However, criminal charges by Paxton’s top aides have led him to face a formidable new adversary: a federal prosecutor with a team of seasoned FBI agents and a long history of sending corrupt officials to prison.
Paxton has not been charged with a felony in the months that have passed since eight top officials in his office reported him to the FBI for bribery, abuse of power, and other crimes allegedly committed to help a wealthy donor conducting his own federal investigation tried to get around. .
Federal investigators are investigating the attorney general’s actions and his relationships with Nate Paul, an Austin real estate entrepreneur who employed a woman with whom Paxton allegedly had an extramarital affair.
The investigation would be led by US Attorney General Joe Blackwell, whose office is in San Antonio, according to a person familiar with the investigation who insisted on anonymity because the investigation is ongoing.
Paxton has denied any wrongdoing. His recent unsuccessful trial for reversing the presidential election has raised questions about whether he was actually seeking the protection of a powerful ally: President Donald Trump.
The US law firm for West Texas declined to comment and allowed Blackwell to give an interview. Federal prosecutors and the FBI generally do not confirm ongoing investigations.
Blackwell, who coordinates public integrity cases in a region stretching more than 500 miles to El Paso, is a tough but fair prosecutor, according to former colleagues and opposition lawyers.
They also say he has a knack for summarizing the complex facts of white-collar investigations, a down-to-earth attitude and a slight Louisiana accent that earns him sympathy with jurors.
“He’s probably the best trial attorney I’ve ever seen,” said Sean O’Connell, a Virginia attorney who worked with Blackwell as a federal prosecutor in Texas.
Blackwell’s most prominent case, 45, was the 2018 trial of former Senator Carlos Uresti, in which the former lawmaker was charged with money laundering and fraud.