Meet the man who’s leading the charge against DACA.
No, I don’t mean President Donald Trump.
I mean Ken Paxton, the Texas Attorney General. Paxton leads a delegation of 10 states that are threatening legal action against President Trump if he doesn’t slap down DACA by September 5th. Simply put, if President Trump doesn’t dump DACA, Paxton will sue.
DACA, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, is an American program that protects children brought to the U.S. illegally. Since 2012, DACA has offered work permits and immunity from deportation to about 800,000 individuals — including 120,000 in Texas. Paxton is out to end this program.
I think it’s high time we meet Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.
For starters, Paxton has been indicted by a Texas grand jury.
Fraud. Specifically, securities fraud.
Let’s get this straight. The man leading the charge against DACA, the Dreamers, is currently indicted for fraud by his own state because of extremely shady business deals he’s made.
This indictment means there is plenty of evidence already against Paxton. He is not just accused. He is indicted.
A Texas grand jury indicted its own attorney general!
Paxton was charged with a felony.
The state presented its evidence to a grand jury.
The grand jury returned an indictment, finding there was “probable cause” Paxton had committed a crime by misleading investors.
His upcoming court date is December 11, 2017.
I cannot sit back and let a man indicted for fraud lead the charge against nearly a million vulnerable men and women, many of whom possess the integrity Paxton allegedly lacks.
But Paxton defends himself. He says he wasn’t really paid by companies to allegedly make his peers invest thousands of dollars. These companies gave him stocks as a gift. Ah. Not payment. A gift.
Now Paxton is a Baptist. He attended Baylor University, a high-profile Baptist school. He attends Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano, just north of Dallas.
I imagine a Baylor-educated, Baptist-church-attending lawyer can figure out that Jesus wouldn’t be impressed by the distinction the Texas Attorney General makes between a payment and a gift. The one who said simply, “Let your yes be yes and your no, no,” (Matthew 5:37), wouldn’t wink-wink at Paxton, would he? “That’s all right, Ken. What’s a couple hundred thousand ill-gotten shekels among friends?”
I can’t speak often for Jesus (and try not to), but I can figure this much: Jesus would be appalled by Paxton’s explanation. He might call Paxton, as he called others, a “white-washed tomb,” all gussied up on the outside but filthy and vulgar on the inside (Matthew 23:25-28).
And Jesus might say, too, that Paxton better get his own house in order before he expends any more energy to kick out boys and girls—now men and women—who, through no fault of their own and much to their credit, came to this country without resources, without documentation, without a clear future, and now have 640 presidents of America’s leading universities writing to the president of the United States to keep them here.
When an attorney general indicted for fraud by his own state can threaten the president of the United States with legal action, it’s time to act.
This isn’t hard. Paxton wants to hear from people. He lists his email as info@KenPaxton.com, his phone as (512) 463-2100, and his mailing address as P.O. Box 3476, McKinney, Texas 75070 or Office of the Attorney General, PO Box 12548, Austin, TX 78711-2548.
Perhaps supporters of DACA should tell Paxton that one Dreamer is worth more to them than 800,000 indicted attorneys general. Whatever they tell him, those who care about the Dreamers should do it now, before the awful effects of September 5th roll around.
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