Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) has hired a lawyer to defend him in an ongoing probe into whether he abused the power of his office, KVUE News and the Austin American-Statesman reported Sunday. The move comes one day before a grand jury could be seated to weigh whether to launch a criminal investigation into the matter.
At issue is whether Perry improperly vetoed money for the Travis County District Attorney's office in an effort to force the resignation of a lawyer who was arrested for drunk driving last April. Despite Perry threatening to withhold the funds, DA Rosemary Lehmberg refused to step down following her arrest. So Perry nixed $7.5 million from the state budget that would have gone to a division in Lehmberg's office that investigates ethics complaints against public officials, saying he had to do so because Lehmberg "lost the public's confidence."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
-
Biden, Netanyahu talk ahead of Israeli hit on IranSpeed Read The pair spoke for the first time since August
-
Les Misérables: The Arena Spectacular – an 'exhilarating and life-affirming' showThe Week Recommends 'Showstopping' set-pieces have audience in 'raptures' at Glasgow Hydro
-
A Different Man: 'original and daring' film starring Marvel veteran Sebastian StanThe Week Recommends 'Bleakly funny' satire explores the very different lives of two men with neurofibromatosis
-
ATF finalizes rule to close 'gun show loophole'Speed Read Biden moves to expand background checks for gun buyers
-
Hong Kong passes tough new security lawSpeed Read It will allow the government to further suppress all forms of dissent
-
France enshrines abortion rights in constitutionspeed read It became the first country to make abortion a constitutional right
-
Texas executes man despite contested evidenceSpeed Read Texas rejected calls for a rehearing of Ivan Cantu's case amid recanted testimony and allegations of suppressed exculpatory evidence
-
Supreme Court wary of state social media regulationsSpeed Read A majority of justices appeared skeptical that Texas and Florida were lawfully protecting the free speech rights of users
-
Greece legalizes same-sex marriageSpeed Read Greece becomes the first Orthodox Christian country to enshrine marriage equality in law
-
Trump and his lawyer Alina Habba have a rough day in defamation courtSpeed Read Trump's audible grousing as E. Jean Carroll testified earned him a warning he could be thrown out of court, and Habba showed she 'doesn't know what the hell she's doing'
-
Anders Breivik to testify in prison isolation lawsuit against NorwaySpeed Read Far-right fanatic who killed 77 people in 2011 claims he has received 'inhuman treatment' in custody
