Texas's Ken Paxton ought to know law better than anyone. As the state's attorney general, it's his job. So when he defended the First Amendment rights of government workers, Ken understood more than most the legal foundation he stood on. Yet now, Paxton is not being commended for doing his duty -- he's being punished for it. Months after coming to the aid of the state's county clerks, Paxton is being investigated by an ethics panel for "possible violation" of professional conduct rules! Why? Because the state's chief law enforcer dared to enforce the religious freedom of Texas officials who object to same-sex marriage.
"Attorney General Paxton has a right to disagree with a ruling of the Supreme Court. Lawyers do that every single day. What makes a difference is that you cannot encourage people to violate that ruling and that law," said one of the 200 attorneys who filed the complaint. If found guilty, Paxton could be disbarred and removed from office -- all for offering legal help to anyone who objected to issue same-sex marriage licenses in the state. "I will do everything I can from this office to be a public voice for those standing in defense of their rights," he told reporters. Faced with losing his job for doing it, Paxton is resolute. "This complaint has always lacked merit, and we are confident the legal process for resolving these complaints will bear that out."
Once again, Texas is pulling back the curtain on the Left's real agenda -- and it isn't tolerance. It's forced acceptance. It's about public affirmation. When religious liberty clashes with homosexuality -- as it has from bakeries to flower shops -- the storylines are all the same: conform or be punished. It's a strange and dangerous new world, where the government is doing what liberals accuse the church of -- imposing its own orthodoxy on the people. Thank goodness there are still leaders like Ken Paxton, who speak up and demand freedom no matter the consequences.
