Politics & Government

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's press conference to attack his Democratic rival, state Rep. James Talarico, went off the rails on Tuesday as reporters repeatedly asked him about his own political scandals — ultimately driving him to cut the event off early and run away.

The event was a gathering of Texas sheriffs, intended to focus on police issues and attack Talarico for supposedly wanting to defund law enforcement.

"General, I wanted to give you a chance to respond to State Representative Talarico and his campaign," said one reporter. "They've made a lot about the reports that have come out, one in the New York Times, about you acquiring properties worth—"

"Can we keep this to law enforcement?" Paxton said, cutting him off.

"I'm giving you the opportunity to answer—" the reporter said.

"I'd like to — because we're here with the sheriffs, I'd like to keep today to law enforcement," said Paxton. "So that's what I'm going to hand you. Questions about law enforcement."

Paxton's aide then called on another reporter.

"Will you answer a question about why you voted in Collin County?" asked the reporter. "Clear that up?"

Paxton shook his head with agitation, as his aide said, "So we're just going to do questions on law enforcement today, because we're joined with 22 amazing law enforcement officers."

Shortly after this, as another reporter tried to ask a question, the aide started waving her hand, saying, "We're going to get out of here. We're going to get out of here," as Paxton walked off the stage, leaving the sheriffs to stand around.

With the war with Iran spiraling and public opinion about the military excursion at an all-time low, a leading scholar on tyranny warned on Tuesday that Donald Trump’s people may do the unthinkable.

Late Monday, Fox News host Laura Ingraham warned the president that “the clock is ticking” as supporters lose patience with the war that has been unpopular since the U.S. attacked in late February.

According to historian Timothy Snyder, whose book "On Tyranny" is often cited when discussing the Trump administration, a false flag terror attack in the U.S. that can be blamed on Iran is not beyond the realm of possibilities as the president's approval numbers slide.

On X he wrote, “Trump is pursuing this war in the HOPE that Iran carries out an act of terror in the US. And even if it doesn’t, which I doubt it will, consider the possibility that Trump's people would fake one. Please consider this essay, written back in March, as well as the last few lessons of ‘On Tyranny.’”

In the March essay he linked to, he predicted, "A purpose of the war on Iran might well be to provoke a terrorist attack inside the United States. This would provide Donald Trump with a pretext to try to cancel or 'federalize' the coming Congressional elections.“

"Self-terrorism might not have been the initial aim; but as time goes by, and failures and atrocities mount, its appeal will grow. Trump could think that he has much to gain; the war itself makes terrorism more likely; there are plausible vectors of terror; and the United States has let down its defenses," he added.

As for the timing, he elaborated, “We know that he is obsessed with the fall elections, which his party will almost certainly lose by spectacular margins, and that he fears the accordant loss of power. This is clear from his own statements and actions.”