Yahoo Movies Fox News Anchor Doesn’t Ask Texas AG About Fleeing Home to Avoid Subpoena
Fox News anchor Harris Faulkner interviewed Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Tuesday morning for several minutes, focusing the conversation solely on immigration and the consistent surge of migrants at the southern American border.
One subject that never came up, however, was the viral news story in which Paxton fled his home less than 24 hours earlier to avoid being served with a subpoena.
With her morning news program The Faulkner Focus dedicating much of its time on Tuesday to “America’s Border Crisis,” the veteran Fox anchor brought on both Paxton and Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich—another Republican immigration hardliner—to predictably blast the White House’s immigration and border policies.
Bookending the interview with footage from her “exclusive” reporting at the border, Faulkner kicked off the segment by asking Paxton the following question: “Is Texas doing the work, the governing, on this issue that the federal government is not doing?” Paxton, meanwhile, took that ball and ran with it—and tossed in some “Great Replacement” theorizing to boot.
Saying that the surge of migrants at the border is a “planned disaster by the Biden administration that is hurting my state,” Texas’ top attorney went on to say, “We’re doing everything we’re allowed to do by law,” while the White House is “doing everything to get around the law and get as many people here as possible.”
He added, “I’ve been on the border, I’ve been on horseback, I’ve been on boats, I’ve been on helicopters.”
Moments later, Faulkner once again teed up another softball for Paxton. Reading off a new statement from Texas Gov. Greg Abbott blasting President Joe Biden’s “reckless open border policies,” she wondered what Paxton would say to “so-called border czar” Kamala Harris’ claim that the border is secure.
“I don’t even know what to say. I don’t know if she is just not in reality or whether she is just lying,” he reacted before claiming the Biden administration “seems to want” a rash of fentanyl overdoses.
After that, Faulkner merely thanked both attorneys general for their time and expressed appreciation for the “mighty battle that you are waging” before shifting back to her program’s reporting at the border.
Fortunately for Paxton, the Fox News anchor didn’t once ask him about or even mention the recent news that he and his wife fled their home the day before in an effort to dodge a process server.
According to an affidavit filed in federal court on Monday, Ernesto Martin Herrera tried to serve Paxton with the subpoena to testify in a deferral hearing on Tuesday in a lawsuit over the state’s abortion laws. In this instance, nonprofits want to block any criminal charges they’d face for helping women obtain abortions out of state.
The court documents, which have since been sealed following a motion by Paxton, state that Herrera first spoke to a woman named “Angela” at the attorney general’s house and let her know that he was trying to deliver legal documents. He then waited for an hour outside the home when told that Paxton was unable to come to the door because he was on the phone.
Eventually, according to Herrera, a black Chevy Tahoe pulled up to the driveway and the woman—later identified to be the attorney general’s wife, State Sen. Angela Paxton—got inside the vehicle. Soon after, “Mr. Paxton ran from the door inside the garage towards the rear door behind the driver side,” the affidavit stated.
Herrera would then say that both the AG and his wife ignored him as he tried to serve the subpoena, driving off and leaving the documents lying on the ground.
Prior to his Tuesday morning appearance on Fox News, Paxton—who is also under indictment for securities fraud—addressed the matter on both social media and with an official statement, claiming he ran off because he was concerned for his family’s well-being and safety.
“In light of the constant threats against me, for which dangerous individuals are currently incarcerated, I take a number of common sense precautions for me and my family’s safety when I’m at home,” he said in a Tuesday statement. “Texans do the same to protect themselves from threats, and many also exercise their Second Amendment rights to protect themselves and their families.”
Though Faulkner didn’t bother to ask Paxton about the latest news surrounding him, she has taken other journalists to task for allegedly going easy on their interview subjects and not pressing them on uncomfortable topics.
“I think Chuck Todd missed an opportunity there,” she said earlier this month about the Meet the Press anchor’s interview with Vice President Harris. “Maybe he thought about it, and they ran out of time. But if they’re anti-semi-fascist, which is how they see more than half the country now... are they pro-antifa?”
And just last week, Faulkner took aim at CBS News’ 60 Minutes, insisting that “critics are lacing” into correspondent Scott Pelley and “accusing him of throwing softballs” during his interview with President Joe Biden.
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