Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan, who is facing off against David Covey in today’s primary run-off election, was arrested for driving while intoxicated (DWI) in 1999, newly released court records obtained by The National Pulse have revealed.
Phelan infamously appeared to be intoxicated on the floor of the state legislature last year shortly before the anti-Trump Republican pursued an impeachment action against the state’s attorney general, Ken Paxton.
According to the records, Phelan was arrested in Travis County, Texas, in October 1999 for drunk driving. The future Texas House Speaker refused a breathalyzer test. As a result, Phelan — then 24 years old — had his driver’s license suspended and was ordered to complete the Texas Drug and Alcohol Driving Awareness Program. Despite having his license suspended, Phelan applied for and received an occupational driver’s license, allowing him to drive between the hours of 7AM and 7PM for his work as a real estate agent.
Phelan is perhaps best known as the Texas Republican who led the impeachment against the state’s conservative Attorney General Ken Paxton, a staunch ally of former President Donald J. Trump. Despite the Texas Speaker’s best efforts, Paxton survived the dubious impeachment after the case against him collapsed during the trial in the State Senate.
Several witnesses brought by Phelan’s impeachment managers either recanted their prior statements entirely or admitted that they had no evidence of the accusations they leveled against Paxton. Attorney General Paxton credited The National Pulse with helping expose the false charges against him.
In addition to his attacks on Paxton, Phelan has also scuttled several conservative legislative efforts undertaken by Governor Greg Abbott (R-TX). In one instance, he blocked a 2023 effort to enact school choice despite it being a top issue for Abbott and receiving the backing of the Republican-controlled State Senate.
