. ♪ >> tonight on pbs news weekend, the texas senate acquits republican attorney general kent paxtonf all corruption charges at his impeachment trial. one year after the death of amini in iran, has life changed for women living under strict islamic law. >> we are still with that with our hearts and our minds. and we are going to keep fighting until the mullahs are gone. >> for hispanic heritage month, we look at the life of the first openly gay candidate for public office, jose saria. >> major funding for pbs news weekend has been provided by. >> consumer cellular, how may help you? this is a pocket doll. somebody's pocket, i want to let you know that with consumer cellular you get nationwide coverage with no contract. that is kind of our thing. have a nice day. >> and with the ongoing support of these individuals and institutions. and friends of the newshour. ♪ this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> good evening. i am john yang. this afternoon the republican-controlled te

suspended attorney general kent paxton pleaded not guilty to 16 charges, including bribery, obstructionce, conspiracy and abuse of the public trust. the house impeachment manager and caxton's attorneys each began to make their case. -- paxton's attorneys made their case. >> mr. paxton has been trusted with great power. rather than rise to the occasion, he has revealed his character. as the overwhelming evidence will show, he is not fit to be the attorney general for the state of texas. >> we are living on the wet end of democracy right now. is it up to the voters or is it up to politicians to see who stays in office? your decision is much bigger than ken paxton. your decision is literally about democracy in this state. >> for more, i'm joined by a reporter for the "austin american statesman." welcome back. always good to see you. let's begin with what exactly mr. paxton is being accused of. what are the charges related to/ >> so, all this dates back to 2020 and during the pandemic, a number of ken paxton top aides, his first assistant and other people who worked in the executive offices

a stunning fall for texas attorney general kent paxton. fiery far right lawyer is a champion of donald trump. he led a lawsuit by republican state attorneys general to overturn the 2020 election and he rallied the texas gop around trump. but the texas house suspended paxton from office in may in an overwhelming vote to impeach him. 121-23 with 60 republicans voting in favor. >> mr. paxton should be removed from office because he failed to protect the state. >> reporter: he's now facing 16 articles of impeachment over allegations he abused his office to benefit himself and a major donor who allegedly supported his campaign, paid for his home renovations and even helped him cover up an affair with his mistress. a state senator herself and his wife angela paxton must attend the proceeding but she can't vote, instead showing support with an embrace. paxton has maintained his innocence. his lawyers pleading not guilty on his behalf and taking a page from the trump play book, arguing the allegations are an attack by the establishment. >> texas i