From a Disgraced Politician to Lobbyist : The Tale of Former Rep. Blake Farenthold

Former Rep. Farenthold has accepted a $160,000 annual salary to lobby for a Texas port, mere weeks after resigning amid fallout from a sexual harassment scandal.

The Calhoun Port Authority announced Monday May 14, 2018, that Farenthold would promote its interests in Washington.

He quit in April, as the House Ethics Committee investigated his using $84,000 in taxpayer funds to settle an ex-staffer’s 2014 sexual harassment claim. Farenthold pledged to reimburse that, but hasn’t.

“Blake has always been a strong supporter of the Calhoun Port Authority and is familiar with the issues facing the port,” it said in a statement. Port Director Charles R. Hausmann said Farenthold’s annual salary will be $160,000.

The port is located in the Gulf Coast community of Point Comfort, an area hit by Hurricane Harvey last summer

Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott called a June 30 special election to fill the remainder of Farenthold’s term, which expires early next year.

Abbott urged Farenthold to put $84,000 toward the cost of that election, even though it wouldn’t be enough to fully pay for it.

Farenthold flatly refused.

“Since I didn’t call it and don’t think it’s necessary, I shouldn’t be asked to pay for it,” he wrote in a May 2 letter to the governor.