Even as more Texans get vaccinated, hospital beds fill with COVID-19 patients and Texas may be approaching a critical tipping point. COVID-19 patients now occupy one in 5 hospital beds in Texas, and many ICUs statewide are at their limits. The state of the state of care and what health officials fear may come next. Also many Texans eligible for vaccination, but can find anyone to administer the vaccine. And asylum seekers south of the Texas border hoping for change from the Biden administration. Plus what that change at the White House might mean when it comes to Texas and the courts. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Coronavirus
Texas Standard: January 4, 2021
A Texas senator joins almost 11 colleagues in a pledge not to certify the electoral college results. Political theatre or something more? We’ll explore. Also, demand at food banks has doubled since the pandemic. What happens now with cuts to a critical fresh food program? How the pandemic has accelerated the widening of the gap between rich and poor. Also a federal crackdown on the marketing of CBD and what it might mean for Texas. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: December 29, 2020
As many anticipate the start of the New Year, many Texas public school officials fear what the stroke of midnight might mean for them. A hold harmless guarantee for Texas public schools expected to expire on December 31st. For districts facing a drop off in attendance, will there be enough money to maintain operations? Also, racial disparities in the pandemic spark a rethink of who’s most at risk to COVID-19. We’ll also look at concerns about social isolation and seasonal affective disorder. And with the launch of a U.S. Space Force, plans to find a home for the U.S. space command. Could it be landing in Texas? Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: December 28, 2020
A new survey shows changing attitudes on vaccinations in Texas, and the numbers offer even more surprises and important insights. We’ll take a deeper dive in to what that means. Also, 12 states have not expanded medicaid, Texas among them. Economist Ray Perryman on why Texas lawmakers should consider 2021 an opportunity to turn things around. Plus a happier new year for Texas’ top energy commodity? Our energy insider with a reality check. And a profile of the person tapped to head up the Dallas police department. Plus the protests of 2020 and those of 5 decades earlier: a new book recalls the often overlooked intersection of activism and the church. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: December 22, 2020
What we should know and when about a highly contagious variant of COVID-19. One of Texas’ top infectious disease experts joins us. We’ll ask Dr. Peter Hotez all we can about the latest spread of the coronavirus, the vaccine, and what we need to know here in Texas. Meanwhile, a Texas-led challenge to DACA is in court. Why it matters even though a Biden presidency is just around the corner. And redistricting will be a top priority when Texas lawmakers start the next legislative session. We’ll break down how they’ll draw maps. And we’re not letting Senator Ted Cruz get away with a bold claim without putting it through a fact-check. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: December 8, 2020
He is set to become, if not a household name, a statewide presence in politics: just who is Dade Phelan and why should everyday Texans care? We’ll explain. Also, by court order, the Trump administration says it has restored the deferred deportation program called DACA. But recipients remain fearful of its future. Also the change in Texas law that left some Texas cities, hard hit by the pandemic with fewer hospitals than they used to have. And questions raised about why so many c-sections concentrated at certain Texas hospitals? Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: December 7, 2020
Front line workers in Texas get to get COVID-19 vaccines but educators and staff are demanding a better place in in the vaccination line. We’ll have details. Plus as Texas lawmakers get ready to start a new session, both republicans and democrats prepare to take on issues of voter fraud and voter access. Also, powering up: with a new administration in Washington, what’s set to change for the energy capitol of the U.S.? And billions of federal dollars for pandemic relief and time’s running out for Texas to spend it all. Where’s the money going? Plus listener questions about COVID-19 and more today on the Texas Standard:
Guacamole Chalupa With Beans, Please
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a widespread economic impact. Many small businesses have had to close their doors. This Typewriter Rodeo poem remembers one.
Texas Standard: December 4, 2020
As hospital ICU units statewide again fill with COVID-19 patients, new restrictions are taking hold. Judge Clay Jenkins of Dallas county issues new orders curbing business activity, but admits it won’t be enough and calls on Texans to embrace a wartime patriotism to combat the virus. Our conversation with him coming up. Also, some Houston families in limbo as their loved ones remain locked up in Venezuela, the latest chapter in the story of the CITGO 6. And Selena returns to screen, this time with a distinctly Texan flavor, thanks to a producer who hails from The Valley. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: December 3, 2020
The countdown to the holidays: how the numbers add up in the battle against the pandemic in Texas. Another story we are tracking: a new study finds a strong correlation between cancer and living within 30 miles of an oil refinery. What this could mean for some 6 million Texans in the nation’s top oil producing state. And it was known as Mexico’s revolution, but the impact on Texas was nothing short of revolutionary, now the story of the women on the front lines. Plus it’s not just for arts and crafts anymore, many small Texas businesses find pandemic business booming online. Omar Gallaga on the Etsy effect. Those stories and much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: December 2, 2020
With Texas reporting new record high numbers of Coronavirus cases, a warning from Washington that more needs to be done, we’ll have details. Also, as the fight against COVID-19 continues, setbacks reported in the war against human trafficking in Texas. Plus high hopes versus realistic expectations: with change at the White House, what Texas immigrant rights advocates think they’ll see when it comes to changes on the ground. And rarely has a nation been so well served by a people so ill treated. Now the postal service set to celebrate the Japanese American soldiers who saved thousands of Texans in WWII. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: December 1, 2020
A downturn in travel. Layoffs in the energy industry, struggling small businesses, what’s it all add up to? Comptroller Glenn Hegar delivers some grim news about the Texas budget to lawmakers. But there’s a bit of a surprise, too: the news is not as bad as some feared. We’ll talk with him. Also, the after effects of COVID-19: could they linger even after the pandemic has passed? What known and isn’t about longer term health effects. And decades after they took off from Texas bases during WWII, the women with silver wings get overdue recognition…their story and much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: November 30, 2020
The timetable for COVID-19 vaccines in Texas? The first doses could be here within days, says the governor. We’ll have more on the state’s plans for a rollout of Pfizer’s Coronavirus vaccine in Texas, who gets it and when. Bob Garret of the Dallas Morning news with details. Also more on the incoming Biden administrations plans for fighting the pandemic. And contraband crossing the border: not drugs coming into the U.S., but arms going south to Mexico. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: November 26, 2020
It’s Thanksgiving Day and we’re re-broadcasting a special show for you. Overlooked No More: How Asian Texans shape the state. Today we’ll talk about How the Asian American community has changed since 1870, the first time the U.S. census counted people from China to today. Also, we’ll meet a group called the “Pershing Chinese” – a story of Chinese immigration through Mexico. Then we’ll travel to the border where a vibrant Filipino community settled. And is it time to re-evaluate the holidays we officially recognize in Texas? All of those stories and more on today’s special edition of the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: November 27, 2020
Today we once again present our Ofrendas: our offering of sounds honoring the lives of those who have left us.This a re-broadcast of Ofrenda – A Decimation of People, A Celebration of Life. We’ll take a look at the soothing tradition of remembering the dead through food, color and music. In a year when Texas has been hit again by natural disasters, a global pandemic and an economy that is fighting to stay afloat, We’ll see Texans pulling together to feed each other. And how the mystery of the Monarch butterfly invites us to think about re-birth and the afterlife. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: November 24, 2020
How did an agency that oversees managing office space and procuring supplies come to play such a role in the presidential transition? Gimme a T for transition: what changes and how for Team Biden with an election acknowledgement by a key government agency? Also, who Biden’s tapping for his administration and what it could mean for Texas. Plus Mexico’s president also slow to concede the outcome of the U.S. presidential election. What that could mean for relations with our crucial neighbors to the south. And before the family gatherings begin, a north Texas family offers a warning informed by experience. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: November 23, 2020
Cars line up for miles outside food banks in our big cities. On this Thanksgiving week, the state of food insecurity in the state of Texas. As many Texans prepare for a big Thanksgiving dinner, others struggle with the choice of whether to leave the lights on or put food on the table. We’ll explore. Meanwhile health officials worry that holiday gatherings could become super spreader events. We’ll hear about the push for safety precautions to combat COVID-19 as case numbers rise statewide. Plus as national media focuses on the Latino vote, the case that the Tejano vote could be a better indicator. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: November 19, 2020
As a new wave of COVID-19 cases sweeps across the state, a strikingly different response from Governor Abbott compared to the last statewide surge. We’ll hear what health experts are saying. Also, more on an emergency treatment approved by the FDA. And as those cases rise, a test of faith for some Catholics called back to the pews. And a forthcoming vote on a new sex education curriculum Texas LGBTQ advocates say falls far short. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: November 18, 2020
Amplifying the voices of Texas’s Black legislators. We’ll tell you about a revived effort. And remember that Texas County with no confirmed coronavirus cases? Yeah. That didn’t last. What’s going on in Loving County. Plus, how the oil bust has also led to a land value bust. How it’s playing out in the Permian Basin. And could we call what’s happening in the White House right now a coup? The answer from an expert in authoritarian regimes might surprise you. We’ll put it into context. And we’ll fact-check a claim about early voting and voter fraud. All of that and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: November 16, 2020
Texas’ top law enforcement official Ken Paxton faces more legal hot water, this time from some of his own former top aides. We’ll have the latest. Also, a city’s convention center transformed into a field hospital as COVID-19 cases soar in El Paso. We’ll have more. And lessons for the lockdown era: a book to help kids cope with the Coronavirus. Also the twists and turns of Texas elections without straight ticket voting. And we’ll take a closer look at what drove so many young latinos and latinas to the polls. Plus the re-release of a mid-century classic offers a critical re-examination of Texas small town life. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard: