It’s a who’s who of Texas politics and it happens over one weekend each September. And we’re there- broadcasting live from the Texas Tribune Festival.
Today we’re coming to you from one of the most iconic streets in Texas: Congress Avenue in Austin. Where thousands of political movers and shakers from across Texas and the nation, have descended to discuss the state of the Lone Star State and our future. From immigration to criminal justice, voter participation, local control and the shrinking political center… it’s all on the table. So, pull up a chair for a special edition of the Texas Standard.
Election
Midterms
As newscasters and other political junkies are fond of pointing out, only a few weeks remain until November’s midterm elections. And fewer reamin until the deadline to register to vote. That was the inspiration for this Typewriter Rodeo poem.
Texas Standard: September 24, 2018
9 people dead, 22 others injured, since 2006 because of natural gas leaks. What are Texas regulators doing about it? An investigative reporter with the Dallas Morning News tells us about dangers facing homeowners due to natural gas leaks and the failure of Texas regulators to to hold companies accountable. We’ll hear details. And going up? Normally gas prices drift lower as we move into fall, but a 4 year high in the price of crude today has some worried. We’ll look at what’s behind it. And our attitude toward doctors: bad for our health? All of that and then some coming up today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: September 20, 2018
They called it the Battle of the Sexes, although to many it resembled a circus. We’ll take a look at an event staged in Houston in the 70’s that reverberates even today. Also, the decision stands: the Supreme Court refuses to intervene in a lower court ruling that may force political nonprofits to reveal major donors. What it might mean for the midterms. And beyond all the talk of trade wars, tariffs now hitting texans down on the farm. We’ll take a look. And you didn’t rent the movie: you bought it online. But you might not be able to keep it? How the digital age is redefining what’s yours and what might not be. All of that and a whole lot more on today’s Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: September 18, 2018
Official summons is what the envelope says. Would you open it? An election year fundraising letter triggers outrage and questions of legality: we’ll explore. Also our era of political coarseness and division, how will historians see us tomorrow? Pulitzer prize winning author Doris Kearns Goodwin tells us how history may be able to help us get thru our times today. Also a breakthrough curriculum for latino/latina studies. And electric scooters swarm the streets of Texas big cities, some see them a public nuisance, but could they signal better times for Texas bicyclists? We’ll take a look. And the tale of the last town crier in America and so much more on today’s Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: September 17, 2018
Less than a month do go before the deadline for registering to vote in the midterms, do you know if you’re registered? We’ll have a Texas primer. Also, a border patrol officer has been arrested and charged with the murders of 4 women. The victims all worked as prostitutes. We’ll tell you what authorities are saying. And with Florence and before that Harvey, the greatest threat: flooding. Has our current hurricane rating system left us twisting in the wind? Plus Texas beat USC this weekend, but once upon a time, USC pushed Texas across the line to desegregate the gridiron. We’ll hear how and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: September 4, 2018
Chaos as the Kavanaugh confirmation hearings kick off on capitol hill. But as the focus falls on the high court, another judicial transformation underway? We’ll take a look. Also, it’s long been called the sleeping giant in Texas politics: the latino vote. Texas Democrats are trying wake that giant and do something that’s been difficult in the past: get them to the polls in bigger numbers. We’ll explore. And labor groups scoring victories in a push for paid leave, but are they wasting time and money? Plus chasing Lightin’ in Houston: a 1959 recording of bluesman Lightnin’ Hopkins back in print. We’ll explore his hold on Texas and American music, plus a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: August 22, 2018
Guilty: two former top aides to Donald Trump. But what do the convictions mean for the presidency and American politics going forward? We’ll take a look. Also, a felon can’t hold public office in Texas according to state law, but a man convicted of voluntary manslaughter is on the ballot for Austin city council. The how, why, and what it might mean for Texas elections. And the UNT professor try ing to set a Guinness world record for the longest history lecture ever delivered…Texas history, of course. Plus the case for a Texas monument to two heroes in a bass boat. Commentator W.F. Strong explains his rationale. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: August 9, 2018
Two very different rulings on two very similar cases. What it means when the 5th and the 9th circuit court’s disagree? We’ll explore. Plus Mexico’s president elect receives his certificate of ratification: The electoral commission says yes, you are the winner. We’ll explore the implications. And fever ticks can kill cattle but regulations on treating fever ticks? Those cause headaches and other complications. We’ll tell you more. And are you dreaming about space and looking for ways to get there? We’ll take a look at a summer camp helping kids get closer to their dreams. And another one of those too good to be true stories, are we talking about Movie Pass? Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard.
Texas Standard: August 8, 2018
A bunch of attorneys shined up their shoes this morning, they’re heading to court to for Texas v Nielsen, we’ll look at the details. Plus, Houston cops are learning to speak Mandarin, hoping to fill a huge void. And I know you’ve heard about Mexico’s drug war, but you’ve never heard it this way? A new book called Don’t Send Flowers from Corpus Christi and a woman on a quest to hear what it means to live in a black body. Plus, 8 hour lines at the DMV?? Weren’t super centers supposed to fix those? Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: August 2, 2018
Credit card hacking, vote hacking and energy grid hacking… What’s actually being done to protect U-S cyber security? We’ll take a look. And the years-long effort to re-write the code that guides how the state’s capital city grows could be completely thrown out. Has it really gone so horribly wrong? Also the country’s first trillion dollar company won’t be a Texas oil giant but a tech company with a big footprint in the state. We’ll explain. Plus, how will generations to come remember Hurricane Harvey? A project designed to preserve digital stories of the storm. And a new effort to understand a mysterious and devastating phenomenon in the waters of the Texas Gulf Coast. We’ll tell you about that and more on todays Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: July 18, 2018
Helsinki’s halo effect for the left? If the Texas Senate contest is any indication, it could mean stiffer pushback from Democrat challengers, we’ll have details. Also, we’ll take a closer look at how the President’s remarks at the summit with Russia might already be reflected in the race between Beto O’Rourke and Ted Cruz. Kevin Diaz of the Houston Chronicle joins us from Washington. Plus, what would be whistleblowers are telling us about conditions in immigrant detention centers in the Rio Grande Valley. And the fifth highest paid University administrator in the nation talks about student debt: Texas A&M’s John Sharp joins us and so much more on the National News Show of Texas:
Texas Standard: July 17, 2018
It’s being called by some treasonous; more and more Republicans now breaking with the President. Words matter. We’ll try to decode them. Also, MS-13, a hyper violent gang from Central America at the center of a new litmus test in U.S. politics. How much of a threat does the gang really pose in the Lone Star State? And how the zero-tolerance border backlash has put some San Antonio lawyers in the national spotlight raising 20 million dollars to help separated families. Plus in our spotlight on health: what looks like a psychiatrist shortage in west Texas. And east Texas bugs beware: the mosquito assassins are in the air. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: July 2, 2018
The biggest change in Mexico’s government since the end of single party rule. A populist from the left who could affect Texas big time. President elect Lopez Obrador has pledged to make Mexico great again, or something very much like it. Possibly renationalizing the oil industry after major new investment from Texas energy companies. What price the Mex-Tex flip-flop? And when good cops find their departments getting bad press, there’s a surprising impact. New research from the University of Texas suggests empathetic officers become worse at their jobs. We’ll hear the how and why. All of those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: June 29, 2018
Should immigration and customs enforcement be dissolved? It’s not just democratic socialists asking, it’s some of the agents themselves, we’ll explore. Also grumblings south of the border as Mexico prepares to go to the polls and pick a new president. And polls point to a victory for a man described as a Trump of the Mexican left. We’ll have an update of these final hours before balloting begins. And Texas Senator Ted cruz accused Facebook’s CEO of liberal bias. Now reports say social media honchos have been huddling in secret with GOP leaders. We’ll hear what’s on their agenda. Plus the week in Texas politics and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: June 6, 2018
It was the biggest primary day so far. On the day after, what do the numbers tell Texas about the shape of the midterms to come? We’ll explore. Also, there’ve been lawsuits and noisy protests against school boards across the state as some districts move to replace failing schools with charter partnerships. What’s behind the controversies, and what do they tell us about how Texas is dealing with the issue? And, pain and profit. A year long investigation by the Dallas Morning News reveals how Texas had dropped the ball regulating health care for the state’s most vulnerable. And as the full moon approaches, the mystery of the Texas stonehenge, revealed? Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: May 24, 2018
Can schools identify violent students before they commit mass murder? After Santa Fe, the mental health of students in the spotlight. Governor Abbott’s roundtables on gun violence after the Santa Fe High School massacre getting national attention. Now the governor is calling on mental health screening programs to identify would-be mass murderers, we’ll have more. And a clean water shortage in hurricane ravaged Puerto Rico: how Texas is coming to the rescue. And the end of an era at the University of Texas El Paso: our conversation with the outgoing president, once named one of the 50 world’s greatest leaders. And epic low turnout at the polls: what does this tell us about Texas politics? Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: May 23, 2018
Lupe Valdez is the Democratic gubernatorial nominee. We’ll take a look at what she faces as she sets her sights towards the November Election, and Greg Abbott. Plus, we’ll break down the runoff results and hear from the political experts about which races surprised them and which could be clues to what could happen next Election Day. We’ll also look at the conversation from the Governor’s first roundtable on how to prevent school shootings like the one that devastated Santa Fe. And we’ll fact-check some of the claims that came out in the wake of the shooting. Also, drought conditions in Texas are causing some ranchers to take dire measures. We’ll talk to one. Those stories and so much more, today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: May 18, 2018
A shooter situation at a school in Galveston county. Santa Fe High School goes on lockdown, we’ll have the latest from our reporting partners. Also, what could be an important moment in U.S. Mexico relations: a televised debate in the contest for the presidency of Mexico. The front runner? One way to think of him is as a Trump of the left. And a wildfire in the panhandle spawns a rare phenomenon that creates more fires from above the story behind an unusual pyro cumulus cloud formation. Also, they called him the Tex Mex Elvis, now Freddy Fender’s daughter is fighting to preserve her father’s legacy. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: May 8, 2018
The new Texas lawsuit to stop DACA: a top republican says he doesn’t get it. A difference over strategy or some deeper fissure? We’ll explore. Also, teacher walkouts in other parts of the country, now a new report compares teacher pay in Texas with national norms: we’ll do the numbers. And before the system was reformed, thousands of Texas high schoolers didn’t get diplomas because of scores on standardized tests. Now, a second chance. We’ll hear how and who’s qualified. And the Texas expats behind some of Hollywood’s quirkiest movies and TV shows reflect on the journey from slacker land. We’ll talk with the Duplass brothers, Mark and Jay. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard: