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:
Election
Texas Standard: November 20, 2020
Is the presidential contest still a real contest? Texas’ senior senator says it’s still too close to call, we’ll have the latest. Also, he pledged to heal the soul of the nation, but when it comes to immigration, some wonder why that topic doesn’t make it too Joe Biden’s top 5 list of policy priorities. We’ll hear about the concerns of advocates of immigration reform. And airlines may be hard hit by the pandemic, but some Texas towns with ties to the skies are taking off. We’ll hear why. Plus the week in Texas politics with the Texas Tribune and a whole lot 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:
Texas Standard: November 13, 2020
As COVID-19 continues to tear through El Paso, an appellate judge lifts shutdown orders and more Texans pin their hopes on news about a vaccine. With hopes building around word of a covid vaccine said to be 90 percent effective, what’s next? A closer look at next steps and a realistic timetable. Also, not Biden his time: concession or no, the president elect must move forward with assembling a new administration and cabinet. Any Lone Stars set to make the short list? And in a season like no other, can the homecoming mum, and the many businesses built up around the tradition survive 2020? Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: November 10, 2020
He is a major political figure who has yet to publicly recognize Joe Biden’s victory in the general election. But he’s not a republican hold out, either. Texas democrats upset that the president of Mexico, a country often seen as maligned by President Trump, is reluctant to accept the outcome of the U.S. general elections. We’ll explore why not. Also, this is the season for the Texas legislature: packages calling for voting reform and more land at the capitol in the run up to the next session. And NASA says to a company in Midland with big plans for space. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: November 9, 2020
And we have a winner. What changes for Texas in a Biden- Harris administration, and how quickly? With the presidential contest now called, attention turns to fixing what’s broken and moving forward. We’ll have some projections from a veteran politics watcher and professor. Also, the states top law enforcement official facing a mushrooming scandal and new questions about how much longer he can hang on as Attorney General. And digging a little deeper into the Latina turnout in so-called battleground states. Plus, not your parents biodiesel: as oil prices fall, attention, turns to renewable diesels. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: November 6, 2020
The magic number is 270. Is this the end of the general election of 2020? Texas-based political analyst Matthew Dowd joins us for an overall look at where we stand in the presidential contest and what it means long term for Texas. Also as COVID-19 spikes once more, it’s not just El Paso and more rural hotspots that need to be concerned. We’ll have an overview of the state of the virus in the Lone Star State as we approach the holidays. And new findings about covid spread among Texas contruction workers raising danger signs nationwide, plus the week that was in Texas politcis with the texas tribune and a whole lot more when the TS gets underway right after this.
Texas Standard: November 4, 2020
A new political landscape in Texas? Not quite. On the day after the general election, what has changed, what hasn’t, any why? The dominant narrative in the run up to election day was how an historic turnout in a state seldom considered in play in recent years might change the political map of the Lone Star State. Notably: the power of younger voters, the Latino vote, and the fight for the suburbs. Donald Trumps six point margin of victory, and republican retention of control of the Texas house raise many questions about expectations and assumptions in the run up. We’ll explore that and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: November 3, 2020 Election Night Coverage
From the capital city of Texas and with reporters across the Lone Star State, it’s special coverage of election night in Texas. Polls are just now closing across Texas, and in just a few minutes we’ll be hearing from reporting partners in El Paso, Houston, Dallas, Austin, San Antonio and beyond on a night that may well set election records and make history in many ways. Democrats hoping to flip control of the Texas house, congressional seats once reliably republican are battlegrounds, and the race for Texas 38 electoral votes is reported to be tigter than at any time in decades. It’s a special election night coverage of the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: November 2, 2020
One final push before election day 2020. Where do we stand? And what should Texans be looking for as returns come in tomorrow? Reporters from our partners in Dallas, Houston, El Paso and more with the latest on the general election as we prepare for a final vote in the general election and what many expect to be a long final tally. Also the many issues voters will be deciding across the Lone Star State that often get squeezed out by the big banner headlines. Plus a celebration of 20 years of life in outer space and the death of a very good machine puts some El Paso musicians in the international spotlight. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: October 28, 2020
Election day is just around the corner. We’ll start the show with what you need to know here in Texas to make sure your vote is in on time. And we’re watching some U.S. House races that could be up for grabs. There’s been a lot of attention on historically red seats going blue, but at least one Democratic incumbent also appears vulnerable. And we’ll also turn our sights away from election talk for an update on something else with long-term effects on the state: coastal flooding and how a new policy change could impact how we prevent it. And we’ll fact-check a claim about Texas taxes and business regulations. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: October 27, 2020
There’s some hope from the left Texas could go blue in the presidential election, and some likelihood it could when it comes to the state house. We’ll explore. Also, the divisive state of politics right now has many concerned about the risk of violence on or after Election Day. We’ll dig into news Texas Army National Guard troops will be deployed. Plus, misinformation going out before an election is nothing new. But evidence it’s targeting Spanish-speaking communities. Also, when counties can turn any building into a polling place it often means many of those buildings won’t be fully accessible. And a small-town Texas story is getting its shot on the big screen. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: October 26, 2020
Coronavirus case numbers exploding in El Paso. We’ll look at how the city is trying to treat patients as hospitals reach capacity. Also, just over a week left to Election Day and it’s far from just the Presidential race on the ballot. We’ll highlight one sheriff’s race that’s heating up. Plus, transitioning from oil is something even the oil companies are thinking about. We’ll learn today why hydrogen might be a clean, but not so simple, option. And remembering Jerry Jeff Walker. Texas troubadour, Cosmic Cowboy, and misbehaving musician. Those stories plus a local debate over masks, a spooky anthology and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: October 22, 2020
Across the Lone Star State, Texans expected to be tuning in tonight for political fireworks show, but what about policies? We’ll set the stage for a final debate. Plus, Texans looking for unemployment benefits will soon have to once again prove they’re looking for work, but what constitutes a work search in the eyes of Texas officials? We’ll take a closer look. And in Collin county, it’s the academy versus free speech as a professors’ tweet roils a college campus. And a freeze frame on a music scene almost forgotten from 40 years back. Plus, fake news for real? A warning about a rising force in local news that has experts advising don’t believe everything you read. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: October 21, 2020
As Texas’s Governor takes steps to lift pandemic restrictions on businesses, worries grow for a Texas hotspot nearing critical levels, we’ll have details. Plus, 2020 has left tens of thousands in the oil and gas industry unemployed. Now many in the energy capitol of the world looking to Thursday nights debate and what the candidate will have to say about changes in policies. Also, reports of involuntary sterilizations among women in immigration detention. We’ll have a talk with the Texas representative calling for a congressional investigation. And as voters try to limit contact with others due to COVID-19, a method of casting a ballot less talked about than the mail in option. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: October 16, 2020
As Coronavirus cases tick upwards again in Texas, some schools are returning to laptops and tablets. But others are going the opposite direction. Coming up our conversations with the superintendents of two Texas school districts where back to school is the rule, despite concerns about an uptick in Coronavirus cases. We’ll hear the rationale. Also you’ve heard of the great recession. Now the spotlight turns to what Texas researchers are calling the economic “she-session” of 2020. Plus the week in Texas politics with the Texas Tribune and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: October 15, 2020
Theres the vote, and there’s that other count that will determine representation in the Lone Star State. And the deadline is tonight. Have you been counted? Although the Census Bureau says 99.9% of households are accounted for, only 62 percent of Texans have completed the census. We’ll hear about the potential impact and how to get counted before the deadline. Also, An inter party tiff turns into a potential tipping point in the U.S. Senate race in Texas. And when you wish upon a star, you turn into a streaming service? Tech expert Omar Gallaga tells us why Disney’s making a major shift amid a pandemic. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: October 14, 2020
A spike in COVID-19 cases in El Paso prompts the governor to send a surge of medical teams and equipment, we’ll have the latest. Plus, with early voting now officially underway, an overview of how to cast a ballot in Texas. And a claim that property crime is going up amid a cutback in the police department’s budget in the Texas capitol city. Politifact checks it out. Also tens of thousands of layoffs and furloughs: Texas based airlines send Washington an SOS and warn of greater turbulence ahead. And one of this year’s cover stories: the changing face of the American magazine. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: October 13, 2020
Texans get in line to cast their ballots in one of the most consequential election years in modern memory. Polling the polling places as our reporting partners statewide check in on day one of early in-person voting in Texas’ election 2020. Also, Texas restaurants brace for a new post COVID-19 normal. What’s on the menu won’t be the same as it was before the pandemic. And the debut of a new book and documentary: Driving While Black. And under the dome in Austin, a call for more women in leadership posts. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: October 12, 2020
Just one day away from the first in-person voting in the 2020 general election in Texas, and a major legal fight still n play over absentee ballots. A bitter back and forth over drop off points for mail in ballots, even as they’re already being collected. What this last-minute legal battle portends for an unprecedented number of Texas voters. Also, answers to listener questions about mail in voting, and the pandemic. And an unexpected boom in natural gas prices. Plus, going going gone? historic letters under lock and key in Mexico city discovered at auction. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard: