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Groups suing over SpaceX’s explosions, environmental impact

Published reports say the Biden administration is set to send 1,500 troops to the border with Mexico ahead of Title 42’s repeal.

As the Texas Legislature enters the home stretch of the 88th session, we’ll hear about the latest on efforts to pre-empt local government regulations.

The South Texas liftoff and explosion of the SpaceX Starship on April 20 has sparked legal action from environmental groups against the Federal Aviation
Administration. We’ll hear from one of the attorneys suing the government.

And a prominent member of Congress asks a judge in northern Texas to change the way the courts there do business.

The questions on local ballots across Texas this May election

Early voting is underway statewide for the May 6 elections. What’s at stake? A roundtable of reporters survey the landscape.

New emissions rules from the EPA could mean some big changes coming to Texas coal plants.

Changes to a bill restricting purchases of property by citizens of China, North Korea, Russia and Iran aren’t good enough, says Texas State Rep. Gene Wu. He says it’s discrimination.

And an axe murder in a North Texas suburb in the 1980s is now the focus of a new HBO Max series. We’ll talk to the director of “Love & Death”.

Lawmaker Gene Wu using Reddit to explain Texas Legislature

The clash between city leaders and state lawmakers is set to reach a new level at the Capitol. How state lawmakers are trying to crack down on policies by local prosecutors not to pursue certain cases.

A Texas researcher is pursuing a key to fight aging with the help of small monkeys.

We talk with Rep. Gene Wu, whose videos about how Texas politics actually works have blown up on social media.

In West Texas, concerns about growing tourism and the environmental impact spawn a plan to expand Big Bend National Park by purchasing adjacent land and giving it to the park.

Plus the legacy of San Antonio businessman B.J “Red” McCombs.

Las Jefecitas: using comida to sustain immigrant households.

Many immigrants have leveraged the delicious cuisines of their países as a means of income and work when they first arrive in the United States. Even before setting up a taco truck or even a brick and mortar, we see vendedoras earning their income by selling tacos out of their hieleritas in grocery store parking lots or wherever they know they’ll find foot traffic. In this episode we explore what motivates these women to leave their kitchens and go out into these parking lots. We discuss these informal economies and how they look in today’s digital age. We also spend time at La Mujer Obrera and Cafe Mayapán to see how the organization supports immigrant and indigenous women by training and employing them.

Decolonizing Maíz

Corn is the most important crop of the Americas. It sustained the Western Hemisphere for centuries, and with the colonization of its lands, came the colonization of corn. In the past century, corn went from maíz production to mass production, with companies modifying it and depleting it of its natural riches. In this episode we rally with masa makers on a journey to reconnect our comunidades with the nutrients and flavors of the superfood in a more pure form than the mass-produced maseca, with which many of us are familiar. We talk to Andres Garza, now Nixta Taqueria’s Director of Masa Development and Fermentation, Olivia Lopez, chef and co-owner of Molino Olōyō in Dallas, Texas, and Julian Maltby of Mercado Sin Nombre in Austin, TX about decolonizing the once magical maiz and the many shapes of tacos being made with their corn tortillas.

Smoked Beef Barbacoa

Barbacoa, from Sunday traditions to everyday goodness, barbacoa continues to evolve and surprise us. In this episode, we talk barbacoa basics before chatting with Joel Garcia, owner and pitmaster at Teddy’s Barbecue in Weslaco, Texas. Joel shares his barbecue and barbacoa story and how smoking beef heads takes barbacoa to the next level.

Vitamina T

Don’t forget to take your Vitamin T! That’s T for Tacos, Tortas, and Tamales. In this episode, taco journalist Mando Rayo and bilingual educator Suzanne Garcia-Mateus sit down and browse through the spanglish children’s book that they co-wrote called Vitamina T for Tacos. They connect over their shared experiences of growing up bilingual and speaking spanglish and how that motivated them to write a book that represented the complex culture that they didn’t see in children’s books when they were growing up.

Taco Identity

Latino culture isn’t exactly known to be LGTBQia+ friendly. We’ve seen this through some of our biggest cultural icons, who remained closeted their entire lives. Much of the intolerance is driven by machismo in our culture, which can be prevalent in spaces like taquerias. We connect with Angel Cabrera, owner of Tacos Doña Lena in Houston, and Kristen Martinez, owner of MB Foodhouse in Minneapolis, about their experience in the taco community. They share with us how they have persevered and risen above the odds… even during a pandemic.

Texas Standard: May 9, 2022

Texans overwhelming approved two constitutional amendments promising some tax relief. So what happens now? We’ll take a look. We’ll also dive deep into one Dallas neighborhood for some understanding of the challenges facing lower-income renters everywhere. And the head of the state’s juvenile justice department resigned just over a week ago. Why the timing has some advocates worried. Plus eyes are on an annual celebration in Russia this year, we’ll have what a Texas-based expert is watching for. And Lockhart, Texas is synonymous with BBQ, but it’s a veggie-growing enterprise there that’s caught our attention. We took a trip to find out why what’s going on there is so cutting edge. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: March 15, 2021

Texans 50 or over, get in line. New rules take effect opening up vaccine eligibility, the trouble? Finding enough doses. Coming up disputes between the feds and state officials over whether Texas is getting enough vaccine doses in its fight against COVID-19. Also, efforts by the republican legislature in Texas to curb the powers of the governor during a pandemic. Now a priority item in the house. We’ll hear why. Also more listener questions about COVID-19 and the vaccine , plus our conversation with Austin mayor Steve Adler, the power of the Black church in Texas politics and so much more today on the Texas Standard :

Texas Standard: January 11, 2021

From pandemic to political upheaval, a budget shortfall and beyond, what promises to be a Texas legislative session like few in recent memory. We’ll have more on tomorrow’s start of the Lone Star legislative session. Also, after the storming of the U.S. Capitol, the role of Texas’ junior senator under growing scrutiny amid calls for his resignation. And a new strain of the COVID virus found in Texas, what it means for doctors and for Texans at large. And did air pollution make Hurricane Harvey worse than it would have been otherwise? New findings from Texas based researchers. All of those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: September 16, 2020

Despite less money and name recognition than the incumbent, some think MJ Hegar has a strong chance of making political history in November. Many political analysts think air force veteran and teacher M.J. Hegar has the best chance of reclaiming a seat in the US senate for Texas democrats for the first time in two decades. Also what losing a newspaper means for a Texas town, a teachers’ struggle to wear a Black Lives Matter mask at school, and 80 million unrequested ballots sent to voters? A Politifact check of that claim by the president and more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: June 16, 2020

Bexar County officials among others asking the Governor for authority to require face masks as the numbers of COVID-19 cases continue to rise, we’ll have details. Also, the impact in Texas from yesterday’s landmark decision protecting the rights of gay and transgender workers. We’ll hear from the head of the State house LGBTQ caucus. And almost three years after Harvey, the Houstonians caught in the middle of a fight over relief funds. And the push to rename Fort Hood for a Texas veteran and Medal of Honor recipient who fought with the United States, not against it. Those stories and much more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: May 14, 2020

How to make up for lost time: reopen school for a full year? Texas educators struggle with what to do in the fall and thereafter, we’ll have the latest. Plus, a new phase in the battle against the spread of the Coronavirus as businesses try to reopen. We’ll hear more on the state of testing in the state of Texas. And Dr. Fred Campbell of UT Health San Antonio takes up more of your COVID-19 questions. Also, who’s in charge, where? The back and forth over seemingly contradictory safety orders from state and local officials. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: December 10, 2019

Deadline for getting on the ballot in Texas comes and goes. We’ll take a look at what the list of candidates may or may not tell us about an evolution in Texas politics. Also, years ago alarm bells sounded over a high rate of maternal mortality in Texas. Then the data was found to be problematic. A new investigation suggests it was right to be concerned after all. And a booming business in craft distilling in Texas. But spirits are low over a coming change. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: October 24, 2019

A former Texas governor makes his first public comments on his role in the issue at the center of the impeachment investigation. We’ll have more of Rick Perry and the growing scandal surrpundo9ng President Trump. Plus, more fallout from the so-called Bonnen tape: what’s behind the animus between state GOP lawmakers and local government in Texas? And is it really possible to be addicted to video games? The World Health Organization weighs in, and so does our tech expert Omar Gallaga. Those stories and much more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: January 15, 2019

The nation’s first execution of 2019 is set for today. But it won’t happen. The Texas court of criminal appeals orders a second look at bite mark evidence used in a murder trial, we’ll have more. Also, the political committee behind the upset victory of democratic congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has a new objective: to topple a veteran congressman from Texas who’s a fellow democrat. We’ll hear why. Plus, is the shutdown saving the government money? An expert does the math and more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: March 30, 2018

Through hail and high water, communities in Texas stand again because the weather is NOT gonna keep us down. Join me for a virtual tour. We’ll hit Refugio, Port Arthur, Austin and even Washington DC. Plus, the bombs that destroyed the facade of racial harmony: we’ll tell you more. And who exactly is Ronny Jackson? And can he manage a 200 billion dollar budget? Also oil, cattle-ranching, big hair and Cadillacs. Nothing better than a good soap opera! Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: January 16, 2018

From San Antonio to Tyler, the capital city to Corsicana, schools, businesses and roadways closed thanks to Inga. Though Dallas mostly spared, much of the rest of the state to the east and the south dealing with or bracing for a thin layer of ice causing major disruption. We’ll check in with reporters across the affected region…Also, 2017: the deadliest year in immigrant detention centers in almost a decade. What’s happening and why? And separation anxiety: the law struggling with who gets the frozen embryos after a breakup. Plus the Texan writing a new chapter in the rise of the Black Panther. All of that and more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: June 9, 2017

Obstruction of Justice? Vindication for the President? What did Texans hear in yesterday’s testimony on Capitol Hill? We’ll be listening. Also, on the eve of voting in 3 tight mayoral races, low turnout means all three could be decided by a relative handful of ballots. Will your vote make the difference? We’re checking in with reporters across the state. Plus, obscured by the avalanche of news yesterday, what appears to be a breakthrough treatment for all kinds of cancers, we’ll hear about it. And he’s launched a space company, a solar energy business, a car company and more. But after years of trying, there’s one nut Elon Musk can’t quite crack…and Texans may be paying the price. We’ll explore. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard: