Texas Democratic lawmakers board planes and leave the Lone Star State, putting the brakes on the special session. Now what? In a dramatic turn to break the Texas legislature’s quorum, more than 50 house members leave Texas for Washington DC, hoping to stop Republican-led proposals to tighten the state’s voting laws. As Republicans mull a procedural move that could allow law enforcement to track down the absent lawmakers, Texas democrats say they’ll be asking their federal colleagues to pass legislation to pre-empt the proposed changes to Texas voting laws. The latest on this fast developing story and more today on the Texas Standard:
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Texas Standard: July 9, 2021
For some communities in Texas when it rains, it pours. We’ll speak with the mayor of Rockport about the ongoing storms. Plus, a look at how vulnerable Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton may be on his next bid for office. And how proving that major transportation projects do not discriminate against riders can unleash massive amounts of money from the federal government. And how the punishment for a men’s soccer team is affecting a women’s soccer team, today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: July 6, 2021
Today is the day when you will learn what SB7 stands for. In short it’s the voting bill that was killed but could come back, we’ll have the latest. Also, Immigration courts are re-opening today after being out for a year, we’ll have details. Plus, are you one of the 3.4 million Texans who are caring for an adult family member? It’s pricey and it’s uncomfortable to put a price tag on their care, but there may be some help on the way. And do you know your history? What about your Asian American history? And speaking of history and historic moments – the story of the first astronaut to do an untethered space walk. All of that and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: July 2 , 2021
There’s outings and get-togethers planned. The weekend mood for many is celebratory. But doctors worry about COVID-19 variants, we’ll have details. Also, COVID-19 may have been the biggest work-place hazard to our health in 2020 but there are other things affecting workers then and now, we’ll tell you more. We’ll also talk about the when, the who, the what… every question you may have about why are other Republican Governors are sending their law enforcement to the Texas-Mexico border? And trees are much more than a marker for a healthy environment, they can also signal class and even race if you look at which neighborhoods can have trees and which ones cannot. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: June 24, 2021
Vice President Kamala Harris is coming to Texas. Her visit to the border aims to quiet weeks of criticism. We’ll have one view from El Paso. Plus one billion dollars in Hurricane Harvey relief funding disproportionately went to communities further inland. An investigation. And COVID-19 disproportionately devastated Texas border communities. But the same wasn’t true in neighboring New Mexico. Why? And we’ll also check in on Houston’s Fifth Ward and an ongoing fight to address what’s been identified as a cancer cluster. Also if you have one of those smart thermostats you might want to double-check your settings. What some users are seeing happen as demand for energy goes up. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: June 22, 2021
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has multiple legal challenges and now multiple challengers for his seat within his party. We’ll take a look at who. Also, Texas college sports bring in big money. What’s an unanimous Supreme Court decision yesterday mean for athlete compensation? And Texas has lost more rural hospitals recently than any other state. So what’s that mean in an emergency? Plus dozens of Texas prisoners set for release or parole have died behind bars in the past year or so. A new study gets behind delays. And one Texas prison is cleared out to hold migrants. We’ll examine what issues might arise. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: June 21, 2021
The Texas Governor has followed through on a threat to veto funding for the state legislature. We’ll look at what’s next and what else fell to the pen. Also, when Governor Greg Abbott signed the so-called “constitutional carry” law at the Alamo he also signed another. Some say it is meant to change the role of states when it comes to gun laws. And we’ll also reexamine Governor Abbott’s border wall proposal and delve deep into the story of one migrant teen. Plus, redrawing political maps is an important process. But how can you really get involved? Turns out there are some tools for that. And Austin FC had its first home game over the weekend. But what’s it mean for another soccer-hungry city nearby? Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: June 11, 2021
Governor Abbott wants Texas to build more border wall and says state police can intervene with crossers. We’ll take a closer look. Also, Beto O’Rourke has long been rumored as a potential challenger to Abbott. But what do the numbers say about his chances after losing two other races? Plus a Bexar County Sheriff’s officer used a taser on a 16 year-old in a migrant shelter. What the incident might reveal about the system. And what consumers need to know about Apple’s renewed efforts on privacy. Also, how theatre programs survived the pandemic and are moving forward now and a whole lot more on todays Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: June 9, 2021
Democrats and Republicans agree the U.S. needs to figure out immigration. But what exactly does that mean and how do we get there? We’ll explore. Also, gun policy at the Texas legislature. We’ll look at what passed and what didn’t. And what’s in the bills Governor Abbott just signed to address problems with the electric grid? Plus one view from Texas about the ongoing coronavirus crisis in India. And we’ll take a look at what researchers call the seven threads of Texas. Where do you fit into the fabric of the state? Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: June 8, 2021
More than 40-thousand Texas immigrants have Temporary Protected Status. A unanimous Supreme Court ruling affects some of them, we’ll have details. Also, in the first legislative session since mass shootings in El Paso and Odessa. We look at what lawmakers did on the issue of guns. And houses across Texas are flying off the real estate market sometimes more than $100k above asking. What’s the perspective from real estate agents? And what’s the Internet infrastructure look like to serve Texans moving further from the city centers? Plus, a new book challenges the myth behind one of Texas’ most prominent symbols. The argument that we should forget the Alamo. Those stories and much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: May 7, 2021
Changes to the states election laws approved by the house in the wee small hours of this morning. So what happens next? Richard Pineda of the University of Texas El Paso on the battle in the Texas legislature over more restrictions for what some voting rights groups claim are already some of the toughest voting rights rules in the nation. Also in a state with one of the biggest muslim populations in the U.S., not a single state lawmakers is a Muslim. How some in the Texas Muslim community are trying to offset a lack of direct representation. Plus a Grammy winner’s tribute to coastal Texas and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: May 5, 2021
Supporters call it constitutional carry, some law enforcement officials call it dangerous policy. As the Texas senate appears poised to pass a rule allowing Texans to carry handguns without a permit, Austin’s top police official weighs in on why he’s opposing such a change. Also, if you’re a renter should you be told you’re living in a flood zone? A proposed state law may make that mandatory. And the race to get more Texans vaccinated reaches a tipping point, and some wonder whether herd immunity is still do-able. Those stories and much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: April 26, 2021
Despite resistance from Republicans at the capitol, pressure mounts on Texas to expand medicaid. Bob Garret of the Dallas Morning News with an update on a push that could provide Medicaid coverage to more than 1.4 million additional Texans. Also, whatever happened to the George Floyd Act introduced in the Texas Legislature earlier this year? More on police reform efforts at the capitol. And the west Texas county leading the state in a major metric in the pandemic fight. Plus are the priorities shifting for a top Texas sports and tourism destination? Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: April 12, 2021
To everything there is a season, it’s said. But you might be surprised by what season is already upon us. Ross Ramsey of the Texas Tribune on what else seems to be sprouting along with the bluebonnets, as Texas politicians nurture budding would be candidacies for 2022. Also, a vote of another sort in Alabama with potential implications for efforts to unionization pushes in Texas. And is there a doctor on the line? How the pandemic may prove a long term shot in the arm for telemedicine in Texas. And something fishy getting served up in San Antonio, thanks to a British expat. Those stories and more on todays Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: March 31, 2021
Manslaughter indictments in the 2019 death of a Black motorist raising issues about the role of reality TV on policing, and the abuse of police power. Investigative reporter Tony Plohetski with details. Also, debunking myths about migrant children and teens being held in Texas, a Politifact check of claims about what’s happening at the border, the ripple effects of this year’s Suez bottleneck half a world away in the Lone Star State. Those stories and more coming up today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: March 29, 2021
As the trial for the murder of George Floyd gets underway, debate heats up on a Texas bill to punish cities that cut police funding. We’ll have the latest. Other stories we’re covering: a bill to prohibit public school athletes in Texas from participating on sports teams that don’t align with an athlete’s biological birth sex. And new numbers from the winter storm and subsequent power outages in Texas suggest the event was deadlier than Hurricane Harvey. Also, supermarket wars coming to North Texas? And remembering a literary giant. How Larry McMurtry challenged Texas mythology, and changed the way many view the Lone Star State. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: March 22, 2021
50 years after they were declared unenforceable and illegal, could racial covenants finally be coming off property deeds in Texas? Coming up, Texas Senator Royce West on the push in the legislature to remove racial covenants from property conveyances and why this has become a priority. Also, Texas voices from the pandemic, the one from the previous century, that is. And the difficult task of calculating the loss to Texas due to COVID-19. Plus museums selling art to make ends meet. And the oil rally, already over? What it means for the industry and consumer prices at the pump. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: March 18, 2021
Bottlenecks creating a backup of detentions of young people crossing the border without documentation. We’ll have the latest on what’s needed as concerns grow over the detentions of young migrants. Also a wave of bills to restrict abortion rights in Texas taken up this week by the Texas legislature, abortion opponents seeing opportunity in recent changes to the supreme court. And a red hot real estate market in parts of Texas rivaling what we’ve seen in places like California. Demand up, supply down. Are more Texans getting priced out of homeownership for the long haul? Those stories and much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: March 17, 2021
Large numbers of migrant children unaccompanied and undocumented being housed in shelters. So what happens next? Coming up democratic congressman Henry Cuellar on how the Biden Administration is facing pressure from both sides of the aisle over what to do about large numbers of minors crossing the border and being held in detention in overcrowded facilities. Also as violent crime rates go up in Texas’ biggest city, questions loom over the causes. And who’s in charge? The governor demands and gets the resignation of the last remaining public utilities commissioner in the wake of the winter outages. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: March 16, 2021
As federal officials warn of plans to use a Dallas convention center as an immigration holding facility, concerns grow at the border. Republicans are using the rising numbers of border apprehensions to point to a crisis there, meanwhile the Biden administration having difficulty finding shelter for thousands of young migrants in the U.S. without legal status. We’ll have the latest. Also a rift at the top of Texas politics? Plus Changes to voting laws in the crosshairs at the capitol? And an idea comes of age: home power storage for such as crisis as a winter storm. All those stories and more today on the Texas Standard: