texas

Big Bend

It’s feeling like summer — time for a Texas road trip. That was the inspiration for this Typewriter Rodeo poem.

Texas Standard: May 17, 2018

After Harvey, Houston’s mayor wants to tap the rainy day fund. The Governor says Houston hasn’t spent anything close to the money already there. we’ll have the latest. Also, less than a week out from runoff day in Texas, early voting’s already underway and its not the gubernatorial contest drawing in the donor money, its an interparty fight in the GOP. Where the big political dollars are going and why. And lots of folks look back at their glory days, but few go as far as the 25 year old man, who police say went back to high school and posed as a student. Robert Wilonsky of the Dallas Morning News says his son knew the guy. And the shrinking middle class. Does it matter? Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:

In 15 Minutes, Barbara Jordan Built A Legacy

Andy Warhol summed up our modern, technology-driven world: “In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes.” But Barbara Jordan turned this idea on its head. In 15 minutes, she delivered a speech that gave her lasting, worldwide fame.

She was only 38 when she, on national television, argued for the indictment of Richard M. Nixon for high crimes and misdemeanors. Surrounded by more senior members of the House Judiciary Committee, mostly men with far more experience in government and law, Jordan gave a speech that was so brilliant, she stunned the committee and mesmerized those watching on television.

Here is how she opened:

“Earlier today, we heard the beginning of the Preamble to the Constitution of the United States: ‘We, the people.’ It’s a very eloquent beginning. But when that document was completed on the seventeenth of September in 1787, I was not included in that ‘We, the people.’ I felt somehow for many years that George Washington and Alexander Hamilton just left me out by mistake. But through the process of amendment, interpretation, and court decision, I have finally been included in ‘We, the people.’ Today I am an inquisitor. An hyperbole would not be fictional and would not overstate the solemness that I feel right now. My faith in the Constitution is whole; it is complete; it is total. And I am not going to sit here and be an idle spectator to the diminution, the subversion, the destruction, of the Constitution.”

Jordan’s Watergate speech is flawless in its eloquence. Few people ever reach these persuasive heights – you find it in Lincoln, and Kennedy and Martin Luther King. And you find it here in Barbara Jordan, a rare talent for setting logic on fire.

She was persuasive because she was anchored in the Constitution rather than anger or political posturing. Many worried at the time that agreeing to file articles of impeachment was the same as throwing Richard Nixon out of the White House without due process. She opens the constitution and teaches:

“It is wrong, I suggest, it is a misreading of the Constitution for any member here to assert that for a member to vote for an article of impeachment means that that member must be convinced that the President should be removed from office. The Constitution doesn’t say that.”

Jordan had a beautiful blend of legal and common language, a style that the man on the street can follow and be moved by. She tried to allay these fears by explaining, in Constitutional terms, that all the House can do is vote for impeachment, which is an indictment. The Senate must have the trial and decide guilt or innocence – and punishment.

She again follows the technical explanation with a simpler one:

“The framers of this Constitution were very astute. They did not make the accusers and the judgers — and the judges the same person.”

She follows this razor-like rationale, guided only by the Constitution, to this conclusion:

“Has the President committed offenses, and planned, and directed, and acquiesced in a course of conduct which the Constitution will not tolerate? That’s the question. We know that. We know the question. We should now forthwith proceed to answer the question. It is reason, and not passion, which must guide our deliberations, guide our debate, and guide our decision.”

Nixon resigned a few days later. I don’t think he cared to face this inquisitor.

And it wasn’t just Jordan’s infallible logic that supporters admired and opponents feared. It was her divine voice and impeccable diction that animated that logic, seeming to place it beyond rebuttal.

I have a friend, Dr. Juliet Garcia, who served on a bank board with Jordan. She says Jordan “could read the agenda and make it sound profound.”

When Barbara died in 1996, having devoted her life to serving Texas, Ann Richards remembered her this way. “There was simply something about her that made you proud to be a part of the country that produced her. And she forever redefined what it meant to be a Texan in the eyes of this nation.”

Jordan’s life was truly a succession of firsts: first African-American woman to serve in the Texas State Senate, first African-American Texan elected to Congress, first woman to deliver a keynote address at the Democratic National Convention, first woman to have a statue erected in her honor at UT Austin, and – this makes me smile – even in death she achieved another first. She was the first African American to be buried in the Texas State Cemetery. I do miss her. We sure could use her voice, and her logic, today.

Theatre Kids

This Typewriter Rodeo poem was requested in memory of a school theatre teacher.

STAAR Testing

Some students in Texas are taking the state’s standardized tests. That was the inspiration for this Typewriter Rodeo poem.

Ten Songs About Lovin’ The Lone Star State

About six months ago, I took a look at songs about Texas towns – “Amarillo by Morning,” “Galveston,” “La Grange,” “Streets of Laredo,” “China Grove,” etc. Now I figure, why not just do Texas? Let’s talk about songs that show their love for Texas in a Texas-sized way – paying homage to the whole state and her irresistible charms.

So this would leave out songs like those already mentioned, and also those that have Texas in the title, but are either primarily instrumental songs or have no specific lyrics of Texas praise or adoration. Much as I love Stevie Ray Vaughn’s “Texas Flood,” it doesn’t qualify here. Neither does “The Yellow Rose of Texas,” since it is a song about loving one incredible Texas woman, but not the state.

We must begin, I suppose, with our official state song, “Texas, Our Texas,” written in 1924, by William Marsh, a British immigrant from Liverpool.

Another early classic would have to be “Deep in the Heart of Texas,” written in 1941 and first recorded by Perry Como. But probably the best-known version is this one by Gene Autry.

Just a few years later, Ernest Tubb gave us another classic that could have been used by The Texas Travel Bureau as their theme song; “There’s a Little Bit of Everything in Texas.” Willie Nelson covered it in 1993.

In 1975, The Charlie Daniels Band released its Texas anthem simply titled. “Texas,” on the album “Nightrider.”

Sometimes we show how much we love something by how much we miss it – by how much we long for it. That’s what George Strait did in “Can’t See Texas From Here,” from his 1982 album, “Strait from the Heart.” And I believe it was.

Gary P. Nunn gave us “London Homesick Blues,” which is hard not to put on the list. But from the same 1984 album, “Home With the Armadillo,” we get “What I Like About Texas.” That’s  dead solid perfect. Bet Gary hadn’t had to pay for a Beltbuster or Blizzard since 1984.

I first heard the song “Texas” by the British singer Chris Rea while driving across west Texas in 1989, appropriately under a big yellow moon, on Highway 90 south of Van Horn, a road that goes on forever.

And you certainly know “God Blessed Texas,” which has been ubiquitous since its release more than 25 years ago, believe it or not. It’s by Little Texas.

Vince Gill sang “I’ll Take Texas” in 1998. And his song did indeed take Texas by storm.

We wrap up our list appropriately with Miranda Lambert, with “Texas Pride,” from 2001. And that’s an ideal title, because her first professional singing gig was with the Texas Pride Band.

That’s my list. What’s on yours?

Texas Standard: May 1, 2018

A Foster care system so dangerous to kids, its been ruled unconstitutional. Should the Feds be permitted to order a fix for Texas? We’ll have the latest. Also, after parkland everyone seems to have an opinion on whether there should be tighter controls on guns. But some Texans with a personal stake in the matter say they don’t have a seat at the table, and they’re demanding a hearing. We’ll hear why. Also, Sprint and T-Mobile want to get married. If anyone has reasons why these two should not be wed, it might be Texas-based AT&T who’s fighting its own anti-trust battle at the moment. We’ll hear why that might matter to you. Plus a surprise endorsement in the Governor’s race and so much more today on the Texas Standard:

Pollen!

It’s that time of year when just breathing can be challenging in Texas. That was the inspiration for this Typewriter Rodeo poem.

Texas Standard: April 20, 2018

Look! In the skies over Galveston. It’s a bird, it’s a plane… No, it’s a plane. And it just might be the next Concorde. NASA’s mission- today on the Standard.

There’s a new policy for meetings at city hall in Amarillo. If you’re caught clapping you might get thrown out. An unusual policy to be sure—but is it constitutional? An SMU legal scholar raises a red flag.

Remember the Alamo? Sure you do. But never like this. Virtual reality comes to the cradle of Texas liberty.

Also why a Texas city ranks #1 for black homeownership. You might be surprised which city it is. Plus the week in Texas politics and more.

Grackles Be Stealin’

Those loud, black birds are infamous across Texas — and they were the inspiration for this Typewriter Rodeo poem.

Texas Standard: April 19, 2018

Too close to call? As long time experts scratch their heads, a new survey says Texas, you’re in for some fireworks in that Senate race. We’ll explore the battle of Ted and Beto. Also, who or what is the Queen of the Hill? Short answer: what may be a last chance for a deal to protect young immigrants from deportation. A Texas Republican Congressman among those pushing for an unusual parliamentary procedure to break the daca impasse. Also, the Waco Siege 25 years on. And the pilot hailed as a hero in Monday’s Southwest Airlines emergency landing, has made history before. We’ll hear how and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Might Have Been Smaller

Texas Standard: April 17, 2018

The Commander is Chief wields a lot of power over U-S military action, but where do those powers begin and end? We’ll explore. Also, it’s been almost 10 years since Hurricane Ike devastated Galveston. But the city still hasn’t rebuilt much of the housing many depend on. And it’s been exactly 5 years since a fire and explosion at a Central Texas fertilizer plant killed 15 people and destroyed a large part of a small city. What’s been done to prevent another catastrophe like West, Texas? Also, Pulitzer prize-winning author Lawrence Wright’s new book hits shelves today. “God Save Texas” is all about the state he calls home, including what he describes as AM and FM Texas. Plus we’ll hear the argument for why it seems Texas lawmakers could have been drunk when writing the liquor laws. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:

KUT Weekend – April 13, 2018

An Austin soldier killed in Syria is remembered as a ‘superhero’ to friends and family. Plus, a solar farm experiment in East Austin. And why are there so many self-storage businesses in Austin? Those stories and more in this edition of KUT Weekend!

Subscribe at https://weekend.kut.org

Distracting Springtime Roads

In Texas, it’s that time of year when everything is blooming and it’s pretty hard to drive right by without stopping. That was the inspiration for this Typewriter Rodeo poem.

Texas Standard: April 13, 2018

Though you may have heard about James Comey’s book, have you heard how the president may be planning to fire back? The scoop on Scooter today on the Texas Standard.

Long before President Trump claimed to be the target of a witch hunt, the ally of a powerful Texan complained he too was the target of one. Why Dick Cheney’s onetime teammate Scooter Libby is making headlines.

Also, you’ve heard of the calm before the storm, what about the storm that follows the storm? Why Texas lawmakers are worried about economic blowback post-Harvey.

And one of the best known actors in Hollywood keeps his heart and his home in Texas. Matthew McConaughey talks about Wooderson, guns and the samurai way.

Texas Standard: April 12, 2018

California and Texas may be miles apart philosophically but when it comes to troops at the border, there may be more in common that you think. The story today on the Standard

A New York Times reporter, embedded with Texas forces at the border, tells us what he’s seeing about military operations. And how this show of force is staying largely invisble to residents.

Women working as reporters tell their own stories to Texas researchers, and the findings point to physical dangers and an impact on the news. We’ll hear how and why.

And what if they threw a party, and it changed an iconic Texas city? It happened 50 years ago- and its ripples are still felt today. Those stories and much more, we’re just getting started.

Texas Standard: April 11, 2018

Texan Kevin Brady may not be a household name in the rest of the US, but after a surprise announcement on Capitol Hill that could quickly change.

What House Speaker Paul Ryan’s unexpected decision to retire from congress may mean for Texas. Kevin Diaz of the Houston Chronicle joins us.

Also, with the Facebook CEO set for more congressional questions, why the interrogation from a Texas senator yesterday is being called one of the more interesting moments.

You Tube Kids-just how safe for youngsters?

And what a massive new study tells us about the implications of holding schoolkids back a grade, come counterintuitive conclusions.

Texas Standard: April 10, 2018

A case of clerical error? A peer reviewed journal questions conventional wisdom on the record setting number of maternal deaths in Texas. Details today on the Standard.

Are military cuts causing more US military flyers to lose their lives? A first of its kind investigation connects the dots between cutbacks and crashes.

Lubbock drawing national attention post-Parkland- for what may be a revolutionary way to spotlight mental health needs among students.

And the “decade of malaise” they called it, what’s it got to do with Donald Trump? A presidential scholar says more than we might think. Grab your platform shoes and crank up that Hi-fi….because it’s time for the national news show of you know where.