Texas Standard

Texas Standard > All Episodes

August 6, 2025

Muleshoe Refuge expansion plan scrapped

By: Laura Rice

Texas Democrats are facing legal threats and potential action from the FBI for fleeing the state during the special session.
Concerns about artificial intelligence are coming to a head with the most recent round of college graduates. How it’s disrupting the job market.
A proposed expansion for the Muleshoe National Wildlife Refuge in the Panhandle had been in the works for years, but now the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is backing away.
The 1991 Yogurt Shop murders in Austin remain officially unsolved. Our conversation with Margaret Brown, the director of a new HBO docuseries revisiting the tragedy.
Plus: It’s been a month now since deadly flooding ravaged the Texas Hill Country. We’ll check in on the recovery.
You can help make this podcast happen by donating at supportthispodcast.org.


Episodes

September 23, 2025

Breaking down new guidances over COVID boosters

After years of failed attempts, a so-called “bathroom bill” becomes law in Texas. We’ll cover what the rules say and how they’ll be enforced.Thinking of getting a COVID booster and have questions? We have answers.Why the National Weather Service offices in Austin and San Antonio are not fully staffed, even after historic flooding this summer.A […]

Listen

September 22, 2025

Why voters in Odessa turned against the far-right local government

Some are calling it a new chapter in the relationship between higher education and Texas politics – we’ll have a closer look at what’s happening at A&M right now and why it matters.Something is missing in a new report from the Agriculture Department: an explanation for the data. Michael Marks reports on why the missing […]

Listen

September 19, 2025

Texas A&M president resigns amid viral video controversy

Texas A&M President Mark Welsh is resigning after a week of turmoil over a viral video and a clash over gender identity content in the classroom. What’s behind Texas’ redistricting push? KUT’s Mose Buchele reports on a political strategy started decades ago. The flesh-eating new world screwworm, a parasite once eradicated from Texas, has been […]

Listen

September 18, 2025

A history of the Texas Civil Rights Project

Remember the Democratic walkout this summer over Texas redistricting? Attorney General Ken Paxton’s lawsuit accusing Beto O’Rourke of bribery and other charges for supporting the walkout continues – but O’Rourke appears to have the upper hand. Recovery funds are finally on the way for many in Houston who suffered damage during Hurricane Beryl and last […]

Listen

September 17, 2025

Remembering Robert Redford’s Texas ties

Programs aimed at helping millions of low-income students earn college degrees is potentially on the chopping block. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s Silas Allen joins us with a look.A series of bills aimed at preventing a repeat of the July 4th flooding tragedy in Texas’ Hill Country has passed, but some are asking if they go […]

Listen

September 16, 2025

Matthew McConaughey returns with ‘Poems & Prayers’

Hurricane Harvey caused historic flooding in Houston. Why developers are once again building homes in flood-prone areas.Gambling is illegal in Texas, but there is a gray area when it comes to online betting on sports teams: prediction markets and daily fantasy sports.Food banks are reporting steep increases in demand as families struggle with higher costs […]

Listen

September 15, 2025

Operation Lone Star moves beyond the border

From the border to the rest of the state, Gov. Greg Abbott’s crackdown on immigration enters a new phase.The Trump administration’s creation of long, thin military installations along the border is affecting not just migrants but locals as well.Texas has settled another opioid lawsuit. So where’s that money going?After more than 20 years in Washington, […]

Listen

September 12, 2025

‘CleaVage’ musical is a deep cut into Texas plastic surgery history

The contours of Texas politics are changing – part of Republican’s decades-long plan? Texas Monthly’s Robert Downen joins us to talk about what he sees as an unprecedented consolidation of power aimed at ending fair elections in Texas.Also, Texas A&M launches audits of its courses statewide – this after the firing of a professor over […]

Listen