Texas Standard

May 22, 2023

Why the Rio Grande Valley is a transit desert

It started 5 months ago, and if all goes according to plan, it ends this week. Sergio Martínez-Beltrán of the Texas Newsroom joins us with his look ahead at the final days of the Texas legislative session. And what happens to the many proposals that didn’t pass? To understand, a knowledge of zombies might be […]

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May 19, 2023

San Antonio Spurs’ No. 1 draft pick could be a game-changer

A bill would provide $10 billion in low-interest loans that would benefit the oil and gas industry, in the name of beefing up the power grid; there are a lot of questions over the push for those loans, aimed at preventing statewide blackouts. Almost one year after the worst school shooting in Texas history, state […]

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May 18, 2023

Singer-songwriter Robert Ellis returns with new sound and perspective

Texas is on the brink of becoming the latest state to ban gender-affirming medical care for transgender minors. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott asks the governors of other states to provide police and military forces to help secure Texas’ border with Mexico, as the numbers of reported unauthorized entries plummet. Tech expert Omar Gallaga tells us […]

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May 17, 2023

Kate the Chemist aims to answer ‘the big questions’ about science with new podcast

Erin Douglas of the Texas Tribune joins with details on water infrastructure efforts that have bipartisan support, but a chasm separating House and Senate proposals – and just 11 more days to come to agreement. More money for Texas public school teachers? Some educators say the proposals on the table aren’t enough to keep them […]

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May 16, 2023

How the ‘We Buy Ugly Houses’ company preyed on desperate and elderly sellers

Migrant crossings at the border with Mexico are reported to be dramatically down after the end of Title 42. Adolescent medicine doctors at Dell Children’s Medical Center in Austin are out amid calls from politicians for an investigation of gender-affirming care at the hospital. A bill to preempt new local regulations on a variety of […]

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May 15, 2023

How UT scientists are using AI to read thoughts

What happens to a Republican-led plan to provide taxpayer money for private education if the Texas Senate and House can’t reach agreement in less than two weeks? The governor’s promising he’ll keep the Legislature in session. The latest on bills aimed at banning access to gender-affirming care for young people. Mind-reading technology? We’ll talk with […]

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May 12, 2023

Podcast explores whether a Texas Ranger extracted a false confession

Two major changes in federal policies within the past 24 hours having outsized implications for Texas. Change number one: the end of Title 42 rapid deportations. But for tens of thousands now trying to cross the Mexico border into Texas, the deportations continue. The end of an era for the pandemic as the national emergency […]

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May 11, 2023

Title 42 expires as border braces for migrants’ mass arrival

The end of an era, and the start of what could be a dramatic new chapter in the history of border and immigration policy. Title 42 ends at the stroke of midnight, and predictions of a period of chaos at the border are coming from President Biden on down. We’ll talk to someone on the […]

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