We recap the wild week in Texas politics. Grab a coldie and hang! Learn more about us at ProgressTexas.org.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:The Texas Medical Board has reprimanded the doctors involved in the deaths of Neveah Crain and Porsha Ngumezi, both of whom were denied critical care as their doctors tried to accommodate Texas' ban on abortion: https://www.cnn.com/2026/04/17/health/texas-medical-board-pregnant-women-propublica...Meanwhile a California doctor targeted by a state law against sending abortion medication into Texas has filed his own lawsuit, countering that the law is unconstitutional: https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/texas-abortion-drug-bounty-hunter-law-is-unconstitutional-california-doctor-says-2026-04-17/Texas transplant Elon Musk has been summoned to Paris, France, to answer charges that the Grok AI built into X (which we still call Twitter) has been deliberately programmed to crank out child sex and Holocaust denial material: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/elon-musk-grok-x-france-b2960831.htmlEarly voting in the May 2 local elections starts today, including that $845 million bond package in Fort Worth: https://fortworthreport.org/election-central/The Texas Tribune has published a search tool to find out who will be on your primary runoff ballot: https://apps.texastribune.org/features/2026/texas-may-2026-primary-runoff-ballot/We have TWO live events on the calendar! The first is in Houston on Wednesday May 20, when we'll record a live podcast with the newly-elected members of the Cy-Fair ISD board to discuss the undoing of MAGA damage to that district. Space is limited! Please RSVP here: https://act.progresstexas.org/a/cypressisdpodcastWe're also excited to see you in Dallas for our 16th anniversary celebration on Tuesday June 16! Make your reservation now: https://act.progresstexas.org/a/anniversary2026Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
With the primary defeat of Republican Congressman Dan Crenshaw in the Houston area's 2nd Congressional District, and the ascent to the Republican nomination by the much more radically-MAGA State Rep. Steve Toth, a potential blue flip is most definitely in the offing - in a district that the Trump-ordered redistricting of Texas made just a bit less secure for the GOP. Longtime energy sector businessman (and immigrant! He's from Canada) Shaun Finnie has secured the Democratic nomination, and joined us to talk about this rapidly-changing district and how he believes he can win in November.Learn more about Shaun Finnie and his campaign at https://shaunfinnieforcongress.com/.Thanks for listening! Learn more about Progress Texas and how you can support our ongoing work at https://progresstexas.org/.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:Governor Greg Abbott has expanded his threat of public safety defunding over local police policies regarding ICE beyond Houston, to Dallas and Austin: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/04/16/texas-greg-abbott-ice-houston-dallas-austin-ice-immigration/...Abbott has extended his deadline to Wednesday, and Houston Mayor John Whitmire has delayed a vote to repeal the ICE ordinance: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/houston/article/whitmire-abbott-council-ice-vote-22206835.php...Advocacy leaders across Texas are backing the constitutionality of these policies and encouraging local electeds to hold strong: https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/news/politics/immigration/2026/04/15/549172/houston-police-ice-policy-greg-abbott-mayor-john-whitmire/Michelle Davis at Lone Star Left provides a deep dive into the current complexities on the political left in Texas, and what will need to happen for success in November: https://www.lonestarleft.com/p/yet-another-hasan-piker-think-pieceThe Texas Tribune has published a search tool to find out who will be on your primary runoff ballot: https://apps.texastribune.org/features/2026/texas-may-2026-primary-runoff-ballot/We have TWO live events on the calendar! The first is in Houston on Wednesday May 20, when we'll record a live podcast with the newly-elected members of the Cy-Fair ISD board to discuss the undoing of MAGA damage to that district. Space is limited! Please RSVP here: https://act.progresstexas.org/a/cypressisdpodcastWe're also excited to see you in Dallas for our 16th anniversary celebration on Tuesday June 16! Make your reservation now: https://act.progresstexas.org/a/anniversary2026Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
The strongarming of Houston by Governor Greg Abbott, who is threatening to withdraw $110 million in first responder funding over the city's policy limiting the Houston Police Department's interactions with ICE, is the latest example of state-level politics interfering with the right of Texas cities to run themselves as they see fit. With Abbott running the state government like a Death Star, maybe he shouldn't be surprised to see Texas' major cities slipping through his fingers.Thanks for listening! Learn more about Progress Texas and how you can support our ongoing work at https://progresstexas.org/.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:A major fight has developed between Houston Mayor John Whitmire - who wants to preserve $110 million in state funding by obey Governor Greg Abbott's orders to dump a new city ordinance limiting Houston police coordination with ICE - and members of the Houston City Council, who want Whitmire to fight back: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/houston/article/houston-city-council-consider-repealing-new-ice-22205556.php...Council Members including Abbie Kamin, Tiffany Thomas and Tarsha Jackson say the constitutional rights of Houstonians are worth fighting for - while Whitmire says legally, it's a lost cause: https://www.khou.com/article/news/local/houston-city-council-immigration-ordinance/285-311511a3-25cd-4e10-acba-c2576a1b8149Dallas Republican Party Chair Allen West has quit his post ahead of a no-confidence vote provoked by his decision to return to countywide voting in the upcoming runoff, after the party's call to require precinct voting locations in the March primary led to chaos: https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/politics/dallas-county-gop-chair-allen-west-steps-down-amid-voting-controversy/4010885/Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico leads the nation in Q1 fundraising with an eye-popping $27 million haul, mostly from grassroots, individual donations of $100 or less: https://www.statesman.com/news/politics/state/article/talarico-announces-27-million-fundraising-first-22207662.phpA judge has decided that Jim Davis, president of UT Austin, will have to face a retaliation lawsuit from a student his administration suspended over a pro-Palestine on-campus protest: https://news.bloomberglaw.com/litigation/ut-austin-president-must-face-pro-palestine-protesters-suitThe Texas Tribune has published a search tool to find out who will be on your primary runoff ballot: https://apps.texastribune.org/features/2026/texas-may-2026-primary-runoff-ballot/We have TWO live events on the calendar! The first is in Houston on Wednesday May 20, when we'll record a live podcast with the newly-elected members of the Cy-Fair ISD board to discuss the undoing of MAGA damage to that district. Space is limited! Please RSVP here: https://act.progresstexas.org/a/cypressisdpodcastWe're also excited to see you in Dallas for our 16th anniversary celebration on Tuesday June 16! Make your reservation now: https://act.progresstexas.org/a/anniversary2026Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Progress Texas was proud to join our allies at Environment Texas recently for a terrific discussion on clean energy and its intersection with the beautiful, varied and treasured ecologies of our state at the wonderful Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in south Austin.In this second of two parts, we present a lawmaker's perspective on the state of clean energy in Texas from Driftwood State Representative Erin Zwiener; a panel discussion on smart siting, stewardship, implementation and industry best practices with Texas Conservation Alliance Executive Director Grahame Jones, National Wildlife Federation Gulf of Mexico Campaign Manager Stacy Ortego, American Farmland Trust Texas Smart Solar Specialist Garrett Bader, Apex Clean Energy Manager of State Affairs Laura Merten, and Ørsted North America Head of Government Affairs and Market Strategy Susan Sloan; and concluded by a review of attendee table discussions by Sierra Club Lone Star Chapter Director David Cortez.Learn more about Environment Texas at https://environmentamerica.org/texas/.Thanks for listening! Learn more about Progress Texas and how you can help support our ongoing work at https://progresstexas.org/.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico unveils his plan to raise taxes on billionaires by eliminating luxury deductions and closing the "carried interest loophole": https://www.sacurrent.com/news/democratic-u-s-senate-hopeful-james-talarico-unveils-plan-to-tax-billionaires/...While Governor Greg Abbott is planning to force through the 2027 legislative session a property tax reform plan that will further undermine public school funding: https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/greg-abbott-property-tax-plan-texas-homeowners-appraisal-caps-school-taxes-gina-hinojosa-election-debate-tax-reform/273-9ccf7fc9-dbc5-4785-97ea-cd5fa9212c85Meanwhile, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, as chair of Donald Trump's Religious Liberty Commission, says that the constitution doesn't guarantee a separation between church and state: https://www.fox7austin.com/news/texas-dan-patrick-no-separation-church-state-constitutionA Turning Point USA-pitched live event in San Antonio, supposedly about female empowerment, is actually about female submission and subjugation: https://www.sacurrent.com/news/san-antonio-news/analysis-erika-kirks-leadership-conference-in-san-antonio-is-a-bastardization-of-feminism/The Texas Tribune has published a search tool to find out who will be on your primary runoff ballot: https://apps.texastribune.org/features/2026/texas-may-2026-primary-runoff-ballot/We're excited to see YOU in Dallas for our 16th anniversary celebration on Tuesday June 16! Make your reservation now: https://act.progresstexas.org/a/anniversary2026Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:Texas Republican electeds are uniformly silent at Donald Trump's shocking self-comparison to Jesus Christ over the weekend - however, as of yesterday, the Texas Democratic Party hasn't said much either: https://www.chron.com/news/article/trump-jesus-pope-texas-22203753.phpWest Texas Congressman Tony Gonzales has announced he's stepping down over multiple sexual harassment accusations - Democratic Congressman Eric Swalwell of California is out in similar circumstances, leading to speculation on special elections in both states: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/13/us/texas-representative-tony-gonzales-resigns.html...Both of the current nominees for that seat would be expected to join a special election for CD 23: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/04/13/texas-tony-gonzales-resigning-congress-sexual-misconduct-affair-staffer-eric-swalwell/...Let's flash back to 2018, when Governor Abbott called a special election to replace Blake Farenthold less than three months after he quit: https://x.com/jaspscherer/status/2043834809588346897?s=20Dallas Congresswoman Julie Johnson has introduced legislation designed to prevent a replay of voter confusion that played out during the March primary: https://www.keranews.org/news/2026-04-14/roughly-30-000-redirected-dallas-county-voters-in-election-mess-leads-to-congressional-talk-on-voter-suppression-julie-johnsonGovernor Abbott is threatening to yank back $110 million in first-responder funding from Houston over that city's ordinance limiting police cooperation with ICE: https://www.chron.com/politics/article/houston-mayor-ice-funding-abbott-22204794.php...Houston City Council Member Abby Kamin notes that in making this move, Governor Abbott is effectively "defunding the police": https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/houston/article/whitmire-abbott-ice-policy-22204589.phpThe Texas Tribune has published a search tool to find out who will be on your primary runoff ballot: https://apps.texastribune.org/features/2026/texas-may-2026-primary-runoff-ballot/We're excited to see YOU in Dallas for our 16th anniversary celebration on Tuesday June 16! Make your reservation now: https://act.progresstexas.org/a/anniversary2026Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Progress Texas was proud to join our allies at Environment Texas recently for a terrific discussion on clean energy and its intersection with the beautiful, varied and treasured ecologies of our state, at the wonderful Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in south Austin.In this first of two parts: a welcome statement from Andy Sansom, former Executive Director of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department; an update on the current state of clean energy in Texas from Dr. Michael Webber, Professor and expert in the field at UT Austin; and a panel discussion on the alignment of conservation and energy goals in Texas with Conservation Director of the Sierra Club's Lone Star Chapter Cyrus Reed, Vice President of the Advanced Power Alliance Judd Messer, Executive Director of the Texas Solar and Storage Association Mark Stover, and Audubon Texas Vice President and Executive Director Lisa Gonzalez. Stay tuned for part 2, coming on Wednesday.Learn more about Environment Texas at https://environmentamerica.org/texas/.Thanks for listening! Learn more about Progress Texas and how you can support our ongoing work at https://progresstexas.org/.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:Neither of the Republicans running for their party's nomination for Texas attorney general would be better than Ken Paxton - they both, in fact, are looking to accelerate Paxton's right wing crusades: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/04/13/texas-attorney-general-gop-runoff-overturn-supreme-court-rulings-chip-roy-mayes-middleton/The Texas Committee on House Administration emerged from that Friday meeting with individual fines against each of the Democratic quorum breakers of about $8,000: https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/news/politics/2026/04/11/548833/texas-house-democrats-quorum-break-penalties/Embattled West Texas Congressman Tony Gonzales - already on his way out over a sex scandal involving a staffer - has been accused by a second staffer of sexual harassment: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/second-staffer-says-rep-tony-gonzales-sent-sexually-explicit-texts-rcna266969...The Gonzales scandal, and another involving California Democratic Congressman Eric Swalwell, threatens a wider series of competing congressional expulsion moves: https://www.axios.com/2026/04/11/eric-swalwell-expel-tony-gonzales-sexual-misconduct...Meanwhile the San Antonio Express-News reporters who broke the Gonzales scandal are being commended for their journalistic dedication: https://www.cjr.org/laurels-and-darts/tony-gonzales-and-the-patient-work-of-local-news.phpThe defeat of Viktor Orban in Hungary by a "big tent" challenger who mobilized record turnout, notably among younger voters, shows Texas progressives that it IS possible to vote out an established autocratic regime: https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/europe/hungary-election-viktor-orban-europe-magyar-b2956377.htmlThe Texas Tribune has published a search tool to find out who will be on your primary runoff ballot: https://apps.texastribune.org/features/2026/texas-may-2026-primary-runoff-ballot/We're excited to see YOU in Dallas for our 16th anniversary celebration on Tuesday June 16! Make your reservation now: https://act.progresstexas.org/a/anniversary2026Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
The City of Dallas is poised to step into the global spotlight, as the most-watched sporting event on the planet, the FIFA World Cup, arrives in North Texas this summer. At this critical juncture - when the international image of the United States has faced significant challenges and scrutiny due to the recent political climate - and our domestic tourism economy has suffered as a result - Dallas has a chance to seize a unique opportunity to demonstrate to a worried world the true character and values of the American people, at a time when the it is direly needed. Joining our conversation are three exceptional Dallas-based guests who have advocated for making the most of this chance to make a solid impact for Dallas, Texas and the nation at large. Dr. Rick Halperin, director of the SMU Human Rights Program, Dallas author and historian Michael Phillips, and Hadi Jawad, president of Human Rights Dallas, recently authored a compelling op-ed in the Dallas Morning News exploring the profound potential of their beloved town officially becoming a designated “Human Rights City” before the tournament kicks off on June 14. Read their op-ed at https://progresstexas.org/blog/op-ed-fifa-world-cup-dallas-can-become-human-rights-city.Thanks for listening! Learn more about Progress Texas and how you can support our ongoing work at https://progresstexas.org/.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:The victims of the Colony Ridge real estate scam have been left out of a $68 million settlement against the developer who ripped them off: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/04/09/texas-railroad-commision-bo-french-midland-republican-candidates-forum/The Texas House Administration Committee will meet today to decide how to enforce $9,200 personal fines levied against the 2025 Democratic quorum breakers: https://www.statesman.com/news/politics/state/article/texas-house-democrats-fines-22195322.phpMAGA wackjob and Republican candidate for Texas Railroad Commission Bo French has attacked a GOP women's group in Midland for leaving him out of a candidates forum - an event the group has been trying to invite him to join all year: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/04/09/texas-railroad-commision-bo-french-midland-republican-candidates-forum/The Texas Tribune has published a search tool to find out who will be on your primary runoff ballot: https://apps.texastribune.org/features/2026/texas-may-2026-primary-runoff-ballot/We're excited to see YOU in Dallas for our 16th anniversary celebration on Tuesday June 16! Make your reservation now: https://act.progresstexas.org/a/anniversary2026Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
The coverage by the Texas Observer, a longstanding and legendary liberal Texas media outlet - of a recent hit piece on Houston State Rep. Gene Wu by the Dallas Express, an upstart, well-funded right wing rag masquerading as a "spin-free" media entity - has us thinkin' about how difficult it has become to tell fact from fiction in the news...and that's before we even start thinkin' about AI. Now, more than ever, it's vital to find, patronize, and support fact-based indie media with high standards of journalistic integrity - without whom, we're all at the mercy of fat cats and MAGA propagandists. Our very democracy now depends on selective and informed media savvy.Thanks for listening! Learn more about Progress Texas and how you can support our ongoing work at https://progresstexas.org/.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:As focus on the conditions inside ICE lockups in Texas has wavered, detainees remain confined in dangerous, unsanitary and inhumane circumstances: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tW7WyzvAtg...A celebrated doctor from Venezuela - the 2025 "Resident Of The Year" at UT Health Rio Grande Valley - is himself likely being held in similar conditions after his detention in Sarita on Monday: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/07/us/texas-doctor-detained-border-patrol-visa-freeze.htmlStudents and Greek life groups have begun teaming with advocacy organizations to support their undocumented colleagues, who are left largely without institutional support under Trump: https://thebarbedwire.com/2026/04/09/undocumented-students-texas/A Dallas Express hit piece on the son of Houston State Rep. Gene Wu highlights the importance of journalistic integrity, and the importance of choosing your news sources carefully: https://www.texasobserver.org/dallas-express-smears-state-rep-son-fake-byline/The Texas Tribune has published a search tool to find out who will be on your primary runoff ballot: https://apps.texastribune.org/features/2026/texas-may-2026-primary-runoff-ballot/We're excited to see YOU in Dallas for our 16th anniversary celebration on Tuesday June 16! Make your reservation now: https://act.progresstexas.org/a/anniversary2026Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:Texas elected officials are calling for Donald Trump's cabinet and the Congress to remove him from office using the 25th Amendment before he starts WWIII - but in reality, that remains highly unlikely: https://www.chron.com/texas/article/texas-lawmakers-trump-iran-22194262.php...Even Congressman Henry Cuellar is sounding sensible: https://thehill.com/homenews/house/5820948-cuellar-reverses-war-powers-stance/City and state officials have responded to Corpus Christi's looming water crisis not by curtailing industrial use and employing conservation - but by accelerating drilling and draining of local aquifers: https://insideclimatenews.org/news/07042026/corpus-christi-water-crisis-south-texas-aquifers/...The drying up of Corpus Christi is not a localized problem - it's a harbinger of what's coming for the rest of Texas: https://www.texasobserver.org/corpus-christi-water-crisis-climate-projections/...Turns out the data center boom will not only drain Texas of water - it's also draining us of tax dollars: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/04/08/texas-data-centers-sales-tax-break-billion-dollars/We're excited to see YOU in Dallas for our 16th anniversary celebration on Tuesday June 16! Make your reservation now: https://act.progresstexas.org/a/anniversary2026Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:A Florida-based private school materials company has used a loophole to score funds from our new voucher scam: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/education/article/school-voucher-loophole-florida-virtual-22183576.phpThe Texas State Board of Education meets today in Austin to discuss a broad agenda: https://sboe.texas.gov/state-board-of-education/sboe-2026/sboe-2026-april/april-7-2026-committee-of-the-full-board...The main event for many parents and education advocates: the whitewashing of Texas social studies materials that water down hard facts and global perspectives while amplifying Christian religious stories and promoting "Texas exceptionalism": https://www.kut.org/education/2026-04-06/austin-tx-texas-state-board-education-social-studies-curriculum-changes...Slavery in particular is minimized, especially for younger students: https://www.click2houston.com/news/local/2026/04/06/texas-reviewing-what-students-learn-about-history-slavery-and-religion-in-major-curriculum-rewrite/...Many of the advisors to SBOE, and many of the board members themselves, lack any experience with classroom teaching: https://www.thecentersquare.com/texas/article_30c52773-7b65-42d4-8297-03e4e1cd549f.html...Also problems with right-wing meddling at the collegiate level, as the new Office of the Ombudsman has been granted wide latitude to target Texas colleges for failing to comport themselves in a sufficiently MAGA way: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/04/03/texas-ombudsman-investigate-university-complaints/Progress Texas is the media partner of the Texas Nature and Clean Energy Summit, hosted by Environment Texas, at Austin's Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center on Tuesday April 7! RSVP to join us: https://environmentamerica.org/texas/center/events/texas-nature-and-clean-energy-summit/We're excited to see YOU in Dallas for our 16th anniversary celebration on Tuesday June 16! Make your reservation now: https://act.progresstexas.org/a/anniversary2026Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:A crowd of over 2,000 protestors - and speakers of a surprisingly bipartisan range - took part in a Saturday demonstration against purported plans by the Trump administration to build border walls through Big Bend National Park and other sensitive parts of the region: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/apr/05/texas-capitol-protest-big-bend-border-wall...Assurances that the Trump administration is not planning a physical wall have not been enough to assuage worries: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/04/03/texas-border-wall-big-bend-national-park-ranch-state-park/Trump's FEMA head is a longtime Texas misinformation peddler who claimed recently on a podcast to have "teleported" into a Georgia Waffle House restaurant: https://www.chron.com/news/article/texas-fema-teleporting-22186446.phpGovernor Greg Abbott has taken heat - but offered no retraction or apology - for sharing a fake AI image of the rescue of downed American fighter pilots in Iran on Easter Sunday: https://www.chron.com/news/article/texas-gov-abbott-blasted-sharing-ai-generated-22190447.phpProgress Texas is the media partner of the Texas Nature and Clean Energy Summit, hosted by Environment Texas, at Austin's Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center on Tuesday April 7! RSVP to join us: https://environmentamerica.org/texas/center/events/texas-nature-and-clean-energy-summit/We're excited to see YOU in Dallas for our 16th anniversary celebration on Tuesday June 16! Make your reservation now: https://act.progresstexas.org/a/anniversary2026Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:Texas oil executives, in a recent industry poll, are both bullish on recent profits and production, but also highly uncertain about future prospects due to the Trump war in Iran: https://www.wfaa.com/article/money/business/right-on-the-money/how-texas-oil-gas-executives-feel-about-war-with-iran/287-df0ccee4-9c21-4a6e-9e04-3684d348724a...Those same oil executives now have a clear lane to choose profit over marine life in the Gulf, as their industry has been exempted from the Endangered Species Act by the Trump administration: https://www.npr.org/2026/03/30/nx-s1-5745926/endangered-species-committee-hegseth-security...The Texas economy is suffering, meanwhile - gas prices are up, prices generally are high due to Trump tariffs, and multiple industries are suffering worker shortages due to Trump's immigration crackdown: https://www.kvue.com/video/money/economy/experts-concerns-economic-impact-texas/269-e360e1b8-9f9e-49df-9576-e46f9713d3d7Pam Bondi's firing is meant to silence the uproar around the Epstein scandal, but it is already having the opposite effect: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/apr/03/pam-bondi-fired-trump-epsteinProgress Texas is the media partner of the Texas Nature and Clean Energy Summit, hosted by Environment Texas, at Austin's Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center on Tuesday April 7! RSVP to join us: https://environmentamerica.org/texas/center/events/texas-nature-and-clean-energy-summit/We're excited to see YOU in Dallas for our 16th anniversary celebration on Tuesday June 16! Make your reservation now: https://act.progresstexas.org/a/anniversary2026Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Fresh off her recent appearance at SXSW in Austin alongside progressive legend Stacey Abrams, we're proud to have a talk with Skye Perryman: a Waco native and president and CEO of Democracy Forward, a leading legal organization based in Washington, D.C., known for wielding their expert litigation and policy advocacy to challenge executive overreach and protect democratic institutions. Skye was named one of Time's 100 Most Influential People of 2025 - and after you hear our conversation, you'll understand why!Learn more about Democracy Forward at https://democracyforward.org/, and learn more about Skye's new book Ordinary People, Extraordinary Times at https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/826249/ordinary-people-extraordinary-times-by-skye-perryman/.Thanks for listening! Learn more about Progress Texas and how you can support our ongoing work at https://progresstexas.org/.
We hate to be an "I Told You So", but we did tell you and tell you AND TELL YOU that the decades-in-the-making plan to divert public school tax dollars to exclusive and frequently parochial private schools was not about "educational freedom" - it was about a rebate on the private school tuition that wealthy Texans have already chosen, and a review of the applicants in this first go-round appear to be primed to play those progressive warnings out. Also - big AI techs have been quietly funding Republican candidates in Texas handsomely this election cycle - wonder why on earth they'd be doing that? We discuss.Thanks for listening! Learn more about Progress Texas and how you can support our ongoing work at https://progresstexas.org/.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:Data from the initial field of applicants for Texas' new private school voucher program shows that the vast majority of them are families whose kids already attend private schools: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/04/01/texas-voucher-applications-demographics/Governor Abbott - as expected - is all in on Donald Trump's plan to undermine mail-in voting ahead of the midterm elections: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/texas/article/trump-voter-list-texas-abbott-22183408.phpMany of those masked ICE agents who have been terrorizing neighborhoods across the country are former combat veterans, many with spotty backgrounds, and at least one that was one of the police officers who didn't stop the Uvalde school massacre: https://www.wired.com/story/border-patrol-bortac-borstar-use-of-force-midway-blitz/Texas technocrats looking for unfettered development and profit from AI are dumping millions into the campaigns of primarily Republican candidates in Texas: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/04/01/texas-congress-ai-super-pacs-artificial-intelligence-regulation-2026-midterms/Progress Texas is the media partner of the Texas Nature and Clean Energy Summit, hosted by Environment Texas, at Austin's Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center on Tuesday April 7! RSVP to join us: https://environmentamerica.org/texas/center/events/texas-nature-and-clean-energy-summit/We're excited to see YOU in Dallas for our 16th anniversary celebration on Tuesday June 16! Make your reservation now: https://act.progresstexas.org/a/anniversary2026Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:Donald Trump's executive order undermining mail-in voting will face legal challenges in many states - but probably not in Texas: https://www.votebeat.org/national/2026/03/31/donald-trump-2026-midterm-election-executive-order-absentee-mail-ballots-postal-service-citizenship-list/Governor Abbott has sent out a fundraising letter to supporters in a full panic over Democrats outvoting Republicans in the March primary: https://www.reddit.com/r/texas/comments/1s8xap8/got_a_letter_from_our_very_concerned_governor/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_buttonThe recent rise of GOP "No Sharia" Islamophobia is a hateful solution in search of a non-existant problem: https://www.sacurrent.com/news/texas-news/assclown-alert-playing-a-tired-racist-game-with-the-sharia-free-texas-caucus/A Tyler judge has thrown out a lawsuit from churches seeking to overturn restrictions against political advocacy from the pulpit: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/31/texas-johnson-amendment-churches-political-endorsements-nonprofits-federal-judge/...Robert Morris has more or less gotten away with it - he was released yesterday after serving a six-month sentence in Oklahoma: https://www.dallasobserver.com/news/convicted-child-rapist-pastor-robert-morris-released-from-oklahoma-prison-40658701/...Perhaps a bit more justice for church youth leader and child abuser Luke Cunningham, who got 40 years in a Lubbock courtroom yesterday: https://www.kxan.com/news/texas/new-details-reveal-ex-lubbock-youth-pastors-plot-to-murder-victim/amp/We're excited to see YOU in Dallas for our 16th anniversary celebration on Tuesday June 16! Make your reservation now: https://act.progresstexas.org/a/anniversary2026Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
As federal authoritarianism threatens civil rights, immigration, and economic justice, cities are stepping up to defend democracy. If democracy survives this moment, it will be because cities held the line.District 2 Austin City Councilmember Vanessa Fuentes, at-Large Philadelphia City Councilmember Kendra Brooks, and Ward 9 Minneapolis City Councilmember Jason Chavez gathered during SXSW 2026 in Austin to share diverse, frontline perspectives in this conversation moderated by Francesca Menes, Managing Director of the Membership & Organizing Team at Local Progress. Learn more about Local Progress at https://localprogress.org/.Thanks for listening! Learn more about Progress Texas and how you can support our ongoing work at https://progresstexas.org/.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:Ken Paxton has been lobbying hard for the endorsement of Donald Trump, including trips to Mar-A-Lago to brown nose - both he and Senator John Cornyn have also been making huge media buys in Floriday in efforts to make Trump's TV: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/texas-take/article/ken-paxton-nudge-president-trump-endorse-22155808.phpThe usual West Texas oil billionaires - Tim Dunn and Farris Wilks - have also been dumping money into a terrible cause: the campaign coffers of Bo French: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/31/bo-french-tim-dunn-donation-texas-railroad-commission-2026-election/Congressman and Texas AG candidate Chip Roy is definitely also bought into the Texas Republican brand of Islamophobia that Bo French has helped perfect: https://www.chron.com/politics/article/chip-roy-no-more-muslims-22159376.phpSo what gives, exactly, with this talk of annexing part of New Mexico? It's definitely about oil, but also about "culture": https://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/2026/03/30/texas-wants-explore-annexing-part-new-mexico/We're excited to see YOU in Dallas for our 16th anniversary celebration on Tuesday June 16! Make your reservation now: https://act.progresstexas.org/a/anniversary2026Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:An estimated 8 million people attended No Kings events on Saturday - a solid indicator that Donald Trump and MAGA are in for a rough November: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cq8wy7g1gd1o...Things were mostly peaceful but notably, there was one arrest in Dallas resulting from a clash with Proud Boy-type counter-protestors: https://www.dallasobserver.com/news/no-kings-events-peacefully-draw-millions-e-dallas-skirmish-arrest-grabs-attention-40658381/At CPAC in Grapevine, Republican Railroad Commissioner Bo French called for the deportation of 100 million from the U.S. - that would mathematically include millions of citizens: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/27/texas-cpac-bo-french-islamophobia-muslim-railroad-commissioner-deport/...Also at CPAC, Ken Paxton was more or less the guest of honor, while his opponent John Cornyn didn't show up at all: https://apnews.com/article/trump-paxton-cornyn-republican-senate-cpac-maga-075d6eff33890921319ac73bd853986bA group of voting rights advocates have sued Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson, demanding that any of the 2,724 "potential non-citizens" her office identified via a federal cross-reference last year who have been kicked off the voter rolls be immediately reinstated: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/27/texas-save-database-voter-rolls-removal-dps-secretary-of-state/The Texas Supreme Court has dismissed a batch of lawsuits representing tens of thousands of victims of power outages during 2021's Winter Storm Uri - siding with energy billionaires instead of Texas citizens: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/27/texas-supreme-court-2021-winter-storm-lawsuits/...Learn more about how YOU can get changes started on the Texas Supreme Court this November: https://youtu.be/f5R3OP_ETvE?si=H30O6uhPykbUZx1hWe're excited to see YOU in Dallas for our 16th anniversary celebration on Tuesday June 16! Make your reservation now: https://act.progresstexas.org/a/anniversary2026Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
The second pod presentation from last weekend's Harris County Democratic Party Convention is a live take of the panel of featured speakers, who brought incredible energy to a packed ballroom at the University of Houston:00:55: Host and Harris County Democratic Party Convention Executive Director Jeff Hilton03:09: Emcee and Lincoln Project Co-founder Rick Wilson07:15: Harris County Commissioner Lesley Briones13:30: Harris County Commissioner Adrian Garcia18:13: Harris County Democratic Party Chair Mike Doyle21:25: Congressman Al Green24:25: Texas Democratic Party Chair Kendall Scudder29:19: Former Congressman Adam Kinzinger33:25: Harris County Democratic Party Chair-Elect Traci Gibson36:58: Former Congressman and Powered By People founder Beto O'RourkeThanks for listening! Learn more about Progress Texas and how you can help support our ongoing work at https://progresstexas.org/.
The 11th Congressional District is one of those wildly gerrymandered and gigantic slices of Texas designed to amplify GOP power in rural areas while diminishing the more progressive voices in our urban areas - in this case, stretching from the Permian oil patch all the way through north Austin and Pflugerville. Just so happens, the long-time GOP nominee is August Pfluger, a lockstep Trump puppet who has gone without a challenger in his last two elections - but not this year. Claire Reynolds is an Austin attorney and part-time Terlingua desert dweller who's standing up as part of an historic statewide stand by Texas Democrats, looking to bring needed change and improvement to the lives of ALL of CD-11's wide range of communities.Learn more about Claire Reynolds and her campaign at https://www.clairereynoldsforcongress.org/.Thanks for listening! Learn more about Progress Texas and how you can support our ongoing work at https://progresstexas.org/.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:Saturday will see over 3,000 No Kings rallies and events held across the country with a new all-time attendance record expected: https://time.com/article/2026/03/26/no-kings-protests-cities-where/...About San Antonio: https://www.sacurrent.com/news/san-antonio-news/next-san-antonio-no-kings-protest-scheduled-for-saturday-march-28/...About Dallas/Fort Worth: https://www.dallasobserver.com/news/north-texas-no-kings-protests-when-where-what-to-know-40656896/...About Houston: https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/civil-rights/protests/2026/03/26/547183/no-kings-protest-houston-area-trump/...About Austin, where Progress Texas will have a table: https://www.statesman.com/news/article/austin-no-kings-protest-time-route-locations-22152902.phpIt's looking likely that the national Republican Party, at the behest of Donald Trump, is planning a rare mid-term convention to be held in conjunction with the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, at the American Airlines Center in Arlington: https://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/2026/03/24/gop-tours-dallas-american-airlines-center-as-officials-plan-midterm-convention/Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows reveals his 2027 agenda - which includes the potential annexation of the oil-rich Lea County, New Mexico: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/26/texas-house-speaker-dustin-burrows-interim-charges-new-mexico-data-centers-property-taxes/We're excited to see YOU in Dallas for our 16th anniversary celebration on Tuesday June 16! Make your reservation now: https://act.progresstexas.org/a/anniversary2026Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Lately, Jesus has taken the wheel of politics at both the state and federal level - from Pete Hegseth's pastor wishing God's lethal wrath upon James Talarico while his disciple wages holy war in Iran, to Ken Paxton and Kelly Hancock squabbling over how best to discriminate against Texas Muslims, to Dan Patrick's new Senate committee on religious freedom - formed mostly from Republicans well-versed in imposing their religion on your freedom - Christ, it's been a week.Thanks for listening! Learn more about Progress Texas and how you can support our ongoing work at https://progresstexas.org/.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:A Trump-appointed federal judge has upheld a longstanding Texas law forbidding the carrying of guns into bars, stadiums, school events and other "sensitive places", after Ken Paxton refused to defend a challenge to it: https://news.bloomberglaw.com/litigation/judge-upholds-texas-firearm-ban-for-bars-schools-stadiumsAustin Congressman Greg Casar is joined by California Congressman Robert Garcia in demanding an investigation into the federal immigration-related killing of Ruben Ray Martinez last year in South Padre Island: https://www.newsweek.com/congressmen-demand-probe-ice-killing-us-citizen-ruben-ray-martinez-11733802Islamophobia has become central to Republican political strategy, without much more reasoning than red meat for the MAGA base: https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/islamophobia-as-political-strategy/...Along that line, acting and soon-to-be-former State Comptroller Kelly Hancock has asked Ken Paxton to shut down a highly-rated Houston Islamic private school: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/texas/article/comptroller-ken-paxton-houston-quran-academy-22096036.php...Paxton's response is that Hancock is an "incompetent loser" who should be replaced by current Republican nominee Don Huffines: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/texas-take/article/why-ken-paxton-wants-republican-kelly-hancock-22099291.php...GOP hate has room for undocumented children too, as Stephen Miller continues a years-long crusade to kick them out of public schools: https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2026/03/stephen-miller-public-schools-immigration-plyler/Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:Evangelical Pastor Brooks Potteiger, a close spiritual advisor to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, agreed with a podcast host wish for Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate James Talarico, "that God kills him": https://www.sacurrent.com/news/texas-news/pete-hegseths-pastor-wants-james-talarico-to-die/...Talarico's calm, very Christian response was gold: https://x.com/jamestalarico/status/2036647988182036730?s=20Lt. Governor Dan Patrick has assembled a new "Senate Select Committee on Religious Liberty", staffed mostly by Republicans known for pushing their religious views in their legislating - and, El Paso Democrat Cesar Blanco: https://kvia.com/news/2026/03/23/senator-cesar-blanco-chosen-for-select-committee-on-religious-liberty/...Patrick has also spitefully excluded freshly-elected State Senator Taylor Rehmet from any committee assignments for 2027: https://www.star-telegram.com/news/politics-government/state-politics/article315160066.htmlTed Cruz is scheming to offer to fund DHS excluding ICE to entice Democrats to cave on that funding - hoping they'll forget that ICE is funded outside that vote: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/texas-take/article/ted-cruz-offer-end-shutdown-comes-big-catch-22094706.phpRepublican Congressman Chip Roy is caught on video admitting that his SAVE America Act will indeed make voting more difficult for married women who have changed their names: https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/chip-roy-save-america-act-voting-barriers/Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:That explosion at a Valero oil refinery in Port Arthur comes just as much of the world's supply has been choked off by the bumbling of Donald Trump: https://x.com/jon_rosenthaltx/status/2036266795569459210?s=46...Meanwhile, as natural gas shortages and price spikes are hitting Europe and Asia, West Texas oil companies are burning it off as a price-negative nuisance byproduct: https://fortune.com/2026/03/22/natural-gas-prices-negative-west-texas-permian-basin-burn-off-europe-asia-shortages-iran-war/Corpus Christi residents see their lives turned upside down by water conservation measures, while the energy sector continues consuming water unabated: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/23/corpus-christi-water-crisis-residents-precautions/We're reminded why supporting non-profit, independent media like Progress Texas as a coalition of eight Democratic state attorneys general attempt to block the Nexstar/Tegna merger, which would create a huge TV company piping content into 80% of American homes: https://prospect.org/2026/03/23/democratic-states-seek-to-block-massive-tv-station-merger-nexstar-tegna/The number of families detained at the notorious Dilley ICE lockup has dropped dramatically: https://www.propublica.org/article/families-detained-at-dilley-plummets...Part of that pressure came from San Antonio-based children's YouTuber Ms. Rachel: https://consequence.net/2026/03/ms-rachel-fighting-to-close-texas-ice-facility-thats-detaining-children/The recent book The Myth Of Red Texas explores the real history of Texas which is peppered with populist progressivism - and the neglectful treatment of rural Texans by Donald Trump: https://www.sacurrent.com/news/bad-takes/bad-takes-the-gops-professed-love-of-rural-texans-is-all-hat-and-no-cattle/Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
We had a blast in Houston over the weekend as media partners of the Harris County Democratic Party Convention! Later this week, watch for a recording of all the speeches given in the convention hall - but we start with all of the interviews with lawmakers, thought leaders, candidates and more that we gathered over the course of the day! These are presented in the order we recorded them, between 9am and about 4pm on Saturday March 21.00:40 - Ann Johnson, Houston State Representative, District 13409:53 - Annise Parker, former Houston mayor and candidate for Harris County Judge15:59 - Gene Wu, Houston State Representative for District 137 and Texas House Minority Leader23:49 - Dr. Wil Jeudy, Secular Houston co-founder and Progress Texas board member30:35 - Alejandra Salinas, Houston City Council Member At-Large35:28 - Stephanie Bord, State House District 126 Democratic Nominee40:52 - Tyler Smith, State House District 138 Democratic Nominee45:54 - Josh Wallenstein, State House District 133 Democratic Nominee49:28 - Sara McGee, State House District 132 Democratic Nominee55:46 - Odus Evbagharu, State House District 135 Democratic Nominee1:00:40 - Lauren Ashley Simmons, State Representative for District 1461:07:11 - Lesley Briones, Harris County Commissioner, Precinct 41:10:24 - Beto O'Rourke, former U.S. Congressman and founder of Powered By People1:19:20 - Marquette Greene-Scott, State House District 22 Democratic Nominee1:26:39 - Melissa McDonough, U.S. Congressional District 38 Democratic Nominee1:31:00 - Benjamin Flores, Texas Land Commissioner Democratic NomineeThanks for listening! Learn more about Progress Texas and how you can support our ongoing work at https://progresstexas.org/.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:In an escalation against Democratically-led cities, the Trump administration is deploying ICE agents into those cities' airports - supposedly to help with long security lines, but really as a means to intimidate travelers: https://viewfromthewing.com/ice-is-showing-up-at-airport-checkpoints-your-rights-are-different-than-with-tsa/...Meanwhile Dallas Congressman Marc Veasey is demanding clarity on whether or not an ICE prosecuter nailed for running a racist Twitter account is still on the job: https://www.texasobserver.org/congressman-veasey-ice-response-racist-x-account/Vice President J.D. Vance is the reason traffic sucks worse than normal in Austin early this week - he's in for an RNC fundraiser being thrown by Palantir and University of Austin co-founder Joe Lonsdale: https://www.ft.com/content/43eb6903-0c8d-43f8-a0e6-8c8e81d1c8d2?syn-25a6b1a6=1New polling shows Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate James Talarico with slight leads over both Senator John Cornyn and Attorney General Ken Paxton, both of whom are drowning in massive unfavorability numbers: https://www.politico.com/live-updates/2026/03/20/congress/texas-senate-talarico-cornyn-paxton-poll-00837336...Donald Trump is noticing the threat James Talarico poses to GOP control and is off on ever more unhinged online attacks against him: https://www.chron.com/politics/article/trump-talarico-texas-senate-22090449.phpProgress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
All of us at Progress Texas are looking forward to seeing a bunch of great friends and making a bunch of brand new ones this weekend at the Harris and Collin County Democratic Party conventions, in Houston and McKinney respectively. These events are open and FREE with registration to the public and can be considered a terrific gateway into higher levels of involvement at this critical time - we hope to see YOU there.And, the news regarding Cesar Chavez's abuse of women is difficult to deal with - but it must be dealt with, and unlike those who would protect Donald Trump from his past as indicated in the Epstein files, we're proud to see progressives tackling the Chavez revelations head-on.This episode will air on KPFT 90.1 FM in Houston at 10am this Friday morning, and again on KPFT's HD-2 channel at 11am on Sunday - learn more at https://kpft.org/.Thanks for listening! Learn more about Progress Texas and how you can support our ongoing work at https://progresstexas.org/.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:Energy producers around Corpus Christi already consume over half of the area's water - and as supplies dwindle, they're taking steps to greedily keep theirs flowing: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/20/texas-corpus-christi-water-shortage-oil-gas-refineries/With another round of No Kings protests coming next weekend, progressive activists warily consider the Fort Worth "Antifa" verdict, which paves the way for more aggressive persecution of left-leaning protestors: https://www.texasobserver.org/prairieland-antifa-verdict-threatens-anti-trump-resistance/The "Texas Drag Ban" is now in effect - and while it doesn't ban drag itself outright, it does provide a chilling of the form via over-compliance out of fear: https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/texas-drag-ban-takes-effect-after-appeals-court-decision/Five-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos and his father, whose incarceration at Dilley helped spotlight the terrible conditions inside that immigrant detention lockup, have been denied American asylum: https://www.chron.com/news/article/asylum-denied-liam-ramos-dilley-22085951.php...Meanwhile video calls from kids inside the Dilley facility have been severely curtailed after their stories have gone viral: https://www.chron.com/news/article/dilley-ice-children-videos-22083880.php...And also meanwhile, a wide range of Texas companies and cities are profiting handsomely from that misery: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/investigations/article/trump-deportation-texas-dilley-csi-gothams-21343570.php...And also meanwhile, the adminstration of a mostly-Hispanic San Antonio high school thought it would be a good idea to invite a crew of uniformed Border Patrol agents on campus for a recent job fair: https://www.sacurrent.com/news/politics-and-elections/border-patrol-appearance-at-san-antonio-high-school-sparks-student-outrage/This weekend sees county-level Democratic Party conventions across the state - "the most important political event you're ignoring": https://www.lonestarleft.com/p/the-most-important-political-event...Find your county convention, RSVP and submit resolution ideas here: https://texasdemocraticconvention.com/Progress Texas is the official media partner of the Harris County Democratic Convention this weekend! Come see us on Saturday to say hi, grab some merch, and take part in our day-long podcast recording session: https://www.harrisdemconvention.com/Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:Governor Greg Abbott achieves new heights of hypocrisy in his attempt to use sexual abuse revelations about Cesar Chavez to smear all progressives and unions, while continuing to turn a blind eye to Donald Trump's copious appearances in the Epstein files: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/18/cesar-chavez-day-texas-fallout-sexual-abuse-allegations/Twisting logic to claim a victory from the chaos of the March 3 primary, Dallas County Republican Party Chair Allen West announces that his party will return to countywide voting for the May 26 runoff: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2026-election/county-gop-texas-will-switch-voting-rules-runoff-primary-day-chaos-rcna264075...Republican attempts to undermine voter confidence failed spectacularly in the primary - notably there was bigger Democratic turnout than that for the GOP in four of the five newly-gerrymandered districts from Trump's mid-term redistricting scam: https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/post-gop-gerrymandering-heres-what-voter-turnout-looked-like-in-the-texas-primaries/...All of this is part of a broad, system-wide phase of incompetence, including the strange press for the SAVE America Act and Trump's failure pick between John Cornyn and Ken Paxton for endorsement: https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/5787536-tillis-frustrated-republican-strategy/This weekend sees county-level Democratic Party conventions across the state - "the most important political event you're ignoring": https://www.lonestarleft.com/p/the-most-important-political-event...Find your county convention, RSVP and submit resolution ideas here: https://texasdemocraticconvention.com/Progress Texas is the official media partner of the Harris County Democratic Convention this weekend! Come see us on Saturday to say hi, grab some merch, and take part in our day-long podcast recording session: https://www.harrisdemconvention.com/Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:Arguing in favor of the SAVE America Act as Senate debate began yesterday, Ted Cruz repeated the standard GOP lie that Democrats are systematically encouraging undocumented people to vote in the U.S. - it's simply and demonstrably false: https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/ted-cruz-democrats-want-illegal-aliens-to-cast-votes/The Republican primary runoff ballot is now set, as the deadline to drop out passed yesterday - with no Trump endorsement, both Senator John Cornyn and Ken Paxton will be on the May 26 ballot: https://www.fox26houston.com/news/trump-misses-deadline-nominate-texas-republican-nominee-us-senate...Both are now "trying to drown each other in AI slop": https://www.chron.com/culture/article/cornyn-paxton-texas-senate-ai-22082110.phpDemocratic congressional nominee and Tejano singer Bobby Pulido followed through with a promise to perform at several South Texas quinceañeras last weekend: https://www.expressnews.com/politics/article/bobby-pulido-first-quinceanera-invite-22081332.phpThe South Texas home construction industry has been battered by thinned workforces and slowed sales as relentless ICE raids on their workers impact production: https://www.nytimes.com/video/us/politics/100000010742128/trump-ice-raids-texas-economy-immigration.htmlIt's time to start making a plan to vote in the upcoming primary runoff: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/18/texas-primary-runoff-elections-2026/This weekend sees county-level Democratic Party conventions across the state - "the most important political event you're ignoring": https://www.lonestarleft.com/p/the-most-important-political-event...Find your county convention, RSVP and submit resolution ideas here: https://texasdemocraticconvention.com/Progress Texas is the official media partner of the Harris County Democratic Convention this weekend! Come see us on Saturday to say hi, grab some merch, and take part in our day-long podcast recording session: https://www.harrisdemconvention.com/Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
All across Texas this weekend - Friday March 20 thru Sunday March 21 - county-level conventions are being held by the Texas Democratic Party. It's a terrific (and free!) way to dive into progressive politics, and an especially fun way as a bright blue wave appears to be building across the Lone Star State. Joining us to talk about their individual events and all the reasons that YOU should attend YOUR county event are Mary Higbe, Vice Chair of the Collin County Democratic Party, and Jeff Hilton, Executive Director of the Harris County Democratic Convention - Progress Texas will be tabling, recording for our podcast, and slingin' awesome PT merch at BOTH the Harris and Collin events on Saturday March 21.Learn more about the Collin County Democratic Convention at https://www.mobilize.us/collindemocrats/event/893043/.Learn more about the Harris County Democratic Convention at https://www.harrisdemconvention.com/.Thanks for listening and we hope to see you this weekend! Learn more about Progress Texas and how you can support our ongoing work at https://progresstexas.org/.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:5pm today is the deadline for primary runoff candidates to remove their names from the May ballot, establishing a deadline of for either John Cornyn or Ken Paxton to drop on on the orders of Donald Trump: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/texas/article/trump-endorsement-texas-senate-runoff-22079256.php...Cornyn attempted to soothe the irritation of Austin TSA workers yesterday with cold hamburgers: https://www.chron.com/news/article/tsa-cornyn-casar-austin-22079843.phpThe water crisis in Corpus Christi appears worse than initially reported - actual shortages are weeks away, and total depletion is possible as soon as next year: https://insideclimatenews.org/news/17032026/corpus-christi-water-shortage/This weekend sees county-level Democratic Party conventions across the state - "the most important political event you're ignoring": https://www.lonestarleft.com/p/the-most-important-political-event...Find your county convention, RSVP and submit resolution ideas here: https://texasdemocraticconvention.com/Progress Texas is the official media partner of the Harris County Democratic Convention this weekend! Come see us on Saturday to say hi, grab some merch, and take part in our day-long podcast recording session: https://www.harrisdemconvention.com/Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:The trial of nine "Antifa" defendants in a federal trial held in Fort Worth were largely found guilty of charges against them on Friday, except for a charge of attempted murder, of which only one was convicted: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/13/us/antifa-protesters-terrorism.htmlA marathon debate session is set in the U.S. Senate for discussion and an eventual floor vote on the SAVE America Act - legislation that Donald Trump has characterized as the Republicans' only hope to hold the House next year: https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/5783688-senate-floor-takeover-save-america-act/...Former Senator Joe Manchin blasts Texas Senator John Cornyn for flip-flopping on the filibuster in order to pass it: https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/5780991-manchin-criticizes-cornyn-filibuster-change/An Afghan man living in Richardson who worked on behalf of the U.S. military in Afghanisatn for years has died - less than 24 hours after being arrested by ICE: https://www.texastribune.org/2023/06/06/texas-afghan-refugees-visa-asylum/...Texas CAIR and others are calling for an independent and transparent investigation: https://8am.media/eng/cair-texas-demands-investigation-into-nazeer-paktiawals-death/The Trump administration is clogging the federal court system with flimsy cases against migrants for trespassing on military property: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/16/immigration-military-trespassing-texas/The NPR Politics Podcast took a deep dive on the Texas primary and its huge Democratic turnout numbers on Friday: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1mcvwcI5oZ6XJ6VDTezEvd?si=7b5168420ea24ac2California Governor Gavin Newsom gave a talk at SXSW in Austin yesterday, during which he discussed a possible presidential run in 2028: https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/gavin-newsom-hints-at-presidential-run-at-sxsw/"Mr. Nobody Against Putin", a documentary using Russia as an example of authoritarian takeover, won the Academy Award for Best Documentary at last night's Oscars: https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/mar/16/mr-nobody-against-putin-wins-the-best-documentary-oscarProgress Texas is the official media partner of the Harris County Democratic Convention this weekend! Come see us on Saturday to say hi, grab some merch, and take part in our day-long podcast recording session: https://www.harrisdemconvention.com/Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Texas is an anti-worker state, and working Texans are tired of being trampled by billionaire-bought politicians and interests. You can see it in support of a more affordable Texas: public education that sets our children up for success, quality jobs that pay a living wage, environmental protections that shield us all from pollution, and justice for our citizen and immigrant neighbors under attack.It's clear that tides are changing, and with it, union membership is at the highest it's been in 25 years, with major growth in the South, plus major victories from union leaders like Taylor Rehmet, who will deliver on people-first policies fighting for Texas workers. We can't think of a better leader to talk about labor than the new president of the Texas AFL-CIO, Leonard Aguilar.Learn more about the Texas AFL/CIO at https://texasaflcio.org/.Thanks for listening! Learn more about Progress Texas and how you can support our ongoing work at https://progresstexas.org/.
A theme has emerged this week: as the Dallas County Democratic Party throws in the towel on a lawsuit over denied voting access on primary Election Night, judging the Republican-dominated Texas Supreme Court a hostile venue for that complaint - while our senior Senator John Cornyn reverses himself on the filibuster out of pressure from Donald Trump and Ken Paxton to pass the SAVE America Act, which will allow the GOP to disenfranchise untold millions of American voters - the very foundation of our democracy is now under slow, steady, determined attack.Thanks for listening! Learn more about Progress Texas at https://progresstexas.org/.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:The Texas Tribune collects a lineup of Talarico-isms currently being distorted and twisted by Republicans, who clearly see their reign over Texas under dire threat by the Democratic nominee for Senate: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/12/james-talarico-texas-senate-republicans-attacks-god-is-nonbinary/...They've also conjured a super-creepy and uncanny Talarico doppelganger via AI to deliver these supposedly-controversial lines: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/texas/article/ai-ads-texas-21957736.phpSenator John Cornyn, who has reversed himself on the Senate filibuster in an attempt to deliver the SAVE America Act to Donald Trump, is seen in a video failing to understand what it will do if passed: https://newrepublic.com/post/207707/republican-senator-cornyn-learns-save-act-badProgress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Among the midterm races that in cycles of yore might have seemed without hope for Democrats - but considering the massive outpouring of primary interest this year, suddenly seem possible - is Texas House District 112 in the northeast Dallas area, where widespread dissatisfaction with longtime Republican incumbent Angie Chen Button couples with that Democratic momentum to give nominee Zach Herbert a fair shot. Zach is an attorney, an entrepreneur, a veteran and a community leader - we enjoyed meeting him for this podcast.Learn more about Zach Herbert and his run for the Texas House at https://zach4texas.com/.Thanks for listening! Learn more about Progress Texas and how you can support our ongoing work at https://progresstexas.org/.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:Under pressure from both Donald Trump and Ken Paxton - after years of defending the filibuster in the U.S. Senate - Senator John Cornyn, desperate for Trump's endorsement, has changed his position on a primary safeguard for the minority party in that body: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/11/john-cornyn-filibuster-save-america-act-texas-senate-runoff-voter-id/...For now, the actual end of the filibuster seems unlikely - but Donald Trump is frantic and determined: https://www.axios.com/2026/03/11/save-act-talking-filibuster-senate-thune-republicansGovernor Greg Abbott is threatening a state takeover of Corpus Christi's water system as they plunge into a deep supply crisis - though it's unclear what the state would be able to do about it: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/texas/article/greg-abbott-corpus-christi-water-crisis-22070712.php...Meanwhile, a huge chunk of Texas between San Antonio and south Austin is under a similar threat as the Edwards Aquifer nears its most severe warning level ever: https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/edwards-aquifer-nears-emergency-drought-conditions/A group of reporters at the New York Times analyzes the video of the ICE-involved shooting of Ruben Ray Martinez in South Padre Island - and reveals the name of the agent who pulled the trigger: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/12/us/texas-ice-shooting-south-padre-video.htmlProgress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:New polling from Texas Public Opinion Research shows Senator John Corynyn eight points behind Ken Paxton in the Republican primary runoff in May - a deficit too wide to be overcome by a Trump endorsement. Cornyn now faces a choice: eliminate Paxton from the race by helping kill the filibuster and pass the SAVE America Act in the Senate, or head into a runoff he's likely to lose: https://www.fox4news.com/news/texas-senate-runoff-cornyn-paxton-trumpTrump's war on Iran is spiking profits for Texas oil companies and investors - while also spiking gas prices for the rest of us: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/11/texas-oil-iran-war-gas-prices/Recent Texas GOP smears against our Muslim neighbors makes more sense in the context of a new war in the Middle East - they've already begun discriminating against Muslim schools in our new private school voucher scam: https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2026/03/11/texas-vouchers-islamic-schools/The "Antifa" trial in Fort Worth continues, featuring Trump federal prosecutors mining the defendants' personal lives for evidence of "material support of terrorism" - by criminalizing First Amendment-protected expression and association: https://slate.com/podcasts/what-next/2026/03/antifas-reality-is-on-trial-in-texasThe nearly 2,000 primary Election Night votes in Dallas County sidelined by Ken Paxton and the Republican Texas Supreme Court continue to be counted, while their eventual legal validity remains uncertain: https://www.keranews.org/news/2026-03-10/votes-cast-after-judge-ordered-polls-to-stay-open-checked-by-dallas-county-ballot-auditorsProgress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:The Gámez-Cuéllar family, including their two sons who are members of the acclaimed McAllen High School mariachi troupe, were released by ICE yesterday after a significant public outcry: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/09/texas-antonio-gamez-cuellar-monica-de-la-cruz-ice/Laredo Congressman Henry Cuellar was one of four Congressional Democrats to vote against a blocking of Donald Trump's Iran war funding last week - that resolution would have passed with the party solidarity of those four: https://www.sacurrent.com/news/south-texas-democrat-henry-cuellar-helps-kill-resolution-to-end-u-s-involvement-in-iran/Donald Trump, irked at media anticipation of his endorsement of John Cornyn and goaded by Ken Paxton's pledge to step down should the Senate pass the SAVE America Act, is now again withholding this endorsement as a bargaining tool for a legal tool he could use to neutralize millions of American voters ahead of the midterm election: https://www.politico.com/news/2026/03/09/trump-is-delaying-texas-senate-endorsement-to-pressure-gop-senators-on-save-america-act-00819991An official search of the former Zorro Ranch - formerly owned by Jeffrey Epstein but never searched despite his crimes, and now owned by Texas Republican Comptroller candidate Don Huffines - has begun in New Mexico: https://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/epstein/new-mexico-department-of-justice-begins-search-of-epsteins-zorro-ranch/article_697b6470-861c-4c33-b8e4-1d0c308c006f.htmlWhile Democrats and progressives have celebrated record turnout in the primary, their polar opposites in the House Freedom Caucus appear poised to add a new group of extremist right-wingers to the Texas delegation: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/10/steve-toth-brandon-herrera-house-freedom-caucus-texas-republican-primaries-2026/...One of them is Brandon "The AK Guy" Herrera, who once demonstrated on his YouTube channel the rifle used to kill Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. by shooting at a target resembling Dr. King: https://meidasnews.com/news/texas-gop-candidate-recreated-mlk-assassination-reviewed-shooters-rifleProgress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:As we reported Friday morning, Texas DPS released footage related to the federal border officer-involved killing of 23 year old Ruben Ray Martinez last year in South Padre Island, and it does not appear to justify lethal force: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/06/south-padre-immigration-officer-shooting/...Meanwhile outrage is building over the ICE detention of a family including two celebrated teenaged mariachi musicians who have recently performed on Capitol Hill on the invitation of Republican Congresswoman Monica De La Cruz, after the case was exposed by her Democratic challenger, Bobby Pulido: https://www.ksat.com/news/texas/2026/03/08/mcallen-isd-family-detained-by-ice-high-school-mariachi-student-separated-from-family/...Meanwhile, at the Camp East Montana ICE lockup at El Paso, federal guards are alleged to have been betting amongst themselves as to which of their detainees will be next to commit suicide: https://apnews.com/article/suicide-ice-detention-centers-b2d1cb0e4b579e0d89caabd00aa04e34The expected endorsement of Donald Trump in the Texas GOP Senate race, intended to circumvent an ugly and expensive fight between John Cornyn and Ken Paxton, has thus far failed to arrive: https://www.semafor.com/article/03/09/2026/delay-in-trumps-texas-endorsement-raises-gop-anxiety...Trump has, however, declared that he'll refuse to sign ANY legislation until the Senate kills the filibuster and passes the SAVE America Act: https://www.npr.org/2026/03/09/g-s1-112966/up-first-newsletter-iran-israel-us-mojtaba-khamenei-trump-voting-openaiProgress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Every week, we marvel at the insanity of the week prior in Texas politics, and the primary election - especially Tuesday's Election Night, complete with Republican-orchestrated voter suppression in a major Texas city - certainly did not disappoint in that regard. We once again gather to self-therapize, celebrate a bit, and steel ourselves for the long, uphill fight to come.Thanks for listening! Learn more about Progress Texas and how you can support our ongoing work at https://progresstexas.org/.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:At the behest of Donald Trump, Ken Paxton is mulling dropping out of the race for the U.S. Senate - on condition that Senate Republicans kill the filibuster and pass the SAVE America Act, which would help Trump suppress voters ahead of the midterm election: https://www.khou.com/article/news/politics/elections/ken-paxton-texas-senate-race-drop-out-trump-endorsement/285-de54f29c-0c5b-41f9-a687-617aa373c535West Texas Republican Congressman Tony Gonzales has finally admitted having an affair with a staffer who later committed suicide, and has stepped aside in his run for re-election, making the GOP nominee Brandon "The AK Guy" Herrera, a gun enthusiast YouTuber known for Nazi and Confederate leanings: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/05/tony-gonzales-drops-out-republican-primary-texas-23rd-district-congress/A connection between Elon Musk and the mass shooter in Austin last weekend emerges - the shooter was a former Tesla employee who assaulted another employee in 2024; that victim is now suing the company: https://www.statesman.com/business/article/austin-shooting-suspect-tesla-lawsuit-texas-21957429.phpWe expect a release of investigative data from state officials soon on the killing of Ruben Ray Martinez last year at the hands of a federal immigration agent: https://www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/2026/03/05/texas-dhs-shooting-citizen-killed/?Progress Texas is expanding into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston - and into Spanish language media! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE.Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
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