Texas Matters

Kiss your gummies goodbye. Texas is on the verge of a total ban on hemp-derived THC. Lawsuits are coming after the GOP commanded putting the ten commandments in all classrooms. And lawmakers promised they would do something about water scarcity in Texas. Did they deliver?

She was queen of the Wild West outlaws. She rode with Jesse James and other desperados. Belle Starr was a one-of-a-kind, dangerous woman who stole horses, robbed stagecoaches and lived a life of crime on the open plains. Her mysterious violent death still baffles investigators. Should Starr be considered a different kind of feminist icon?

The first singing cowboy of the movies—Gene Autry —was one of America's most popular stars. As the Texas native sang "Back in the Saddle Again" he was also promoting ideas that supported the New Deal and friendly relations with Mexico. His messages rang true with his fans during the Great Depression. On this episode, we unpack the ways this western folk hero, Gene Autry, used his talents to support a positive pro-America agenda.

As measles cases continue to spread across Texas, we consider how Texas dealt with massive measles outbreaks in the past. New research shows that measles could soon be common in the United States if vaccination rates don't increase.

Texas Public Radio spent more than a year analyzing more than 1,200 deaths from abuse and neglect between 2018 and 2023. The project, funded by the Pulitzer Center, brings stories of children who died when the state of Texas failed to intervene. TPR Accountability reporter Paul Flahive uncovered a child welfare system so intent on reducing its contact with troubled families that children have routinely been left with violent, unstable, drug-abusing parents.

We drive over them often, maybe everyday, and they still manage to take our breath away. The highway flyover interchanges that climb up into the sky. But why are they so high? And why does Texas make them higher than any other state? What does that say about us?

Today on Texas Matters: The Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. says measles is not a deadly disease. Last week he attended a funeral for a measles victim in West Texas.And what does a measles outbreak cost? Why supporting vaccination programs saves money for taxpayers.

This week on Texas Matters— The conclusion of the special podcast series "Fumed." Produced in partnership with Public Health Watch, it's a cautionary tale of what happens when the powerful petrochemical industry takes over an unincorporated community in Harris County and how the residents try to fight back.

Texas Matters: Part 4 of 'Fumed' - A Texas stand-off. 'Fumed' is an investigative podcast about the people who live in Channelview, the shadows of America's chemical plants and oil refineries.

In partnership with Public Health Watch, TPR is airing "Fumed," an investigative podcast series. It's about Channelview, an unincorporated community outside Houston and in the heart of America's petrochemical industry.

Texas Public Radio's Texas Matters is bringing you part two of an investigative podcast series about Channelview, an unincorporated community outside Houston and in the heart of America's petrochemical industry. The series is from our partners at Public Health Watch – a nonprofit newsroom, is called Fumed.

This week on Texas Matters—We are partnering with Public Health Watch to air a special presentation of their podcast “Fumed.” We will hear the stories of people who live in the shadows of America's chemical plants and oil refineries. We'll also hear about the tale of two stubborn Texans as they try to salvage what's left of their working-class community in East Harris County.

Today on Texas Matters—In 2022, 53 migrants were found dead in the back of a trailer. New details about that deadly journey are emerging. Also—David Leonard Wood is being called the 'Desert Killer.' Now he is facing execution. But there are questions about his guilt.

Today on Texas Matters: As measles continues to spread in Texas, will state leaders learn a lesson about the need for vaccine requirements? And there is more evidence that the Texas abortion ban made childbirth more dangerous. But the state doesn't want you to know that.

Today on Texas Matters—Protests are rising up across the country against the Trump/Musk administration. Migrant shelters in Texas are nearly empty. And how important are the arts to the economy of Texas?

Gov. Abbott is making water an emergency item. Sarah Schlessinger, the CEO of Texas Water Foundation, explains the Texas water problem and what can be done to secure water supplies to Texas' future.

The song “Life in the West” became popular in the 1840s. The lyrics, written by American poet George Pope Morris, evoke the call of the fertile promised land and celebrates the freedom of living so close to nature.

Today on Texas Matters – How the Trump mass deportation anti-immigration crackdown could impact Texas agriculture. We hear from Texas Ag Commissioner Sid Miller. We also talk to Kathleen Bush-Joseph — a Policy Analyst at the Migration Policy Institute, co-author of “With “Shock and Awe,” the Second Trump Term Opens with a Bid to Strongly Reshape Immigration.”

Today on Texas Matters—Can a progressive agenda pass in the conservative Texas legislature? We hear the legislative plan for the Sierra Club, The AFL-CIO and Move Texas.

We drive over them often, maybe everyday, and they still manage to take our breath away. The highway flyover interchanges that climb up into the sky. But why are they so high? And why does Texas make them higher than any other state? What does that say about us?

There is a diversity of styles and musical genres embraced in the book Corazón Abierto: Mexican American Voices in Texas Music. Based on interviews with legendary recording stars and with newcomers who are crafting their own sound, Kathleen Hudson's book documents the musicians' stories.

This week on Texas Matters—Governor Abbott has a plan to eliminate your property taxes. That might sound great, but what would that look like? The state would have to take a chainsaw to schools and services. And the sales tax would hit 22%, by far the highest in the nation. Low-income citizens would pay more, but it would be a boon— for big corporations.

This week on Texas Matters —Governor Greg Abbott unveils a new border security strategy. How the state's multi-billion-dollar border wall is failing. And a Texas town is recovering from a police chief who used his authority to sexually abuse young girls.

President-elect Donald Trump promised to declare illegal immigration a national emergency on the first day of his new term. He has said he will invoke both the Insurrection Act and the Alien Enemies Act—which could allow him to deploy the military. We hear from Elizabeth Goitein, senior director of the Liberty and National Security Program at the Brennan Center for Justice. She he has just published “How Trump Could Deploy the Military for Mass Deportation.”

Ban all THC from Texas—that's what Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick wants this coming legislative session.Patrick says since 2023, thousands of stores selling THC products popped up across the state, and many of these products are getting in the hands of children. But will a ban work?

Texas women are paying the price for the overturning of Roe v. Wade. More stories are coming to light of Texas women dying from treatable crisis pregnancies. Meanwhile the state's Maternal Mortality task force announced it's going to ignore maternal deaths for 2022 and 2023. And how OB-GYNs are fleeing the state due to fear of the state's anti-abortion law.

Richard Coke, the 15th governor of Texas, is a pivotal and controversial figure in post-Civil War Texas. Rosser Newton has written a book about his ancestor called “Richard Coke: Texan.”

Today on Texas Matters: Stories about helping asylum seekers from the Interfaith Welcome Coalition and their book "Traveling Mercies."And one Texas death row inmate—who could be innocent—is closer to being executed while another death row inmate, thought to be innocent, is a step closer to being freed.

Republican Donald Trump promises, if elected, on day one he'll sign orders for his mass deportation plan. Anyone in the country who is not a U.S. Citizen could be targeted to be removed. The plan calls for millions of people to be deported using the Alien Enemies Act. And this has happened before. What can we learn about Trump's deportation by looking at history?

This week on Texas Matters: Is Attorney General Ken Paxton perverting the facts about the death of baby Nikki and the looming execution of Robert Roberson? In a report to the public about the Roberson case, the AG Office made a number of untrue and debunked statements about the death of Nikki, Roberson and his trial. We get a response from Roberson's attorney Gretchen Sween.

This week on Texas Matters: Early voting kicks off on Monday across the state. What to look out for and whom to call if your voting rights are violated.And since the fall of Roe, how has Texas restricted access to birth control?

Robert Roberson is due to be executed on October 17. The East Texas man was convicted of the shaken baby syndrome death of this two-year old daughter, Nikki. But shaken baby syndrome is now considered to be junk science, and evidence shows that Nikki died from a chronic illness. I spoke with Roberson on Texas death row to hear his story.

This week on Texas Matters. Governor Abbott has a plan to eliminate your property taxes. That could sound great but what would that look like? The state would have to take a chainsaw to schools and services. And the sales tax would hit 22%, by far the highest in the nation. Low income citizens would pay more, but it would be a boon— for big corporations.

Today on Texas Matters—The intersection of the Texas abortion ban and immigration enforcement means women in the border zone have no options. Also, the latest data on Texas maternal mortality shows a worsening crisis. And is Attorney General Ken Paxton using his office to try to suppress the vote to keep Texas from flipping blue?

Texas Senate holds a hearing to draft new anti-squatter laws. The harmful effects of LED lights for some people and the music boxes of Villa Finale.

Are Texans living in a state of voter suppression? We look at a pattern of legal action by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton that seek to limit voting. And we see why Texas is one of the toughest states to vote in.

TPR reporters David Martin Davies and Kayla Padilla spent the year following the passages that many Texans take to obtain an abortion. They documented what happens when they evade the Texas abortion ban.

The Texas identity is powerful, popular and built on the stories of the Lone Star State. The stories are about small towns and quirky characters who overcome adversity. Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Joe Holley has spent a career collecting and writing about the stories of Texas. His latest book is Native Texans Stories from Deep in the Heart.

Today on Texas Matters. How Texas public school curriculum could be teaching Christianity. In Texas It will be harder to vote in this presidential election than it was four years ago. And how Arkansans are fighting to put abortion on their ballot.

How secret is the ballot in Texas? A voter fraud conspiracy advocate says she's cracked the code of the Texas secret ballot. And as the school year starts, will an uncertified teacher be assigned to your child's classroom? A new study shows it could mean a four-month loss of academic progress.

After 13 years of fighting a lawsuit over Texas' troubled foster care system, state lawyers are trying to remove the judge from overseeing the case.And do you remember when a little girl fell down a Midland well in 1987? There's much more to the story.

At the 2024 Republican National Convention Texans, including Governor Greg Abbott, took to the stage to spin a fact-free story about the state of the Texas-Mexico border and illegal immigration that excited the crowd but paints a grim picture if Trump is elected president again.