Texas Standard For December 2, 2020

With Texas reporting new record high numbers of coronavirus cases, a warning from Washington that more needs to be done, we’ll have details. And: As the fight against COVID-19 continues, setbacks reported in the war against human trafficking in Texas. Also: High hopes versus realistic expectations: with change at the White House, what Texas immigrant rights advocates think they’ll see when it comes to changes on the ground. Plus: Rarely has a nation been so well served by a people so ill-treated. Now the postal service set to celebrate the Japanese American soldiers who saved thousands of Texans in World War II. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:

By Texas StandardDecember 2, 2020 9:28 am

Here’s what’s coming up on Texas Standard for Wednesday, December 2, 2020. Listen on your Texas public radio station, or ask your smart speaker to play Texas Standard. We’ll have full posts for each story, including audio, a little later today.

White House on Texas Pandemic Response

As the number of Texas coronavirus cases continues to soar, the White House Coronavirus Task Force called on state leaders to intensify their response to the pandemic. Madlin Mekelberg, a reporter for the Austin American-Statesman, talks to the Standard about the White House’s concerns over the resurgence of COVID-19 cases in Texas.

Biden Administration Immigration Policy

Immigration advocates and political pundits are paying close attention to how President-elect Joe Biden’s immigration policy will shape up. Silvia Foster-Frau, who covers the border for the San Antonio Express-News, spoke to immigration advocates to get a sense for what they’re expecting and talks to the Standard.

Houston District B

For more than a year some 200,000 Houstonians have been waiting to elect a new representative on city council. The hold up? Finding an answer to this legal question: Can a candidate with a felony conviction run for office in Texas? With early voting finally underway, Houston Public Media’s Jen Rice reports, the election has put “second chances” on the ballot for the whole state.

Human Trafficking and COVID

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to upend lives, including the lives of people involved in human trafficking. Dallas-Fort Worth is considered a hub for human trafficking, which often involves exploiting people through sex acts. As KERA’s Galilee Abdullah reports, North Texas advocacy groups say victims have long been vulnerable – and the pandemic has just made things worse.

Flood Map Revisions

FEMA flood maps are used by the National Flood Insurance Program. The maps tell property owners where it is and isn’t safe to build. But some developers have been able to get their flood zone designations changed, with significant consequences for people who ultimately buy homes on former floodplains, and for their downstream neighbors. Alexandra Tempus, who has been reporting this story for Fair Warning, a news site covering public health and the environment, talked to the Standard.

W. F Strong: Nisei Honorary Texans

Nisei Stamp

The effort to get a Nisei soldier stamp has been more than a decade in the making. Wayne Osaka led the campaign to get the stamp. He talks to the Standard.

PolitiFact

All this and Texas News Roundup, plus Michael Marks with the talk of Texas.

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