Here are the stories on Texas Standard for Friday, July 15, 2022:
Texas sues Biden administration over abortion guidance
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is suing the Biden administration, accusing the president of “flagrantly disregarding the legislative and democratic process — and flouting the Supreme Court’s ruling before the ink is dry.” This comes amid a growing conversation among doctors in Texas and beyond about when abortion might be permitted as emergency care. Seema Mohapatra, MD Anderson Endowed Professor in Health Law at South Methodist University in Dallas, tells us about the implications of this lawsuit.
Texas foster care ends its stewardship when some youth run away
State officials dropped their legal guardianship of 42 minors who ran away last year. The practice is not uncommon: Over the past five years, the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services has terminated its guardianship of around 170 youth under 18. The practice raises crucial questions: Where do the kids go, and are they safe? Texas Public Radio’s Paul Flahive has more.
Thousands of disabled Texans are losing out on essential services from the state
Nearly 200,000 disabled Texans have been waiting for a decade or more to receive assistance such as employment training, residential care and behavioral support. These and other services can be provided through various Medicaid waiver programs Texas uses state and federal funds for. But the ballooning waitlist is putting a tremendous burden on families who are losing out on essential services, say disability advocates. These findings are a part of an investigation by the Houston Chronicle’s Alex Stuckey, who joins us today.
Texas wind production slows down during high temperatures
As Texans grapple with persistent triple-digit temperatures, wind power is lagging behind other forms of energy to fuel the state’s power grid. That’s because this week’s looming high pressure system over Texas is depressing winds and slowing down wind production— and just when Texans need energy the most. Brian Eckhouse, who has been reporting on this for Bloomberg, joins us.
The music legacy of Roky Erickson
Roky Erickson would have been celebrating his 75th birthday today. Though years of declining health culminated in his passing in 2019, Erickson’s music impact reverberates in ways still celebrated by critics and fellow rock musicians – and yet his name is largely unknown, even among fellow Texans. Producer Bill Bentley wrote a posthumous letter to Erickson that is featured in a recently released compilation of famous artists performing Erickson covers, “May the Circle Remain Unbroken.” He joins us for more.
Typewriter Rodeo: Drought Rain
The gang delivers another custom poem. Submit your own suggestions online!
The week in Texas politics
Patrick Svitek, political correspondent for the Texas Tribune, stops by to recap this week’s political developments, including:
– The state Democratic convention has kicked off in Dallas and will elect party leadership and update its platform this weekend.
– The Jan. 6 committee revealed that two Texas Republican congressmen attended a White House meeting about overturning the 2020 election results.
– First Lady Jill Biden, at a speech in San Antonio, called the Latino community ‘as unique as the breakfast tacos’ in the city – then apologized the next day.
All this, plus the Texas Newsroom’s state roundup and Michael Marks with the Talk of Texas.
