Here are the stories on Texas Standard for Wednesday, June 18, 2025:
With Trump in White House, Texas slashes border security budget
Four years after launching Operation Lone Star, Texas lawmakers have voted to cut border security funding in half and pause construction of the state-funded border wall.
The Texas Tribune’s Zach Despart joins the show to explain the shift in priorities.
Meet your lawmaker: Rep. Andy Hopper of North Texas
Texas legislators may work part-time, but their impact is anything but. As part of an ongoing series, the Texas Newsroom’s Blaise Gainey introduces Rep. Andy Hopper, a Denton-area Republican balancing public service with civilian life.
Execution date sought again for East Texas man
Robert Roberson was granted a temporary reprieve from execution last year. Now prosecutors are seeking a new execution date. Texas Public Radio’s David Martin Davies reports on the latest in the case:
Houston Housing Authority caught citing fake legal quotes
A court filing from Houston’s public housing agency included 11 fake quotes from real cases – raising major concerns about legal accuracy and accountability.
The Houston Chronicle’s R.A. Schuetz joins the show with her findings.
Young Afghan refugees find purpose on the wrestling mat
A group of Afghan teens in San Antonio’s Westside are wrestling with the American dream, forging new identities and friendships through high school sports.
Brant deBoer has covered the story for the Texas Observer and joins the Standard with their story.
Witness to an execution: Author Liz Bruenig on the death penalty
Journalist Liz Bruenig was among those who witnessed the federal execution of Alfred Bourgeois, who was convicted of torturing and murdering his toddler daughter.
Her new piece in The Atlantic offers a powerful meditation on capital punishment and what it reveals about American justice.
Supreme Court upholds Tennessee law that bars gender-affirming care for minors
The Supreme Court ruled this morning to uphold a Tennessee law banning gender-affirming care for minors in the state. In the last few years, half the states – including Texas – have adopted similar bans, which outlaw hormone treatments among other medical interventions prior to a teenager turning 18.
For more on what this case means for the Lone Star State, we’re joined by Tara Grove, the Vinson & Elkins chair in law at UT Austin:
All this, plus Alexandra Hart with the Texas Newsroom’s state roundup and Wells Dunbar with the Talk of Texas.
