Here are the stories on Texas Standard for Friday, Oct. 14, 2022:
How the Jan. 6 hearings will impact Texas voters
The House committee investigating the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol held what may be its last hearing on Thursday. Kimi Lynn King, a political science professor from the University of North Texas in Denton, talks about the major takeaways and their impact on elections in Texas.
Breaking down the increase in Social Security benefits
Inflation has tightened the budgets of people with fixed incomes. But there is some relief coming: The Social Security Administration announced on Thursday that it will increase benefits by 8.7% starting in January. William Chittenden, associate dean for graduate programs and an associate professor of finance in the McCoy College of Business Administration at Texas State University, talks about what it means for Texans.
Bexar County sheriff migrant visas request
The Bexar County Sheriff’s Office is seeking visas for a group of migrants who were unwillingly dropped off in Martha’s Vineyard when they boarded a chartered plane in San Antonio last month. Texas Public Radio’s Joey Palacios reports an investigation is being conducted into the incident:
Chris Smalls on the state of organized labor
A Gallup poll released last month revealed that just 12% of Americans reported being part of a labor union. That’s way down from the 1950s, when about a third of people were union members. Unions have scored wins at companies like Apple, Starbucks, Trader Joe’s – and of course, Amazon. In April, workers in Amazon’s JFK8 warehouse on Staten Island formed the company’s first-ever union. The effort was led by Chris Smalls, a former Amazon employee who was fired for his efforts to unionize while he was working there. Smalls joins the Texas Standard to talk the current labor movement.
Construction worker vs. the weather: Why one Texan won’t quit
For the state’s roughly 700,000 construction workers, this past summer’s record-breaking heat was especially challenging. Miguel Sanchez, who immigrated to the U.S. from Cancun, Mexico, and lives in Mesquite, works rigorous hours in construction as the sole supporter of his kids, grandkids and mother back in Mexico. Sanchez shared the ups and downs of his story with Ariadna Garza for NPR’s Next Generation Radio Project.
The complicated legacy of César Chávez
César Chávez has become an important figure to organized labor, and his life story has become pivotal to understanding Hispanic heritage in America. At the same time, though, Chávez held extreme views on immigration. The Texas Standard’s Sean Saldana takes a look at Chávez’s complicated legacy.
The gang delivers another custom poem. This week’s is on overburdened teachers.
The week in Texas politics
Texas Tribune political reporter James Barragán stops by with a recap of the week that was, including the latest fundraising figures for the midterm elections:
– Beto O’Rourke catches Gov. Greg Abbott in cash on hand as race hits homestretch
– Dan Patrick targets rural Texas in media-shy bus tour
– Connecticut jury orders Alex Jones to pay nearly $1 billion to Sandy Hook families
All this, plus the Texas Newsroom’s state roundup and Michael Marks with the Talk of Texas.
