Here are the stories on Texas Standard for Monday, Oct. 3, 2022:
Did the Abbott-O’Rourke debate change any minds?
Gov. Greg Abbott and Democratic challenger Beto O’Rourke sparred over immigration, abortion and guns during the Texas gubernatorial debate Friday. But as Election Day quickly approaches, the Texas Newsroom’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán reports, it’s unclear how many minds the debate changed.
Botched cases, partisan politics and firings among the fallout in Ken Paxton’s scandal-dogged office
Ken Paxton’s time as Texas attorney general has been tumultuous. Since he was elected in 2015, Paxton’s been indicted on felony charges of security fraud – for which he still has not stood trial – and the FBI is investigating Paxton and his office for abuse of power. Now there’s more news of dysfunction within the AG’s office, as reported by Jake Bleiberg, a Texas-based reporter for the Associated Press.
The new opioid crisis is under-prescription, doctors say
A group of Texas physicians say the opioid crisis is no longer about over-prescribing pain medication, but rather under-prescribing it. KUT’s Seema Mathur looks at why the Texas Medical Association says current guidelines are hurting and even killing patients in need of opioid prescriptions:
Personal care attendants in Texas have terrible wages – and the Legislature is loath to raise them
Many personal care attendants – people who assist people with disabilities in their homes – make about $8 per hour. The low wages make it difficult for Texans with disabilities to hire and keep attendants, but for that to change, the Texas Legislature would need to authorize higher wages. Alex Stuckey wrote about this for the Houston Chronicle.
This Texas FEMA team was deployed to help in Florida
Gov. Greg Abbott deployed Texas A&M Task Force One to Florida just before Hurricane Ian made landfall. The group is one of several federal teams under FEMA’s Urban Search and Rescue System. Texas Task Force One member Joshua Todd joins us from Florida.
Meet Rosie Fuentes, PBS Kids’ newest animated star
PBS Kids’ latest animated star hails from Texas: “Rosie’s Rules” follows 5-year-old Rosie Fuentes’ adventures in the San Antonio area. Executive producers Jennifer Hamburg and Mariana Diaz-Wionczek talk to us in this extended Q&A.
Lawyers are seeking clients for Camp Lejeune water claims, but veterans may be better off waiting
President Joe Biden has signed a bill that makes it easier for people to sue the government for illnesses from contaminated water at Camp Lejeune, a North Carolina Marine base. It’s not yet clear how the government will handle what could be one of the largest mass civil cases in history. But as Jay Price reports for the American Homefront Project, personal injury attorneys aren’t waiting.
All this, plus the Texas Newsroom’s state roundup and Wells Dunbar with the Talk of Texas.
