It’s time again for our weekly political roundup and analysis of national, state and local political stories. On this edition of Houston Matters, we discuss everything from Vice President Mike Pence warning the North Korean leader that the “era of strategic patience is over,” to Sec. of State Rex Tillerson’s visit to Russia and discuss how these developments might affect Houston or Texas.

Joining us to offer their analysis this week are three guests: Brandon Rottinghaus, professor of political science at the University of Houston and co-host of Houston Public Media’s new podcast Party Politics, Mark Jones, political science fellow at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, and Andrew Schneider, politics and government reporter for News 88.7.

Also this hour…

The Gatekeepers

Tonight (April 19, 2017) at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, the institute’s namesake, James Baker, former Secretary of State, former Secretary of the Treasury and former White House Chief of Staff, will appear alongside Chris Whipple, author of a new book examining the role past chiefs of staff have played in the West Wing.

The book is called The Gatekeepers: How the White House Chiefs of Staff Define Every Presidency. We talk with Whipple about how the job traditionally has been performed and how that may have changed under the Trump Administration.

A Different Take on Snow White

Now through May 6, Houston’s Catastrophic Theatre is presenting a production of Snow White. But no, it’s in no way the traditional story you know. This is Donald Barthelme’s Snow White. Barthelme was a Houston area short story writer, novelist, Houston Post reporter and one of the founders of the University of Houston’s creative writing program. He’s remembered for his playful, postmodernist style, which is certainly reflected in the production. Houston Matters producer Josh Zinn finds out more about Barthelme and about the play.

Houston Matters offers a free daily, downloadable podcast here, on iTunes, Stitcher and various other podcasting apps.