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Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:
With a second consecutive year of disastrous flooding impacting Texas, fears grow that a "new normal" may have been established via climate change: https://www.kbtx.com/2026/07/17/texas-hill-country-floods-again-back-to-back-disasters-raise-alarm-over-future-storms/
...Two deaths related to the flooding are reported - a tragedy, but one that pales in comparison to last year: https://apnews.com/article/texas-flooding-evacuations-uvalde-camp-mystic-616ad82c32b5728d8a0f894c5e602b24
...The deluge was due to an upper level disturbance combined with a low-pressur circulation, which parked itself over the flood-prong "Flash Flood Alley" of the Texas Hill Country: https://abcnews.com/US/meteorologists-explain-flash-flooding-central-texas-bad/story?id=134818804
Last night's Donald Trump speech, as expected, was designed to re-invigorate election denial conspiracies: https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/trump-puts-election-security-center-republicans-midterm-fight-2026-07-17/
...Nothing new was offered that would change the fact that the heavily-audited 2020 election shows no significant signs of fraud: https://theconversation.com/trump-is-rehashing-old-claims-the-2020-election-was-stolen-his-real-aim-sowing-doubt-in-the-midterms-287774
Austin listeners: you're invited to check out a FREE screening of the documentary film "John Lewis: Good Trouble" on Friday! Info and RSVP: http://bit.ly/GTLOAUSTIN
This election year, you can support the real free press by investing in pro-democracy, pro-justice, pro-gressive storytelling. Become a monthly donor or increase your giving TODAY for our Summer Sustaining Donor Drive today, and we’ll thank you with "perks for progress" - plus you'll get a shoutout on the Daily Dispatch! Our good friend and board member Nicolette Ardiente has bumped up her support! Join her and the rest of the Progress Texas family at https://act.progresstexas.org/a/summersustainers26.
Check out the Substack version of the Daily Dispatch, which delivers each pod to your inbox and frequently includes extra video goodies: https://substack.com/@progresstexas
Progress Texas is part of the lineup at KPFT-FM in Houston! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE. Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Who is this guy - and what has he done with Governor Greg Abbott? In recent weeks - clearly in an election year panic of sorts - our Governor has been flip-flopping like crazy: he's been condemning the impacts of data centers - the very same data centers he's lured to Texas for years with generous incentives and kickbacks. He's tempted blowback from Donald Trump in admitting out loud that, you know, maybe ICE agents shouldn't be shooting people. He's had jokes about his own disability backfire online because, you know, he made it a lot harder for other folks in similar situations to find financial relief. And, he's decided that "birth tourism" is somehow a major immigration problem that needs tackling, when it very rarely happens - and when it does, it's typically a win-win for America.
Having reported on all of this and more, we're proud to welcome journalist Michael Karlis of the San Antonio Current on to talk about the seemingly frenzied week that Governor Abbott is having - he sure doesn't seem himself lately. Learn more about Michael's work at https://www.sacurrent.com/author/michael-karlis/.
Thanks for listening! This election year, you can support the real free press by investing in pro-democracy, pro-justice, pro-gressive storytelling. Become a monthly donor or increase your giving TODAY for our Summer Sustaining Donor Drive today, and we’ll thank you with "perks for progress" - plus you'll get a shoutout on the Daily Dispatch! Our good friend Leslie Berry has bumped up her support! Join the family at https://act.progresstexas.org/a/summersustainers26.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:
Significant and dangerous flooding has struck Texas, just over a year after a catastrophic flood at about the same time in 2025: https://www.youtube.com/live/2Fj-1_tGtIw
Victor Salgado, the brother of Houston ICE shooting victim Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, has offered new disputes against the agency's account of the incident: https://www.khou.com/article/news/local/deadly-ice-shooting/attorney-for-lorenzo-salgados-brother-disputes-ice-account-as-abbott-confirms-texas-rangers-investigation/285-f1bc2f96-fcd4-4009-be57-2f8847387ed1
...Governor Abbott has broken his silence on the shooting, calling it "a tragedy" - the latest in a series of forced reversals for the Governor this election year: https://www.lonestarleft.com/p/help-my-governor-has-been-replaced
Donald Trump has declared war on science - and Texas' energy sector has already been impacted: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/outlook/article/oil-gas-energy-research-trump-webber-texas-22345291.php
Attorney General Ken Paxton's threat to sue the Big 12 over Texas Tech's efforts to field a gambling policy violator as their quarterback came 1 day after Tech's oil billionaire Board of Regents Chair Cody Campbell gave his campaign almost a quarter-million dollars: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/07/15/cody-campbell-ken-paxton-donation-brendan-sorsby-texas-tech/
...Paxton is also now the target of a formal complaint by the Collin County Democratic Party, who is calling for his potential voting law violations to be investigated: https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/texas-news/collin-county-dems-file-complaint-over-whether-ken-paxton-violated-texas-election-law/4050210/
Elon Musk's SpaceX stock - forced into millions of retirement accounts by a bending of stock market rules - has now dropped below its IPO price: https://futurism.com/space/spacex-investors-lamenting-money-lost
Austin listeners: you're invited to check out a FREE screening of the documentary film "John Lewis: Good Trouble" on Friday! Info and RSVP: http://bit.ly/GTLOAUSTIN
This election year, you can support the real free press by investing in pro-democracy, pro-justice, pro-gressive storytelling. Become a monthly donor or increase your giving TODAY for our Summer Sustaining Donor Drive today, and we’ll thank you with "perks for progress" - plus you'll get a shoutout on the Daily Dispatch! Our good friend Leslie Berry has bumped up her support! Join the family at https://act.progresstexas.org/a/summersustainers26.
Check out the Substack version of the Daily Dispatch, which delivers each pod to your inbox and frequently includes extra video goodies: https://substack.com/@progresstexas
Progress Texas is part of the lineup at KPFT-FM in Houston! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE. Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Stories we're following this morning:
Donald Trump will attempt to re-invigorate his years-long conspiracy theories about the 2020 election in his address to the nation on Thursday night: https://www.npr.org/2026/07/15/nx-s1-5894580/trump-elections-primetime-address
...Part of the plan is to release unvetted intelligence documents as evidence of election fraud: https://www.ms.now/news/trump-speech-thursday-election-2020-interference
...He has also been stacking key federal positions with longtime loyal lackeys: https://truthout.org/articles/trump-will-address-supposed-election-interference-claims-in-primetime-speech/
In the wake of the Houston killing by ICE of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo last week, the agency has announced a temporary stoppage of immigration-related traffic stops: https://www.houstonpress.com/news/ice-to-pause-traffic-stops-after-shooting-deaths/
...Houston Mayor John Whitmire and HPD Chief Noe Diaz are calling on the Texas Rangers to conduct an investigation: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/article/mayor-whitmire-texas-rangers-ice-investigation-22345751.php
...Harris County DA Sean Teare has been more proactive, promising charges against the individual ICE agents involved if they are found warranted: https://www.khou.com/article/news/local/teare-criminal-charges-ice-agents-lorenzo-salgado/285-7a303f82-ec16-41a4-a4f8-0f24ae51d39a
Austin listeners: you're invited to check out a FREE screening of the documentary film "John Lewis: Good Trouble" on Friday! Info and RSVP: http://bit.ly/GTLOAUSTIN
This election year, you can support the real free press by investing in pro-democracy, pro-justice, pro-gressive storytelling, delivered by Texans, for Texans. Join Progress Texas this summer ahead of the midterms, and become a monthly donor or increase your giving TODAY for our Summer Sustaining Donor Drive! With your partnership, we can reach more independents, progressives and young voters, who must be mobilized to win elections. So far, 3 donors have signed up or increased their gifts during our summer drive, and if you join them today, we’ll thank you with perks for progress in the form of union-made merch to match your values - you can choose from our exclusive "Resist" coffee mug, a sweet Progress Texas summer koozie, and a mystery button pack - plus you'll get a shoutout on the Daily Dispatch! Our good friend Leslie Berry has bumped up her support! Join the family at https://act.progresstexas.org/a/summersustainers26.
Check out the Substack version of the Daily Dispatch, which delivers each pod to your inbox and frequently includes extra video goodies: https://substack.com/@progresstexas
Progress Texas is part of the lineup at KPFT-FM in Houston! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE. Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
We're continuing to dig through the mountain of content we accumulated during the Texas Democratic Convention in Corpus Christi, and up next are the full remarks from Friday from Democratic U.S. Senate nominee James Talarico.
Rep. Talarico, as you know, has inspired a full panic attack on the American right, whose only counter to his solid, steady, and strong messages of leadership and change have been juvenile name-calling and accusations of (gasp!) vegetarianism. Team Talarico has tripled the fundraising haul of opponent Ken Paxton over the second quarter of the year, and are full steam ahead for November, in the midst of the most exciting midterm election for Texas progressives in recent memory.
Learn more about James Talarico and his run for the Senate at https://jamestalarico.com/.
Thanks for listening! Learn more about Progress Texas and how to support our ongoing work at https://progresstexas.org/.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:
An annual quality of life study by CNBC gives Texas an "F" and ranks us the second-worst state in which to live in the U.S.: https://www.chron.com/texas/article/texas-worst-states-2026-22342359.php
...In their business survey, Texas is #4 - proving that economic success does not guarantee a good quality of life for most people: https://www.sacurrent.com/news/texas-news/democratic-challenger-hinojosa-blames-gov-greg-abbott-for-texas-decline-in-top-states-for-business-list/
...Data centers and their local pollution are a great example of lax business regulation negatively impacting life quality for people who live nearby: https://www.wired.com/story/data-centers-taking-over-texas-pollution-could-be-catastrophic/
With all of that happening, Texas Republicans are working instead on further bans on THC products for next year's legistlative session: https://www.dallasobserver.com/news/texas-republicans-going-after-thc-again-40694510/
Austin listeners: you're invited to check out a FREE screening of the documentary film "John Lewis: Good Trouble" on Friday! Info and RSVP: http://bit.ly/GTLOAUSTIN
This election year, you can support the real free press by investing in pro-democracy, pro-justice, pro-gressive storytelling, delivered by Texans, for Texans. Join Progress Texas this summer ahead of the midterms, and become a monthly donor or increase your giving TODAY for our Summer Sustaining Donor Drive! With your partnership, we can reach more independents, progressives and young voters, who must be mobilized to win elections. So far, 3 donors have signed up or increased their gifts during our summer drive, and if you join them today, we’ll thank you with perks for progress in the form of union-made merch to match your values - you can choose from our exclusive "Resist" coffee mug, a sweet Progress Texas summer koozie, and a mystery button pack - plus you'll get a shoutout on the Daily Dispatch! Our good friend Karen Wilkerson was the first to step up, and we're not surprised. Thanks Karen for your ongoing friendship! Join the family at https://act.progresstexas.org/a/summersustainers26.
Check out the Substack version of the Daily Dispatch, which delivers each pod to your inbox and frequently includes extra video goodies: https://substack.com/@progresstexas
Progress Texas has expanded into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE. Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:
A Texas Tribune piece on nine Republicans who voted for Senator John Cornyn in the primary finds three swinging to James Talarico, three sticking with Ken Paxton, and three opting for neither: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/07/13/texas-gop-voters-john-cornyn-ken-paxton-james-talarico-us-senate/
...Meanwhile Latino business owners in Texas who voted for Cornyn are similarly split: https://www.politico.com/news/2026/07/12/trumps-deportation-drive-tests-gop-gains-in-texas-00993955
The most-Googled definition query in Texas lately is requests to define the word "republic" - possibly connected to the common and incorrect MAGA argument that the U.S. isn't actually a democracy: https://www.chron.com/texas/article/texas-google-definitions-republic-22339143.php
So, was Senator Lindsay Graham gay, or not? Regardless, throughout his career, he did all he could to hurt LGBTQ+ Americans: https://www.instagram.com/reels/DatnULlyM_j/
Check out the Substack version of the Daily Dispatch, which delivers each pod to your inbox and frequently includes extra video goodies: https://substack.com/@progresstexas
Progress Texas has expanded into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE. Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Austin State Rep. Gina Hinojosa is the Democratic nominee to replace Governor Greg Abbott, and to bring a screeching halt to the mountain of corporate corruption that has become the hallmark of his administration - starting immediately with $1,500 checks to be sent to every Texas household from the Texas Rainy Day Fund, which has become a repository for the hoarding of billions upon billions of YOUR energy tax dollars. We welcome Progress Texas endorsee Rep. Gina Hinojosa to explain her plan, and to expand on her vision for a brand new day for working Texans.
Learn more about Rep. Hinojosa and her campaign for Governor at https://ginafortexas.com/.
Thanks for listening! Learn more about Progress Texas and how you can help support our ongoing work at https://progresstexas.org/.
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:
The death of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, shot to death on Tuesday in Houston by ICE agents, has formally been declared a homicide: https://www.click2houston.com/news/local/2026/07/09/harris-county-medical-examiner-rules-death-of-lorenzo-salgado-araujo-a-homicide/
...Three eyewitnesses, including Salgado Araujo's brother, contradict ICE claims that Lorenzo threatened them with his vehicle: https://www.cnn.com/2026/07/10/us/salgado-araujo-houston-ice-shooting-wwk
...LULAC is warning that ICE is pressuring those witnesses, still in custody, to self-deport: https://www.independent.co.uk/bulletin/news/salgado-araujo-ice-agent-houston-witnesses-self-deport-b3012531.html
...Harris County Attorney Sean Teare is launching his own investigation - but thus far, federal authorities have not brought in the Texas Rangers, as they have in prior ICE shootings: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/texas/article/houston-ice-shooting-rangers-22339336.php
...There will be a community vigil for Lorenzo on Saturday evening in south Austin: https://texasaflcio.org/events/austin-community-vigil-lorenzo-salgado-araujo
...There is a GoFundMe effort underway to support the family: https://www.gofundme.com/f/in-loving-memory-of-lorenzo-salgado-araujo-52-years-old
Check out the Substack version of the Daily Dispatch, which delivers each pod to your inbox and frequently includes extra video goodies: https://substack.com/@progresstexas
Progress Texas has expanded into both broadcast radio - including a new partnership with KPFT-FM in Houston! Make a tax-deductible contribution to our radio initiative HERE, and to our Spanish expansion HERE. Find our web store and other ways to support our important work at https://progresstexas.org.
Widespread speculation spread rapidly upon the announcement of Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson's abrupt and largely unexplained planned departure from her office - weird timing for the state's top election official, just months before a monumental election, right? But, in steps Christian nationalist spokesmodel Nate Schatzline, who has no experience with running elections - but is a complete, wild-eyed election-denying Trump crusader - the perfect disruptor for Texas' big blue cities, at a moment when the GOP's iron grip on the state is finally slipping. We welcome Houston Press reporter April Towery to talk about the possibilities.
Learn more about April and the Houston Press at https://www.houstonpress.com/author/april/.
Thanks for listening! Learn more about Progress Texas and how you can support our ongoing work at https://progresstexas.org/.
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