Progress Texas Podcasts

This Saturday, a terrific opportunity to express your frustration and channel your anger over the second Trump inauguration into action arrives with the Women's March in Austin, this Saturday January 18 at 9am, starting from historic Huston-Tillotson University. Lead Organizer Jen Ramos joins us to provide the details on the event, why it's important moving into Trump 2.0, and how you can get involved.

All the info on Saturday's event, which should precede the weather change expected this weekend: https://action.womensmarch.com/events/women-s-march-atx-1

Thanks for listening! Learn more about how to support Progress Texas and our mission at https://progresstexas.org/.

Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:

President Biden's farewell address include warnings against disinformation actors now set to take power at the federal level: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/15/us/politics/biden-farewell-address.html

...Over the Biden term, Ken Paxton racked up over $6 million in legal bills - on the tab of Texas taxpayers - suing Biden's administration: https://www.axios.com/local/san-antonio/2025/01/16/texas-attorney-general-paxton-lawsuits-biden

...Speaking of Paxton - Austin real estate developer Nate Paul, who was at the center of Paxton's impeachment last year, just pleaded guilty to a federal charge: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/texas-developer-center-attorney-generals-235209867.html

Former Texas Congressman John Ratcliffe, in his Senate confirmation hearing to head the CIA, pledged to avoid political or personal bias in his execution of that job: https://www.texastribune.org/2025/01/15/john-ratcliffe-cia-trump/

Unsurprisingly, the only two Democrats to vote in favor of banning trans athletes from women's sports were Laredo Rep. Henry Cuellar and McAllen's Vicente Gonzalez: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/texas/article/transgender-athletes-democrats-20035963.php

Can new Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows be trusted NOT to sideline Democrats as the MAGA wing of his party wants? A look at his background as we ponder: https://www.expressnews.com/politics/article/dustin-burrows-house-speaker-20035925.php

...Why did Richardson Democrat Ana-Maria Rodriguez Ramos vote against Burrows after she was eliminated from the Speaker race in the first round? She calls it a protest vote: https://www.chron.com/politics/article/democrat-house-speaker-texas-20036532.php

Action YOU can take NOW: tell the Biden administration to finalize its limits on LNG exports, before climate allies are out of the White House: https://fossil.energy.gov/app/DocketIndex/Docket/Comment?docketId=30

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In this final installment of our series of talks with Democratic lawmakers, coming to you on the first day of the 89th Texas Legislature, we wrap up with Rep. James Talarico of the Austin area, a Williamson County native who was first elected to represent House District 50 in 2018, and survived an attempt by Republicans to draw him out of the picture via redistricting by achieving reelection in District 52. He's a graduate of both the University of Texas and Harvard, and is currently working on a Master of Divinity at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary - Rep. Talarico has become known as a prime resource for understanding progressive ideals through the lens of Christian theology.

Thanks for listening! Learn more about how you can support our important work as the session begins at https://progresstexas.org/donate.

Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:

In defiance of the Texas Republican Party, three dozen House GOP electeds voted along with most of the Democratic minority yesterday to elect Rep. Dustin Burrows of Lubbock House Speaker: https://www.texastribune.org/2025/01/14/dustin-burrows-david-cook-texas-house-speaker-vote/

Several Democratic House members declined to vote for Burrows, who himself is pretty darn MAGA, while a handful curiously voted for Cook, who had pledged to sideline them in the session: https://www.texastribune.org/2025/01/14/texas-house-speaker-vote-breakdown/

...Texas GOP leadership is swearing retribution against Burrows and his Republican followers: https://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/2025/01/14/in-contentious-vote-texas-house-chooses-dustin-burrows-as-speaker/

...That same GOP leadership took part in Christian Nationalist revival-style rallies at the Capitol yesterday, openly denying any separation between church and state: https://www.texastribune.org/2025/01/15/texas-legislature-christianity-church-state-separation/

...Congratulations to Dallas Rep. Venton Jones and his longtime partner Gregory Scott Jr, who got engaged on the House floor yesterday right after Jones was sworn in:

The U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear arguments today over a Texas law requiring pornography websites to verify the age of users - a law with much broader implications than just porn: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/texas/article/pornhub-supreme-court-20034583.php

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Texas State Representative Erin Zwiener of Driftwood, one of the youngest members of the Legislature, has a resume full of fun facts: prior to her political life, she was a contestant on Jeopardy! four times, winning over $53,000. She later got involved with the Indivisible movement after the 2016 Trump win, challenged Republican Rep. Jason Isaac for his seat while she was pregnant, won that year's Democratic primary by less than 200 votes, gave birth during the campaign and eventually beat Isaac with 51% of the vote - she's served in the House ever since.

Thanks for listening! Learn more about how to support Progress Texas at https://progresstexas.org/donate.

Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:

Steve Bannon, arguably the master designer of MAGA, has announced intent to "take down" Texas-based billionaire and current Trump puppetmaster Elon Musk: https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/5081681-steve-bannon-says-he-will-take-down-the-truly-evil-elon-musk/

Lt. Governor Dan Patrick and Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller may be on a collision course, with Miller opposing Patrick's sworn blanket ban of THC products from Texas: https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/politics/inside-politics/texas-politics/texas-agriculture-commissioner-says-regulation-could-be-alternative-to-banning-thc/287-984da04c-6419-4012-9803-c9c2ed88e8a2

...While former Texas Governor Rick Perry goes on the Joe Rogan podcast to push the psychedelic drug ibogaine, which he believes holds promise as a treatment for brain injuries, addiction, and PTSD: https://www.chron.com/culture/article/rick-perry-joe-rogan-ibogaine-20014985.php

Just as the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality or TCEQ brings on a new leader, it's under fire for recent denials of formerly-routine public meetings on emissions permit renewals: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1jZAUiocksOMUvQdsKaS7iYL2HUm1leBHUnjY2q8QSj8/edit?tab=t.0

A compound intended to house recently-released January 6th convicts is being built in the Texas Hill Country near Luckenbach: https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/planned-sanctuary-for-january-6-prisoners/

The number of people leaving Texas in protest of our political climate and policies is beginning to rival the number of people arriving from elsewhere: https://www.texasmonthly.com/being-texan/meet-10-liberals-who-fled-texas/

The merch to match your progressive values awaits at our web store! Grab your goodies at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://store.progresstexas.org/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

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Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:

Ken Paxton has filed a second lawsuit against TikTok, alleging that they have far exceeded their stated limits on questionable content being made available to minors, and more: https://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/2025/01/09/texas-sues-tiktok-alleging-platform-is-dangerous-for-minors-enables-harmful-content/

...The platform may not be available in the U.S. for much longer anyway, depending on how a hearing at the U.S. Supreme Court goes today: https://www.texastribune.org/2025/01/09/ken-paxton-tiktok-minors-explicit-content/

Both of Texas' U.S. Senators, John Cornyn and Ted Cruz, have stated their intent to support all of Donald Trump's cabinet picks - including the looniest ones: https://www.texastribune.org/2025/01/09/texas-senators-cruz-cornyn-trump-cabinet-nominees/

...Cruz is also all in on Trump's dream of annexing Greenland, citing new shipping lanes made available by Arctic ice melting amidst global warming and a wealth of natural resources to be plundered: https://www.texastribune.org/2025/01/09/ted-cruz-greenland-donald-trump/

A deal being worked on between Governor Abbott and Democratic Houston Mayor John Whitmire to sell Houston's water to parched West Texas falls in line with our state's history of bad ideas regarding water management: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/columnists/tomlinson/article/abbott-whitmire-texas-water-sale-20023172.php

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Senator Nathan Johnson of Dallas is a business attorney and music composer by trade, and has served the people of Senate District 16 since 2018, when he became the first Democrat to take that seat in decades - displacing since-perennial gubernatorial loser Don Huffines.

Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas:

The Austin Chronicle has published a nice, multi-issue preview of the upcoming Legislature, set to begin next Tuesday: https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/2025-01-10/with-trump-taking-office-the-texas-lege-is-unleashed/

Pro-Dustin Burrows GOP Rep. Cody Harris of East Texas has filed a complaint against Texas Republican Party Chair Abraham George over the party's plan to block the primary applications of Republicans who fail to back Party favorite David Cook for House Speaker: https://bsky.app/profile/collincountydems.bsky.social/post/3lfbzc5dcd22w

Texas has still not signed up for a $2 billion federal program to feed lower-income kids during summer - but there's still time, so NOW is the time to practice calling your Senator and Representative to let them know you want action: https://www.texastribune.org/2025/01/09/texas-summer-school-lunch-food-stamp/

The merch to match your progressive values awaits at our web store! Grab your goodies at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://store.progresstexas.org/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

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