Y'all-itics

On Thursday, Texas lawmakers are returning to the state capital for a special legislative session. Changing voting laws is paramount for Texas’ Republican leaders who are intent on avenging Donald Trump’s defeat. But the bill they consider during the 30-day special session, likely will not be as strict as the one that failed during the regular session. Still, do Democrats have a shot of stopping any of it? Joining the Jasons for this episode is Scott Braddock, editor of The Quorum Report, and one of the most sourced journalists in Austin. Scott shares insight on Abbott’s primary challenge from the right and explains why the governor is not making the same mistake he did when he called the last special session in 2017. 

There’s a new political party in Texas looking to shake things up.  But instead of running towards the edges, the Serve America Movement (SAM) has its roots planted firmly in the middle.  While SAM already has parties established in four states, Texas could be the linchpin of its overall success.  The rest of the country will be closely watching to see if SAM has a fighting chance in a deep red state.  But how can it succeed where so many other new parties have failed?  What is it offering that would allow it to crash the nation’s longstanding two-party juggernaut?  In this episode of Y’all-itics, the Jasons talk to SAM’s founding chairman in Texas Bill King who tells them the party and its supporters are convinced there’s a big chunk of Texans who just “want somebody to do the damn job.”

Serve America Movement:  https://joinsam.org

Inside the skyline, the transformation has been subtle and taken time but downtown Dallas has a new story to tell. In their first in-person podcast episode in almost a year and a half, the Jasons pile into a booth at the stylish Catbird restaurant and bar in the newly renovated 50-story National building for a conversation with Kourtny Garrett, the president & CEO of Downtown Dallas, Inc.  In 1996, 200 people lived downtown. Today, it’s home to 12,000. Twenty years ago, downtown Dallas had 40 vacant buildings. Today, there are none. During the pandemic, downtown not only survived but it thrived. No construction projects here were lost, rents are increasing, scooters are coming back and there are four new parks. Kourtny also explains how the city is ‘activating blocks’ to make the city center more walkable.

We use it every day for freeways and foundations, pools and patios. In fact, Texas uses more cement than any other state, says Ed Sullivan, the Chief Economist and Senior Vice President of Market Intelligence for the Portland Cement Association. But Covid-19 caused cement supply chain disruptions. And then the February winter storm hit, temporarily knocking cement plants offline and doing serious damage to at least one major facility. Now, this crucial ingredient for concrete is in tight supply just as the peak summer construction season gets underway, and Sullivan says Dallas is the tightest market in the country right now. Home builder Michael Turner can back that up. He tells the Jasons that the daily ration he is getting sometimes isn’t enough to pour a complete foundation for just one new home! Sullivan predicts this will “bridle” economic activity as Texas tries to fully rebound from the Covid slowdown. But in this episode of Y’all-itics, this foremost expert in the industry also forecasts when he thinks this important commodity Texas needs so much…will be back in full supply.  

On June 15, 2021, the city of Fort Worth will have its first new mayor in 10 years.  And even Mattie Parker understands she’s now the youngest Mayor of a major U.S. city (12th largest according to new Census Bureau estimates).  In this bonus episode of Y’all-itics, Parker explains why the budget is her first priority as the city emerges from the pandemic flush with federal dollars.  Parker also says she’s excited to work with a younger City Council, which has five new members, with the average age of all of them dropping from 60 to 45 after the election.  And she fully expects their generation to step up and make a difference in the city.  So, expect to see the kids at City Hall.  Once you listen, you’ll understand why we mean that literally, not figuratively.  

Guests:

Matie Parker, Fort Worth Mayor-Elect

Texans are one signature away from being able to carry their handguns in public without a permit.  And many members of law enforcement say permitless carry will make their jobs far more dangerous… and the consequences are coming.  The President of the Dallas Police Association says many officers are asking how they’ll even know the difference between the good guy and the bad guy.  And Michael Mata tells the Jasons he fully expects the number of violent confrontations between business owners and customers to grow as a result of the legislation.  And in this episode of Y’all-itics, the Jasons are also joined by Frederick Frazier, a McKinney City Council member and a longtime lobbyist for law enforcement issues who says no training plus no background check equals a recipe for disaster.  But what if you’re not a cop?  What should you expect?  Longer holds on 911 and slower response times are just the start of it.

HB 1927:  Texas Legislature Online - 87(R) History for HB 1927

Guests:

Michael Mata, Dallas Police Association President

Dallas PA

Frederick Frazier, McKinney City Council

Council Members | McKinney, TX - Official Website (mckinneytexas.org)

Whether you’re building or buying, it’s a brutal housing market in Texas.  And it’s about to get even tougher as we enter the summer season, when people really start looking for a new home.  Texas leads the country, by far, in new housing permits.  But demand is outpacing supply by a Texas mile.  Hang around any construction type and you'll hear the phrase "I've never seen anything like this before.”  In fact, in this episode the Jasons are hearing that from Ted Wilson, one of the foremost residential construction experts in the state.  Ted even talks about how it’s now difficult to find vacant lots.  In other words, Texas is even running out of dirt to build a home on.  The Jasons also talk to a Dallas resident about the many difficulties he’s faced while trying to build a home, from the permit process to surging prices.  And if you’re about to do the same, he has some advice you’ll want to hear.  Can anything slow down this runaway train?  You’ll learn that in this episode as well.

Residential Strategies Inc – New Home Market Research & Consulting

Following the catastrophic power failure in February, Texans heard all sorts of promises from lawmakers and other state leaders.  They’ll fix this mess, they told us, so it never happens again.  Another legislative session has nearly come and gone, and lawmakers have yet to pass any energy reform bills (anybody remember 2011?).  Lawmakers are close.  But can they get anything across the finish line during the final week of the session?  The consumer rights advocacy group Public Citizen tells the Jasons that even if lawmakers pass the legislation, it falls far short of what’s needed to protect Texans from the next big storm.  And the CEO of Texas’ largest generator of energy says lawmakers better act or the state’s economy will pay the price.   In this episode of Y’all-itics, he explains why inaction could freeze business expansion in Texas.

SB 3:  Texas Legislature Online - 87(R) History for SB 3

Guests:

Curtis “Curt” Morgan, Vistra Corp. CEO

Home - Vistra Corp.

Adrian Shelley, Public Citizen

Public Citizen - Protecting Health, Safety, and Democracy

By now you’ve likely heard the news, legendary WFAA sportscaster Dale Hansen is retiring.  But we’re pretty sure you haven’t heard the stories that Dale shares on this special episode of Y’all-itics. Exactly 24-hours after the announcement, Dale cracked open a beer with the Jasons for a look back at his 50-years in broadcasting, the well-known statewide politician he was recruited to run against a few years ago, the unbelievable way he got a job in Dallas, and how he handles haters – who really get under his skin. The Jasons raise a toast to Dale and share a lot of laughs. This episode really is Dale unplugged.

Dale’s “Celebrating Our Differences” Unplugged

More of Dale “Unplugged”

A new study says re-opening schools in Texas led to an additional 43,000+ cases and 800+ deaths across the state.  In fact, one of the lead researchers says it was a stronger connection than they would have guessed.  What isn’t clear, is exactly how many of those were teachers.  That researcher tells the Jasons why that is and why he hopes the study becomes part of the discussion before any concrete decisions are made for schools in the fall.  The Texas Education Agency tells us they stand by their decisions and pointed us towards criticism of this study.  But many teachers and other school workers wouldn’t be surprised by the results.  They predicted, some right here on Y’all-itics, they would lose co-workers to the disease before they even returned to classrooms.  But nobody knows the exact number of teachers who’ve died of COVID during this school year… because the state isn’t tracking those statistics.  So WFAA reporter Teresa Woodard did just that.  And she also joins the Jasons to talk about her investigation in this episode of Y’all-itics.

WATCH Teresa Woodard’s investigation on WFAA and wfaa.com on Tuesday, May 18 at 10pm

NBER Study:  School Reopenings, Mobility, and COVID-19 Spread: Evidence from Texas | NBER