These days, it seems that Facebook, Instagram and other major social media platforms would much rather deal in cat videos than politics - perhaps political talk is too much trouble to moderate, or maybe too intellectually challenging to be much fun for much of their attention-addled audiences. In this second of two full panel discussions from this year's Unified Jam in Austin, Unified Head of Partnerships Brian Smith discusses the current collision between politics and social media with two powe...
Mar 20, 2024•1 hr 1 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: After yesterday's allowance of SB-4 to take effect by the U.S. Supreme Court in returning the case to the 5th Circuit of Appeals, the 5th Circuit renews the hold- as of this morning, it's blocked: https://www.nytimes.com/live/2024/03/19/us/texas-immigration-supreme-court ...Reactions within Texas border communities: https://apnews.com/article/texas-state-law-abbott-biden-migrants-mexico-f63836e590f2cdea15acd387b78ef292 ...Reactions from the...
Mar 20, 2024•9 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito extends the Court's stay on SB-4 a third time, seemingly indefinitely: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-68597752 ...Indicating anything but an open-and-shut matter: https://www.nytimes.com/article/texas-border-law-challenge-explainer.html The Dallas Morning News kicks Texas GOP Chair Matt Rinaldi on his way out the door: https://www.dallasnews.com/opinion/editorials/2024/03/19/will-texas-gop-c...
Mar 19, 2024•8 min
Earlier in March, we participated in the annual Unified Jam - a political discussion and gathering event hosted by the progressive organizing social media network Unified - in the midst of Spring festival season in Austin. In this first of two panel sessions we're presenting in podcast form, introduced by Unified CEO Shion Deysarkar and moderated by our own Chris Mosser, we meet three young Texas women who've been in the thick of running for office in 2024, and they openly shared the many ups, a...
Mar 19, 2024•1 hr 4 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: The U.S. Supreme Court is likely to issue a ruling on SB-4, Texas' new harsh and possibly unconstitutional new border security law: https://komonews.com/news/nation-world/scotus-decision-on-sb-4-sweeping-texas-border-security-law-could-come-by-monday-immigration-border-security-southern-border-migrant-crisis-operation-lone-star-initiative ...While SCOTUS declines to hear a case against West Texas A&M's ban on drag shows, leaving the ban...
Mar 18, 2024•7 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: At the behest of two Texas attorneys, the Texas Medical Board is set to discuss clarification for medical exceptions to the near-complete ban on abortion care in Texas: https://www.texastribune.org/2024/03/14/texas-medical-board-doctors-abortion-guidance/ Ken Paxton escalates his assault on Frisco ISD, whose social media posts about funding he sees as illegal electioneering: https://communityimpact.com/dallas-fort-worth/frisco/education/202...
Mar 15, 2024•9 min
A new federal courts rule is aimed at preventing "judge shopping" - filing lawsuits in districts with single judges of sympathetic sensibilities - a favorite tactic of Ken Paxton's: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/texas/article/ken-paxton-court-rule-18971181.php More artists, and now panel speakers, have been bailing on SXSW over its ties to the military and defense tech industries: https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamesfarrell/2024/03/13/dozens-of-bands-and-panelists-pull-out-of-sxsw-fest...
Mar 14, 2024•11 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: The U.S. Supreme Court has delayed the enactment of Texas' new immigration law SB-4 until at least Monday afternoon, while a new legal challenge is launched: https://apnews.com/article/texas-immigration-law-sb4-7b74b6637dd39320dfdb447a189e745f ...While Laredo U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar spearheads a new Democratic action group on immigration: https://www.texastribune.org/2024/03/12/henry-cuellar-democrats-senate-border-bill/ SXSW distances itse...
Mar 13, 2024•13 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: A judge in El Paso has backed Annunciation House, a large migrant shelter near the border, in refusing to turn its records over to Ken Paxton: https://elpasomatters.org/2024/03/11/el-paso-annunciation-house-ken-paxton-court-ruling/ Ted Cruz complains of regular Saturday pro-Palestinian protests in his front yard: https://www.chron.com/politics/article/ted-cruz-palestine-protests-18881832.php The Texas Health and Human Services appears to ha...
Mar 12, 2024•12 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: A helicopter crash Friday at the border killed three service members: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/2-soldiers-border-patrol-agent-dead-helicopter-crash-texas-mexico-bord-rcna142589 A lawsuit filed by Texas against a federal program for immigrants from Haiti, Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela has been thrown out: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/judge-rejects-texas-lawsuit-against-immigration-policy-biden-border-strategy/ Hundreds protested ...
Mar 11, 2024•10 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: President Joe Biden's performance last night at the State Of The Union was stellar: https://www.cnn.com/2024/03/08/politics/cnn-poll-biden-sotu-speech-reaction/index.html ...But not perfect, with a gaffe involving language about undocumented people: https://www.texastribune.org/2024/03/07/state-of-the-union-joe-biden/ Pro-Palestinian protestors at Garland munitions manufacturer end up in jail: https://www.keranews.org/news/2024-03-07/garlan...
Mar 08, 2024•12 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: Amplify Austin Day 2024 is on through 6pm Thursday night! Most solid news is behind paywalls, while misinformation and propaganda are usually free. Help us keep our solid reporting accessible with a donation of ANY amount - thank you! https://www.amplifyatx.org/organizations/progress-texas-institute Progress Texas endorsee Julie Johnson is set to make history by becoming the first openly LGBTQ member of the U.S. Congress, not only from Texa...
Mar 07, 2024•11 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: Complete election results coverage by the Texas Tribune: https://apps.texastribune.org/features/2024/primary-election-results-2024/ The campaigns of retribution against members of their own party by Governor Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton pay dividends: https://www.texastribune.org/2024/03/06/texas-primaries-gop-incumbents-defeated/ Incumbent GOP Houston Rep. Lacey Hull survives a primary challenge by Jared Woodfill, backed by ...
Mar 06, 2024•14 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: Last chance for YOUR voice to be heard in the 2024 primary! Polls are open across the state until 7pm: https://progresstexas.org/ ...Our Democratic primary endorsees: https://progresstexas.org/podcast/happy-hour-145-meet-our-progress-texas-primary-endorsees ...Wednesday at 9am, see the Texas Tribune's "Breaking Down The 2024 Texas Primary Results": https://breakingdownthe2024txprimary.splashthat.com/mar-com-email ...Which fish are YOU gonna...
Mar 05, 2024•11 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: Poor turnout by Democrats in the early voting phase of the 2024 primary causes the overall turnout to fall well short of 2020: https://www.texastribune.org/2024/03/03/early-voting-turnout-2024-primaries/ ...Republicans outpaced Democrats in early voting turnout three to one: https://www.kxan.com/news/your-local-election-hq/march-2024-turnout-tracker/ ...One high-profile Democratic item, the Travis County District Attorney's race, features a...
Mar 04, 2024•12 min
Lawyers for Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza have issued a cease-and-desist order against a shadowy group that has financed an egregious and foul hit campaign against Garza, apparently without proper legal arrangement as a political action committee - all to benefit his opponent, who is known to be backed by benefactors who typically fund Republican candidates. We've invited District Attorney Garza on to tell us what he's learned. Learn more about District Attorney Jose Garza at https:...
Mar 02, 2024•9 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: Upwards of 1.2 million Texans have voted so far in the primary, with only today and Super Tuesday remaining: https://www.kxan.com/news/your-local-election-hq/march-2024-turnout-tracker/ New polling from UT Tyler shows Ted Cruz and Colin Allred tied at 41%: https://t.co/4LBcQuPneA President Biden spoke in Brownsville yesterday: https://www.ksat.com/news/local/2024/03/01/san-antonio-mayor-ron-nirenberg-joins-president-biden-other-south-texas-...
Mar 01, 2024•26 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: Only today, tomorrow and Tuesday remain to vote in the 2024 primary: https://www.kxan.com/news/your-local-election-hq/march-2024-turnout-tracker/ ...Crossover voting is not the clever idea you might think it is, for several reasons: https://progresstexas.org/blog/elephant-room-crossover-voting ...While U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez may have done some meddling with his GOP opposition: https://www.texastribune.org/2024/02/27/vicente-gonzalez-may...
Feb 29, 2024•11 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: Republicans continue to outdistance Democrats in primary early voting turnout: https://www.kxan.com/news/your-local-election-hq/march-2024-turnout-tracker/ Progressives need to understand the threat posed by "Project 25": https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/feb/27/trump-second-term-cpac-democracy-threat-extremism ...While Dallas U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett points out that Christian Nationalism is inconsistent with traditional Chri...
Feb 28, 2024•11 min
In the Crane County oil patch, a recent catastrophic spill of produced water , a toxic byproduct of the petroleum extraction process, has brought to the forefront the threat this stuff poses to groundwater across Texas. In this election year, it also highlights the worsening of that threat resulting from the chronic mismanagement and public obfuscation regarding produced water by the Texas Railroad Commission, the elected, three-member body supposedly in charge of keeping Texas' environment safe...
Feb 27, 2024•53 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: Primary early voting turnout continues to trickle, with Republican turnout still doubling that of Texas Democrats: https://www.kxan.com/news/your-local-election-hq/march-2024-turnout-tracker/ ...Republicans are voting for or against notorious anti-abortion activist judge John Devine of the Texas Supreme Court: https://www.texastribune.org/2024/02/27/john-devine-texas-supreme-court-conservatives/ President Biden and Donald Trump will stage c...
Feb 27, 2024•10 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: Early voting primary turnout still skews 2-1 Republican - and over 80% voters over 50 on both sides: https://www.statesman.com/story/news/columns/2024/02/25/texas-primary-election-young-voters-voices-older-the-voter-the-louder-the-voice/72684410007/ Ken Paxton's crusade against three Texas Court of Criminal Appeals judges isn't just about his desire to prosecute election fraud cases - it's also about the court that's likely to finally decid...
Feb 26, 2024•12 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: Democratic turnout in early primary voting continues to lag, especially in Harris and Bexar counties: https://www.kxan.com/news/your-local-election-hq/march-2024-turnout-tracker/ Alabama's Supreme Court ruling that embryos are to be considered children has hopeful moms like Amanda Zurawski taking pre-emptive action with their frozen embryos: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/woman-suing-texas-abortion-ban-plans-move-embryos-state-rcna140134 ...
Feb 23, 2024•13 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: Republican turnout doubled that of Democrats in Texas on the first day of early primary voting: https://www.kxan.com/news/your-local-election-hq/march-2024-turnout-tracker/ ...While officials in Tarrant County end a years-long program providing free rides to the polls on Election Day: https://www.fox4news.com/news/tarrant-county-free-bus-rides-election-day Governor Abbott and AG Paxton's campaign against GOP incumbents continues inflaming v...
Feb 22, 2024•10 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: As primary voting begins, a review for progressives of why gun safety reform is so bogged down in Texas: https://www.dallasobserver.com/news/mass-shootings-in-texas-have-shaped-the-democratic-primaries-18642421 In the Republican primary, Collin County will serve as a test of Ken Paxton's ability to sway voters: https://www.nbcdfw.com/decision-2024/collin-county-is-frontline-for-emotional-texas-house-primary-elections/3467634/ ...That said, ...
Feb 21, 2024•11 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: New polling results as primary voting opens from UT Austin: https://texaspolitics.utexas.edu/blog/new-uttexas-politics-project-poll-primary-voting-begins-texans-see-crisis-border A pro-voucher campaign stop in Cleburne by Governor Greg Abbott is under-attended compared to an event the same day for the anti-voucher incumbent: https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/state/texas-news/gov-greg-abbott-north-texas-campaign-against-fellow-republican-vot...
Feb 20, 2024•12 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: New interviews with U.S. Representative Colin Allred and State Senator Roland Gutierrez, plus the guy both want to take on, Ted Cruz: https://www.kxan.com/state-of-texas/state-of-texas-questions-for-candidates-hoping-to-challenge-cruz/ South Houston Democratic State House Rep. Shawn Thierry, under fire for her votes inconsistent with Democratic priorities, drops a homophobic bomb on her chances for an endorsement from the Houston Chronicle:...
Feb 19, 2024•13 min
Early voting in the Democratic primary starts on Tuesday February 20th, and Progress Texas has selected FIVE more terrific candidates whom we think deserve your vote! In addition to Texas State Senator Roland Gutierrez , whom we have endorsed in his run for the Democratic nomination to face Ted Cruz for Texas' junior U.S. Senate seat... (2:00) We endorse State Representative Julie Johnson (HD 115) for Texas’ 32nd Congressional District. In the highly contested race for Colin Allred’s seat, with ...
Feb 17, 2024•55 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: We salute the Texas U.S. House Representatives who voted against GOP efforts to overturn President Biden's pause on new liquid natural gas approvals: https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-house-vote-bill-reverse-bidens-lng-pause-2024-02-15/ A federal judge in Austin, hearing the State's argument for the new migrant crackdown law SB-4, expresses skepticism: https://www.kut.org/politics/2024-02-15/texas-senate-bill-4-invasion-claim-immigra...
Feb 16, 2024•12 min
Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: Two more Democratic primary endorsements have been added to our list: Michelle Vallejo in the run for Congressional District 15, and Bill Burch for the Texas Railroad Commission: https://progresstexas.org/blog/progress-texas-endorsements-march-primaries Austin U.S. Rep. Greg Casar takes the lead on a new bill requiring Texas to connect our power grid to neighboring grids: https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/texas/democrats-introduce-bil...
Feb 15, 2024•11 min
