Second Reading Podcast

Jim and Josh discuss the sources of uncertainty in a very active legislative session in Texas.

This week, Jim and Josh discuss the House budget bill being debated on the floor this Thursday & some revealing recent episodes in legislative politics.

Does polling data support the argument that the influence of Republican primary voters explains the Texas legislature’s focus on hot button cultural politics?

This week, Jim and Josh discuss Texas Republicans’ attitudes toward Donald Trump and what public opinion polling in Texas says about the former president’s position heading into the 2024 election.

Jim and Josh zero in on public education attitudes in the latest UT/Texas Politics Project Poll, especially shifts in partisan framings of public education as the legislature agains considers “school choice” and “parental rights”

Jim and Josh are joined this week by Daron Shaw to discuss the results of their latest statewide poll of Texas political attitudes, the current legislative session in Texas, and what the poll says about Texas in national politics.

This week, Jim and Josh discuss what the emergency items in the Governor’s state of the state address say about the emerging agenda in the Texas Legislature.

This episode, Jim and Josh discuss Governor Greg Abbott’s polling numbers in anticipation of this week’s State of the State address.

In this week’s episode, Jim and Josh discuss the results of the Texas Lyceum poll and what they may reveal about the current state of Texas politics.

This week, Jim and Josh discuss the politics of Texas Senate committee assignments and the first draft of each chamber’s budget bills as the Texas Legislature continues to get organized.

As the Texas governor is inaugurated and statewide officials announced, Jim and Josh look at the results of their December poll regarding policies at the intersection of business and government.

Jim Henson and Josh Blank talk about the convening of the 88th Texas Legislature, Texas’ once in a lifetime revenue windfall, and the public opinion context captured in the December UT/Texas Politics Project Poll.

In the last episode of the year, Jim and Josh take a look at key numbers from Texas Politics Project polling, and think about what the dynamics of Texas politics in the looming 2023 legislative session.

Jim Henson talks with Greg Bluestein of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution about the state of play in the runoff election for U.S. Senate between Raphael Warnock and Herschel Walker.

This week, Jim and Josh continue their discussion on the results of the 2022 midterm elections by covering how redistricting, key issues, and other factors may have impacted voter turnout both in Texas and nationwide.

This week, Jim and Josh look at the results of the midterm elections in Texas, and find that despite the status quo results, the electoral system very gradually continues to become more competitive.

This week, Jim and Josh discuss early voting news for the 2022 midterm elections in Texas and the efforts of both major political parties to mobilize voter turnout in the state.

This week, Jim and Josh and joined by Daron Shaw to discuss the results of the recent University of Texas/Texas Politics Project poll and the final weeks of the 2022 election.

Jim and Josh discuss voting rights legislation in Texas, public opinion on voting issues, and how both loom over the 2022 election in Texas.

Jim Henson and Josh Blank discuss the recent debate between Texas’ gubernatorial candidates Greg Abbott and Beto O’Rourke and the overall arc of the 2022 campaign in Texas.

On this special episode recorded at the 2022 Texas Tribune Festival in Austin, Jim Henson chats with Greg Bluestein (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution), Andy Chow (Ohio Public Radio’s Statehouse News Bureau), Angela Couloumbis (Spotlight PA), and Jon Ralston (The Nevada Independent) about the 2022 elections in Georgia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Nevada.

Jim Henson and Josh Blank discuss results from the recent University of Texas/Texas Politics Poll on issues in the Texas gubernatorial election in November, including abortion, border security, the economy, gun safety and the Robb Elementary shooting, and more.

Jim Henson, Joshua Blank, and Daron Shaw look at the latest University of Texas/Texas Politics Project Poll and talk about what the results say about the election environment in Texas.

Jim and Josh discuss the context of President Joe Biden’s upcoming speech about threats to democracy in the U.S., and how it might land in Texas.

Jim and Josh assess the potential impact of Texas gubernatorial candidate Beto O’Rourke’s campaign efforts in rural parts of the state.