West Texas Dispatch

We have a special show in store today. Early voting in Texas’s Joint City and School Elections starts Monday. Today we’ll hear from the candidates for Place Four. There are four of them. Navy veteran Benjamin Baylie is a small business owner who advocates for streamlining the processes around local development as an approach to addressing Abilene’s Housing Crisis. Rich Lyles touts his experience n...

Millions nationwide turned up at protests over the weekend. Abilene’s gathering was just a few hundred, but was bigger than the previous demonstrations. El Paso, Texas, Congresswoman Veronica Escobar is trying to sound the alarm about a large immigration detention center in her district. 9-1-1 calls from the tent camp are common, and there have been outbreaks of tuberculosis and measles. Locals in...

Are you combining trips or searching out the gas stations with the lowest price at the pump? We’ll check in on gas prices today. Landowners near the Texas-Mexico border are concerned about plans to extend the border wall–and locals are organizing a legal resistance to the plans. And… they are a staple of downtown Abilene. The Texas Star Trading Company was one of the first retailers to truly give...

Today we’ll update you on the runoff for the Republican nominee for Congressional District 19… the vote count has been finalized – and the names on the ballot are set. Or are they? West Texas has seen some wild weather over the past week. We’ll dig into where it came from — and what’s ahead. Congress is ready to take up the legislation that provides a wide range of support for farmers and ranchers...

Today on the show, Mayor Weldon Hurt shares the key takeaways from last week’s State of the City Address. The presentation ranged from economic growth and city projects to some perspectives on Abilene’s housing crisis. The Farm Bill is getting closer to having its day in Congress… Retiring Congressman Jodey Arrington is celebrating. How do West Texas Farmers feel? And speaking of farmers - we’ll t...

Lots of people showed up to the polls for this primary…both Republicans and Democrats. Texas’s Primary Election Day is behind us…but there is plenty of work ahead for some of the candidates… we’ll wrap up the outcome and look ahead. Resources are limited for mental health in rural Texas. The 9-8-8 suicide hotline is key to filling in the gaps for people in crisis… but the state has yet to dedicate...

Early voting has had a much-higher- than- usual turnout in Taylor County this primary-voting season. That’s thanks in no small part to the crowded field for two open seats. Last week we brought you interviews with the candidates for Texas State House District 71–that has been held by retiring state-rep- Stan Lambert. We have another special show in store this week, as we focus on the Republicans v...

This week we’ve got a collection of conversations with the candidates on the ballot for House District 71.As soon as Stan Lambert announced he wouldn’t seek reelection – candidates started filing their paperwork. Liz Case is making a second run for the seat, after coming close two years ago–with the backing of some of the state’s top Republicans. Newcomer Joshua Ohlmacher joined the race after fee...