Progress Texas Podcasts

We had a blast in Houston over the weekend as media partners of the Harris County Democratic Party Convention! Later this week, watch for a recording of all the speeches given in the convention hall - but we start with all of the interviews with lawmakers, thought leaders, candidates and more that we gathered over the course of the day! These are presented in the order we recorded them, between 9a...

Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: In an escalation against Democratically-led cities, the Trump administration is deploying ICE agents into those cities' airports - supposedly to help with long security lines, but really as a means to intimidate travelers: https://viewfromthewing.com/ice-is-showing-up-at-airport-checkpoints-your-rights-are-different-than-with-tsa/ ......

All of us at Progress Texas are looking forward to seeing a bunch of great friends and making a bunch of brand new ones this weekend at the Harris and Collin County Democratic Party conventions, in Houston and McKinney respectively. These events are open and FREE with registration to the public and can be considered a terrific gateway into higher levels of involvement at this critical time - we ho...

Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: Energy producers around Corpus Christi already consume over half of the area's water - and as supplies dwindle, they're taking steps to greedily keep theirs flowing: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/20/texas-corpus-christi-water-shortage-oil-gas-refineries/ With another round of No Kings protests coming next weekend, progressi...

Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: Governor Greg Abbott achieves new heights of hypocrisy in his attempt to use sexual abuse revelations about Cesar Chavez to smear all progressives and unions, while continuing to turn a blind eye to Donald Trump's copious appearances in the Epstein files: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/18/cesar-chavez-day-texas-fallout-sexual-ab...

Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: Arguing in favor of the SAVE America Act as Senate debate began yesterday, Ted Cruz repeated the standard GOP lie that Democrats are systematically encouraging undocumented people to vote in the U.S. - it's simply and demonstrably false: https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/ted-cruz-democrats-want-illegal-aliens-to-cast-votes/...

All across Texas this weekend - Friday March 20 thru Sunday March 21 - county-level conventions are being held by the Texas Democratic Party. It's a terrific (and free!) way to dive into progressive politics, and an especially fun way as a bright blue wave appears to be building across the Lone Star State. Joining us to talk about their individual events and all the reasons that YOU should att...

Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: 5pm today is the deadline for primary runoff candidates to remove their names from the May ballot, establishing a deadline of for either John Cornyn or Ken Paxton to drop on on the orders of Donald Trump: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/texas/article/trump-endorsement-texas-senate-runoff-22079256.php ...Cornyn attempted to sooth...

Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: The trial of nine "Antifa" defendants in a federal trial held in Fort Worth were largely found guilty of charges against them on Friday, except for a charge of attempted murder, of which only one was convicted: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/13/us/antifa-protesters-terrorism.html A marathon debate session is set in the U.S. Sen...

Texas is an anti-worker state, and working Texans are tired of being trampled by billionaire-bought politicians and interests. You can see it in support of a more affordable Texas: public education that sets our children up for success, quality jobs that pay a living wage, environmental protections that shield us all from pollution, and justice for our citizen and immigrant neighbors under attack....

A theme has emerged this week: as the Dallas County Democratic Party throws in the towel on a lawsuit over denied voting access on primary Election Night, judging the Republican-dominated Texas Supreme Court a hostile venue for that complaint - while our senior Senator John Cornyn reverses himself on the filibuster out of pressure from Donald Trump and Ken Paxton to pass the SAVE America Act, whic...

Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: The Texas Tribune collects a lineup of Talarico-isms currently being distorted and twisted by Republicans, who clearly see their reign over Texas under dire threat by the Democratic nominee for Senate: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/12/james-talarico-texas-senate-republicans-attacks-god-is-nonbinary/ ...They've also conjured a s...

Among the midterm races that in cycles of yore might have seemed without hope for Democrats - but considering the massive outpouring of primary interest this year, suddenly seem possible - is Texas House District 112 in the northeast Dallas area, where widespread dissatisfaction with longtime Republican incumbent Angie Chen Button couples with that Democratic momentum to give nominee Zach Herbert...

Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: Under pressure from both Donald Trump and Ken Paxton - after years of defending the filibuster in the U.S. Senate - Senator John Cornyn, desperate for Trump's endorsement, has changed his position on a primary safeguard for the minority party in that body: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/11/john-cornyn-filibuster-save-america-act...

Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: New polling from Texas Public Opinion Research shows Senator John Cornyn eight points behind Ken Paxton in the Republican primary runoff in May - a deficit too wide to be overcome by a Trump endorsement. Cornyn now faces a choice: eliminate Paxton from the race by helping kill the filibuster and pass the SAVE America Act in the Senate, or...

Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: The Gámez-Cuéllar family, including their two sons who are members of the acclaimed McAllen High School mariachi troupe, were released by ICE yesterday after a significant public outcry: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/09/texas-antonio-gamez-cuellar-monica-de-la-cruz-ice/ Laredo Congressman Henry Cuellar was one of four Congressional...

Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: As we reported Friday morning, Texas DPS released footage related to the federal border officer-involved killing of 23 year old Ruben Ray Martinez last year in South Padre Island, and it does not appear to justify lethal force: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/06/south-padre-immigration-officer-shooting/ ...Meanwhile outrage is buildi...

Every week, we marvel at the insanity of the week prior in Texas politics, and the primary election - especially Tuesday's Election Night, complete with Republican-orchestrated voter suppression in a major Texas city - certainly did not disappoint in that regard. We once again gather to self-therapize, celebrate a bit, and steel ourselves for the long, uphill fight to come. Thanks for listenin...

Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: At the behest of Donald Trump, Ken Paxton is mulling dropping out of the race for the U.S. Senate - on condition that Senate Republicans kill the filibuster and pass the SAVE America Act, which would help Trump suppress voters ahead of the midterm election: https://www.khou.com/article/news/politics/elections/ken-paxton-texas-senate-race-...

Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: Following a second night of celebration in Austin for James Talarico, his story, well known in Texas, is permeating nationally: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/04/us/politics/james-talarico-texas-senate.html ...Talarico's win suggests a shift among the Texas electorate away from partisan vitriol to political pragmatism: https://www.th...

Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: After an election night that saw chaos unfold in both Dallas and Williamson Counties due to Republican hijinks, including late interference by Attorney General Ken Paxton and the Republican Texas Supreme Court, Austin State Rep. James Talarico has officially won the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate: https://www.texastribune.org/2...

Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: Election Day arrives amidst a variety of strong indicators for a strong Democratic performance in the midterm: https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/03/texas-march-primary-election-day-senate-attorney-general-abbott-5-things/ ...The outcome of the contest between Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett and State Rep. James Talarico for the Democrat...

Monday March 2 marks the 190th anniversary of the signing of the Texas Declaration of Independence from Mexico, which kicked off in earnest the Texas Revolution - a chunk of history that has been manipulated and whitewashed over time as a major component of what has become the "Texas Myth", which is the central theme of the groundbreaking 2021 book Forget The Alamo . Jason Stanford is on...

Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: A host of Texas U.S. Representatives, including Jasmine Crockett, Lloyd Doggett and Julie Johnson, are calling for the Congress to place limits on Donald Trump's ability to unilaterally wage war - but the partisan divide is likely to place its own limits on that possibility: https://www.npr.org/2026/03/02/g-s1-112092/iran-war-powers-c...

State House District 138 in the northwest Houston area has been under GOP control for over 20 years - but in a 2026 seeing very high Democratic confidence, that race is interesting for sure. And, even as the primary silly season rages on, HD 138 already has a Dem nominee in Tyler Smith, a local community leader and gun safety advocate with extensive experience in politics from his Houston area hom...