Y'all-itics

Hard to imagine that both political parties can find any common ground these days but reforming criminal justice reform is shared by Republicans and Democrats. Thirty years ago with rising crime across this state and the country, there was a general sense that offenders should be locked up and the key thrown away. Three strikes, you’re out. Remember that? Today, 30 years later, both parties are wo...

The chairman of the Texas Republican Party joins the Jasons on this week’s Y’all-itics and he didn’t hold back.  The conservative firebrand wants the party to win suburban women and black voters in November and he has a plan to do it.  But he also made clear he isn’t happy with how the republican Governor of Texas has handled the state’s coronavirus response calling Greg Abbott’s response heavy-ha...

The Jasons have a candid conversation with Beto O’Rourke as he looks back on his career and ahead at his own political future.  Democrats have three main goals in Texas in November and O’Rourke talks about which one is most realistic.  Plus, he shares the one thing he stopped doing in the last six months and the one thing he still hasn’t given up.   More about the Texas Tribune Festival

The educator.  The Author.  The Politician.  The reporter.  They’re all back three months after joining the Jasons for the podcast “My Skin is not a Weapon.”  It’s not lost on anyone that the shooting of another black man in police custody frames the conversation… again.  While there is a great deal of discouragement and frustration, this panel of African-Americans does think some change, no matte...

Republicans formally nominated Donald Trump for a second term as president this week. Traditionally, national political conventions are tasked with two fundamental priorities every four years: nominate a president and vice president and establish a platform – a set of ideas that the party members believe in. But the RNC is skipping the process of creating a platform this year. That’s a mistake say...

The race is on now! The Democratic National Convention (2020 virtual edition) is underway, and will be immediately followed next week by the Republican National Convention (also virtual in this pandemic).    The Jasons are virtual, too---Dr. Carla Brailey, Vice Chair of the Texas Democratic Party Joins us. She tells Y'all-itics that even though she is a delegate to this year's convention, she's no...

That’s the message one north Texas superintendent would deliver to state leaders.  His district returned to class August 4th and they’ve already learned a lot.  He says one development shocked him.  And after the first week, many teachers had a common concern.  In fact, this superintendent says he’s fielding several calls a day from other superintendents across the state of Texas looking for advic...

That’s exactly what the founder of Minnie’s Food Pantry in Plano would tell politicians right now.  And Cheryl Jackson says if they came out and saw the problem first hand, it would be the only motivation they’d need to get a deal done to help.  As it stands, a federal $600/week unemployment benefit has now expired.  So Jackson says a terrible situation is about to get worse.  Still, “Action” Jack...

It may not feel like it, but the election will be here in the blink of an eye.  And if you’re a Texan, you should brace yourself for an onslaught of political advertising.  The most recent campaign finance reports are out, and they tell quite a story in the Lone Star state, where some political observers wonder if a political realignment is underway.  In this week’s episode of Y’all-itics, the two...

Pencils, Pens and chalk?  ✅ Binders, school books and backpacks?  ✅ Wills in case you die while teaching in class?  ✅ This is the reality of preparing for school this year in Texas, where students are just weeks away from returning to class – whether that be physical or virtual. And many teachers are terrified they’ll be exposed to Covid-19. As the two Jasons discovered in this week’s episode o...

Covid19 cut a major hole in the Texas economy – as businesses operate at a fraction of capacity or close permanently. But the virus has also sparked a huge demand for some products and their companies are struggling to keep up with demand. In this episode of Y'alli-tics, the Jasons talk to small businesses across the state – from a bike shop in Richardson that had to hire on extra help because of...

When the virus first hit in March, the Jasons knocked back a green beer at a popular Dallas pizzeria as the city announced it would cancel the St. Patrick’s Day block party. A lot has changed since then. That pizza joint is still open but has been outfitted with a maze of plexi-glass dividers. Jason and Jason follow up with the owner about the difficulty of adjusting to the challenges posed by the...

This week, Yall-itics makes its first stop all the way up in Philadelphia, PA. The Jasons talk with the man heading up a renowned research team there. The scientists have been modeling how the pandemic will affect different metros across the country. And when they ran the numbers for Harris County recently, they were ‘alarmed’. The potential case-count nearly went off the chart as they took a look...

Are Republicans nervous about winning Texas in November? Vice President Mike Pence is coming to Dallas on Sunday. President Trump just visited 10 days ago. Why is the Trump campaign spending time, money and resources in a state that has been a GOP lock for them for decades? Joining the Jasons this week are two of the smartest minds in Texas politics: Abby Livingston, D.C. Bureau Chief for the Texa...

In a landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling, the justices ruled 6 to 3 that employers cannot discriminate against LGBTQ employees because of sex.  And one of the court’s most conservative justices wrote the ruling.  In fact, Justice Neil Gorsuch said, “the answer is clear.”  The ruling is important to a great many Texans, who have long been denied this protection.  In this edition of “Y’all-itics,” th...

It’s been two weeks since the death of George Floyd in police custody.  And America has witnessed days and days of protests in cities all across the country.  So what now?  In this week’s episode of Y’all-itics, the two Jasons take an in-depth look at police reform and some of the concrete ideas on the table.  Here in Texas, for instance, there is already discussion about “See Something, Say Somet...

An educator. An Author. A Politician. A reporter. In this week’s episode of Y’all-itics, the two Jasons are joined by a panel of African-Americans who share their voices and thoughts on what’s happening in their communities following the death of George Floyd while in police custody. From protest to policy, this powerful conversation examines past, present and future as it relates to the African-A...

On Wednesday May 27th, America is scheduled to return to space for the first time in nearly a decade.  Astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley will fly on SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft for an extended stay at the International Space Station.  And as usual, the Johnson Space Center (JSC) in Houston will play a leading role.  As you might guess, it’s not easy to get into space.  And it is nev...

No matter if you own a house or rent an apartment, when property taxes increase, so does your monthly payment. And if you’ve lived in Texas for a few minutes, property taxes almost ALWAYS increase in this state. But during a pandemic? Texans are getting valuations right now from Central Appraisal Districts that show their properties have gone way up in value over the last 12 months. Dallas County...

Texas is reopening. While that very decision is mired in politics, there’s another “P” word that will also play a big role in how the economy spins back up. That second “P” word is “PSYCHOLOGY.” Texans are going to have to feel it’s safe enough to go out before they actually do so. We begin this episode with a psychotherapist in Dallas who tells the Jasons how she arrived at a comfortable point to...

Laura Dickey, the CEO of Dickey's Barbecue Pit, says that the initial stages of reopening are not at all profitable for businesses. They are simply taking the steps , trying to figure out this new way forward and to demonstrate to potentially leery customers how businesses are going to try to keep them safe. This is sort of a trust-building exercise. It is also an exercise in planning and managing...

Another 280,000 Texans have filed for unemployment. That makes 1.3 Million Texans who have lost work in a little more than one month.   Many are receiving benefits, but problems persist for a lot of Texans who are desperately trying to get through to the Texas Workforce Commission. We are talking with the head of TWC about some of the problems…and possible solutions. We are also finding out from h...

If you could vote from your sofa with a cold pint and a laptop to look up the candidates and issues, would you? That’s the reality in five states right now. And with Covid-19 creating concerns about being out in public, a lot of Texans think it might be safer if they vote from afar. In fact, Texas Democrats had a big legal win last week after a judge ruled that any Texan can now request a mail-in...

It looks difficult to pronounce but seems everyone right now knows about hydroxychloroquine. President Trump said it appeared promising in the fight against Covid19. Democrats quickly and correctly pointed out that it is unproven for that use. But forget the politics. What do Texas doctors say? There’s a doctor in Galveston County who has had prescribed this anti-malarial drug for 39 elderly patie...

In the weekly jobless report, we find out that an additional 314,000 Texans have filed for unemployment after losing their jobs last week. In the past three weeks, more than 800,000 Texans have applied for unemployment. That’s more than in all of 2019. Many have been able to file online for benefits. But for different reasons, some people have to call in to claim unemployment. And we are hearing f...