Here are the stories on Texas Standard for Friday, Feb. 2, 2024.
Groups are suing over wrongful Medicaid removal
At least 90,000 Texans were wrongfully removed from Medicaid coverage because of unidentified system glitches last year, although the state was able to restore their care when the problem was identified. Now groups have filed a federal complaint asking for an investigation into Deloitte Consulting, which built the software.
National Health Law Program attorney Sarah Grusin joins the show with more.
Austin students prepare as first-time voters ahead of Texas primary
The deadline to register to vote in the Texas primaries is Monday, so if you’ve recently moved, you should check to make sure your registration is up to date.
It’s also a last chance for brand new voters just turning 18 to participate.
KUT’s Becky Fogel reports on a group making sure area high school students are ready to vote.
U.S. Supreme Court will review Texas social media censorship law
The U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments this month in a legal challenge to Texas’s social media censorship law, House Bill 20.
Houston Public Media’s Andrew Schneider says two technology trade groups argue the law, written to protect conservative voices on social media, violates their members’ free speech rights.
Austin activists sue TxDOT over environmental impact of I-35 expansion
The Texas Department of Transportation has a lot of projects – around 11,000 according to its website. One of the biggest and most controversial is in Austin, where TxDOT plans to expand the portion of the highway that goes through downtown by four lanes.
Now an environmental lawsuit has been filed against the agency. KUT transportation reporter Nathan Bernier joins the show with an overview.
Remembering renowned ventriloquist Ignacio ‘Nacho’ Estrada
The beloved San Antonio-based ventriloquist Ignacio “Nacho” Estrada has died at the age 77. Estrada and his puppet Maclovio toured across Texas, the U.S. and Mexico for decades, serving up positivity and kindness along with the laughs.
The Texas Standard’s Kristen Cabrera has more.
A new miniseries explores the genius of MLK and Malcolm X
The new season of National Geographic’s biographical drama series “Genius” will explore the lives and philosophies of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X.
The show is based on the book “The Sword and the Shield: The Revolutionary Lives of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr.” by professor Peniel Joseph. He’s the Barbara Jordan Chair in Ethics and Political Values at UT Austin’s LBJ School as well as the founding director of the Center for the Study of Race and Democracy. He joins us today.
The gang delivers another custom poem. Reach out to Texas Standard with your topic suggestions!
Texas Tribune managing editor Matthew Watkins stops by with a recap of the week that was in Texas politics.
All this, plus the Texas Newsroom’s state roundup and Wells Dunbar with the Talk of Texas.
