The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - August 18, 2026

Starting point is 00:00:04 Well, howdy, folks. Today is Tuesday, August 18th, and you're listening to The Texans Daily Rundown. I'm the Texan senior editor Rob Lauchess, and here is the rundown of today's news in Texas politics. First up, Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport has officially canceled plans to install Islamic ritual washing stations. Governor Greg Abbott quickly responded after news broke about the proposed ablution stations, calling the addition illegal in a letter to the airport. Shortly after the letter was sent, the airport announced it would not proceed with construction of the stations. The DFW airport sees over 85 million passengers annually, with over 12 million international passengers in the last year alone. Major international airlines from Muslim countries that frequent its terminals include

Starting point is 00:00:54 Emirates, Qatar Airways, Turkish Airlines, and Royal Jordanian. In 2024, Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport installed Islamic ritual washing stations, or woodoo stations, along with a connected prayer room. Abbott stated in the letter that both DFW's proposed stations and Houston's existing stations are, quote, government-owned facilities, end quote, and consequently deemed their presence illegal. Next, energy policy is stealing the spotlight in Texas statewide elections, but the race for the agency that oversees it remains largely in the dark. The Railroad Commission of Texas, the state's oldest regulatory agency, has primary jurisdiction over the oil and gas industry. However, both major party candidates in the race for the Railroad Commission are struggling to gain

Starting point is 00:01:44 name recognition, sway independence, and motivate voters in their own parties, according to a recent poll. Former Tarrant County Republican Party chairman Beau French, an investor, secured the Republican nomination after defeating incumbent Railroad Commissioner Jim Wright in a GOP primary runoff election. State Representative John Rosenthal, a former engineer, is this year's Democratic candidate. French has a three-point lead over Rosenthal, according to a survey of likely voters conducted at the end of July by the Barbara Jordan Public Policy Research Center at Texas Southern University. But French also has a three-point lead over Rosenthal, according to a survey of likely voters conducted at the end of July by the Barbara Jordan Public Policy Research Center at Texas Southern University. But French also has a a higher share of unsure voters in his own party than any other GOP nominee, with 11% of self-identified Republicans responding that they were unsure about which candidate to pick. And although Rosenthal has held public office since 2019, he's facing the same challenge. 10% of self-identified Democratic respondents said they were unsure about which candidate they would support. In other news, A Terrant County District Court temporarily stopped any further action on a data center proposed in the town of Westlake on the border of the city of Keller on August 17th. The Lakes at Marshall Ridge Homeowners Association filed an application for a temporary restraining order to stop the town of Westlake from approving a development agreement for the Circle T Data Center, which would have authorized the immediate grading, site work, and construction.

Starting point is 00:03:11 Westlake had called a special meeting for Monday, August 17th, to vote on the development agreement, but the temporary restraining order was issued before the meeting. The town council voted unanimously to table the agreement. The temporary restraining order will be in place for 14 days. The court will hold a hearing on August 26th to consider a temporary injunction, which, if granted, would have a longer duration. Last but not least, two Texas counties have joined jurisdictions in Ohio and Tennessee, in filing suit against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency

Starting point is 00:03:48 over newly implemented rules for federal security grants tied to election reforms. Established in 2003, the Homeland Security Grant Program, or HSGP, provides funding to state and local governments to prevent and respond to acts of terrorism and other threats, and a minimum of 3% of each grant must be used to ensure election security. In June, FEMA announced that 20% of HSGP funds may be withheld if recipients do not adopt certain election reform measures, including submitting plans for transitioning away from election equipment that uses barcodes or QR codes, and instead to equipment that accepts handmarked ballots. This week, El Paso and Harris counties, along with the cities of Columbus, Ohio and Nashville, Tennessee,

Starting point is 00:04:37 and Davidson County in Tennessee, filed suit and asked the federal government, to enjoin the administration from applying the new rules. Thanks for listening. To support the Texan, please be sure to visit the texan. News to get full access to all of our articles, newsletters, and podcasts.

The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - August 18, 2026

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