The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - June 11, 2026

Episode Date: June 11, 2026

The Texan’s Daily Rundown brings you a quick recap of the latest stories in Texas politics so you can stay informed with news you can trust.Want more resources? Visit The Texan for complete access to our in-depth articles, newsletters, videos, podcasts, and more.Enjoy what you hear? Be sure to follow us and leave a review!

Howdy folks, today is Thursday, June 11th, and you're listening to The Texans Daily Rundown. I'm the Texans reporter Meredith Thayer coming at you from the Texas GOP's 2026 state convention, and here is the rundown for today's news in Texas politics. First up, Google announced the creation of its $10 million Texas Water Impact Fund as public concern continues to mount over water use by big tech companies through data centers. With increasing pressure related to data center builds in the state and their purported water usage, Google's news likely comes as an attempt to ease the concerns of Texas residents. Google's announcement last week of its new water stewardship commitments included the goals of

replenishing more water than is consumed at their sites by 2030, updating public water infrastructure, protecting at-risk watersheds with air-cooled solutions, reporting annual water use transparently, and finding other types of water, including treated wastewater for project use. Most data centers use a form of water cooling in order to keep their servers cool. Racks of hundreds of servers generate significant heat and cooling as a necessary process in order to prevent overheating. Air cooling methods are common in low temperature or water scarce environments, but tend to require more energy use due to the need for compressors and fans. Last month, Google also announced the first recipients of its Texas Energy Impact Fund, a $30 million investment into the state's energy infrastructure. In other news, Attorney General Ken Paxton announced an investigation into the International Association Football Federation, or Fee,

on Tuesday for alleged deceptive ticketing practices. The investigation follows allegations that, quote, the organization misled fans regarding the location and quality of seats sold for the upcoming World Cup matches, unquote, which will be hosted in Houston and Arlington. Paxton plans to investigate whether or not FIFA violated the Texas Deceptive Trades Practices Act, the Texas Business and Commerce Code, and quote, whether FIFA misrepresented the seat classifications to consumers at the time of purchase. The Deceptive Trade Practices Act protects consumers from false or misleading information,

giving consumers the right to sue for damages. Paxton stated that reports indicate some fans purchased Category 1 seating with high-value views of the field, but then after their purchase, FIFA changed the maps to move the seats into Category 2 seating, a lower-tier experience. The office also said it received several consumer complaints of a similar nature. Texas joins New York and California in their complaint over supposedly deceptive ticket sale practices. And this year's World Cup, FIFA is utilizing a new ticketing system driven by demand instead of fixed prices. This year saw the highest prices in World Cup history and prices have gone up exponentially since the start of the year.

Last but not least, a heist for the history books took place on June 11, 1865. It was a chaotic time in Texas after the fall of the Confederacy and the end of the Civil War. Many government officials had fled to Mexico. Union forces had not yet arrived leaving a vacuum of law enforcement officials and protection of property. After news that the Confederate surrender reached Texas in the late spring, Texas's governor and other government officials fled across the southern border after the governor failed to call the legislature into session to repeal the secession ordinance from 1861.

But not all Confederate soldiers had left Texas. The heist of the state's treasury was only partially successful thanks to former Confederate Captain George Freeman of Hamilton. Visit the Texan to read senior reporter Kim Roberts' account of the 1865 state treasury heist today in Texas history. Thanks for listening. the Texan, please be sure to visit the texan. News to get full access of all of our articles, newsletters, and podcasts.