Wade Goodwyn

At NRA Convention, Dueling Narratives Displayed With Guns

Wade Goodwyn — Sat, 04 May 2013 09:51:00 +0000

The National Rifle Association is holding its annual convention in Houston this weekend. More than 70,000 people are expected to attend for speeches and demos and acres of guns, ammo and camo.

The NRA is coming off of a major victory: the defeat of gun control legislation in the Senate.

Mourners Pack Arena To Honor Victims Of Texas Explosion

Wade Goodwyn — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 09:17:00 +0000

Transcript

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

It's MORNING EDITION from NPR News. I'm Steve Inskeep.

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

And I'm Renee Montagne.

Nearly 10,000 mourners gathered yesterday to honor the men who died fighting a fire in a fertilizer plant in Texas. They packed the basketball arena on the campus of Baylor University in Waco.

Thousands Attend Memorial For Plant Explosion Victims

Wade Goodwyn — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 00:16:00 +0000

President Obama visited Waco, Texas, on Thursday day to take part in a memorial for those killed in the fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas, last week.

Officials Seek Answers In Aftermath Of Deadly Explosion

Wade Goodwyn — Sat, 20 Apr 2013 09:21:00 +0000

With the house-to-house search over and the living and dead largely accounted for, the town of West, Texas, began the transition from shock and disbelief to communal grieving.

On Friday night, mourners gathered at St. Mary Church of the Assumption to remember the dead. Many of the dead were first responders who were fighting a roaring fire for 30 minutes before the explosion, which was felt 80 miles away in Fort Worth.

Texas Sen.

More Than 160 People Injured In Fertilizer Plant Explosion

Wade Goodwyn — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 22:06:00 +0000

Transcript

MELISSA BLOCK, HOST:

This is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from NPR News. I'm Melissa Block.

ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST:

And I'm Robert Siegel. We're learning a little more, today, about the devastation in the small town of West, in Texas. It was the scene of last night's massive explosion at a fertilizer plant. And while there's still no official word on the number of dead, authorities estimate that between five and 15 people were killed. More than 160 were injured.

NPR's Wade Goodwyn has been in West today and he's with us now. Wade, what does the town look like.

Texas Contractors Say Playing By The Rules Doesn't Pay

Wade Goodwyn — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 07:21:00 +0000

This story is part of a two-part series about the construction industry in Texas. Find the first part here.

Homes in Texas are cheap — at least compared with much of the country.

Construction Booming In Texas, But Many Workers Pay Dearly

Wade Goodwyn — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 07:20:00 +0000

Like almost everything in the Texas, the construction industry in the Lone Star State is big. One in every 13 workers here is employed in the state's $54 billion-per-year construction industry.

Homebuilding and commercial construction may be an economic driver for the state, but it's also an industry riddled with hazards. Years of illegal immigration have pushed wages down, and accidents and wage fraud are common. Of the nearly 1 million workers laboring in construction here, approximately half are undocumented.

Many of those workers have been in the U.S. for years, even decades.

Enron's Skilling Could Win Early Release From Prison

Wade Goodwyn — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 08:31:00 +0000

Former Enron CEO Jeffery Skilling could be released early from federal prison under a reduced sentencing agreement being considered at the Justice Department. Skilling was sentenced to 24 years in prison for his role in the energy trading giant's collapse

Texas Study Points To A Longer Natural Gas Boom

Wade Goodwyn — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 23:12:00 +0000

There are few things in life more joyful than discovering a giant oil or natural gas field in Texas. You're suddenly rich beyond your wildest dreams. When the scope and size of the natural gas reservoir in the Barnett Shale in North Texas first became apparent, there were predictions that the find would last 100 years.

Well, that was over the top.

Merger Of American Airlines and US Airways Will Create World's Largest Carrier

Wade Goodwyn — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 21:38:00 +0000

The boards of US Airways Group and AMR have approved the merger of American Airlines and US Airways. The resulting company will become the world's largest airline. American is in bankruptcy, so its creditors will own a big chunk of the new company and US Airways shareholders will own the rest.

Texas Court Of Inquiry To Decide If Prosecutor Lied

Wade Goodwyn — Tue, 05 Feb 2013 11:10:00 +0000

Transcript

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

In Texas, a court of inquiry has been convened to consider prosecuting a Texas judge. He's Ken Anderson. He used to be the district attorney in Williamson County, Texas, and he could face criminal charges for concealing exculpatory evidence. That's evidence that could clear a defendant of guilt. The inquiry concerns his conduct during what has become an infamous case - the prosecution and conviction of Michael Morton. Morton was wrongfully convicted and sentenced to life in prison for murdering his wife.

Obama's 2nd Term Rankles Die Hard Republicans

Wade Goodwyn — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 09:52:00 +0000

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

In his inaugural address yesterday, President Obama pressed Americans to put aside mindless partisanship. He said we cannot treat name-calling as reasoned debate. At the same time, he strongly defended his political views, voicing support for gay rights and the role of government.

The crowd of supporters out on the National Mall liked it. Republicans watching in Texas had a different view.

Beleaguered American Airlines Looks For A Fresh Start With New Look

Wade Goodwyn — Thu, 17 Jan 2013 21:57:00 +0000

American Airlines unveiled the first change to its logo and the look of its planes since 1968 on Thursday.

Another George Bush Plans To Try His Hand At Politics

Wade Goodwyn — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 22:05:00 +0000

Another member of the Bush family is throwing his hat into the political ring: George Prescott Bush, 36, the son of former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, has announced he is running for office in Texas.

The Bush name is still strong in the Lone Star State: George P. has already raised nearly $1.4 million, though he still hasn't said which statewide office he will run for.

At the age of 12, Bush led the Pledge of Allegiance before the 1988 Republican National Convention, when his grandfather George H.W.

Tea Party Texan Cruz Gives GOP Hope In Hunt For Hispanic Votes

Wade Goodwyn — Tue, 01 Jan 2013 20:58:00 +0000

Sen.-elect Ted Cruz of Texas is a bright young Hispanic star who will be sworn in this week in Washington. The Republican Party nationally hopes Cruz will be part of the solution to its growing problem luring Hispanic voters.

Almost nobody had heard of Cruz when he began his campaign for the U.S. Senate.

Amid Calls For Gun Control, Some Push For Weapons At School

Wade Goodwyn — Tue, 18 Dec 2012 21:56:00 +0000

A growing number of lawmakers are indicating they are open to considering new gun control measures in the wake of Friday's school shooting in Newtown, Conn. But while much of the national debate has focused on limiting access to guns, others are suggesting that schools should arm themselves to defend against attacks.

David Thweatt, school superintendent for the small Texas town of Harrold, northwest of Fort Worth, decided in 2006 that it was time to arm his staff. There's only one school in Harrold, a K-12 with 103 students.

Before 2006, there had already been enough carnage at U.S.

Teenager's Faith At Odds With Locator Tags In School IDs

Wade Goodwyn — Mon, 17 Dec 2012 08:37:00 +0000

A federal court in Texas on Monday will take up the case of a high-school student who refuses to wear her location-tracking school ID.

The 15-year-old sophomore says the ID badge, which has an embedded radio frequency identification tag, is a violation of her rights.

Positive Fracking Study Was Funded By Gas Company

Wade Goodwyn — Fri, 07 Dec 2012 21:24:00 +0000

A report that shed favorable light on fracking is at the center of a controversy at the University of Texas. The head of the school's Energy Institute has stepped down and another professor has retired after an investigation found numerous errors and flaws in the report — and undisclosed conflicts of interest.

Pilots At Bankrupt American Airlines Push For Merger

Wade Goodwyn — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 23:05:00 +0000

Transcript

MELISSA BLOCK, HOST:

From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Melissa Block.

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

And I'm Audie Cornish. American Airlines has been in bankruptcy for more than a year and looks like it will be there a while longer. The airline has asked a judge in New York for yet another extension to file its restructuring plan. Executives are hoping American can remain a standalone carrier. The company's unions, on the other hand, say they've had it and they want the company to merge with U.S.

Dallas Residents Weigh In On Fiscal Cliff Talks

Wade Goodwyn — Mon, 03 Dec 2012 09:57:00 +0000

The battle over the looming spending cuts and tax increases known as the "fiscal cliff" begins this week where it ended last week — deadlocked. While there is no agreement on how lawmakers should work out the details of a compromise, there is widespread consensus that a deal must get done for the good of the country.

GOP Governors Say Party Lost On Strategy, Not Issues

Wade Goodwyn — Sun, 18 Nov 2012 10:50:00 +0000

Republican governors got together in Las Vegas last week to take stock of the election results, which continue to sink in.

Going into Election Day, Republican confidence was high that the Grand Old Party would sweep President Obama aside, retake the U.S. Senate and reshape the country in the aftermath.

So on Nov. 6, when the results came in, many if not most Republicans were shocked by the president's victory. Pat McCrory, the newly elected governor of North Carolina, however, saw it coming.

"I knew it would be close.

Fault Lines Form In GOP After Romney Comments

Wade Goodwyn — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 21:52:00 +0000

Transcript

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Audie Cornish

MELISSA BLOCK, HOST:

And I'm Melissa Block.

Fault lines are forming in the Republican Party over comments from Mitt Romney about why he lost last week's election.

GOP Governors Assess Future Of Republican Party

Wade Goodwyn — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 10:22:00 +0000

The Republican Governor's Association is meeting this week in Las Vegas. Republicans lost seats in the House, Senate and the presidential race. But the GOP gained one more state, North Carolina, to put the number of Republican governors at 30. The governors say there's nothing wrong with the party that a few changes around the margins won't fix.

Air Travel Still Feeling The Effects Of Sandy

Wade Goodwyn — Wed, 31 Oct 2012 09:21:00 +0000

Transcript

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

Airlines canceled more than 17,000 flights before, during, and after the storm. New York's JFK and Newark Airport in New Jersey re-opened this morning, with limited service. For other airports, it may be days before their first flights take-off. All told, Sandy is expected to cost the domestic airline industry $100 million - money it can't really afford to lose.

Still, as NPR's Wade Goodwyn reports, the news hasn't been all bad.

WADE GOODWYN, BYLINE: The airline industry has learned from the past nightmares of its own making.

American Airlines Fliers Fed Up As Labor Clash Rages

Wade Goodwyn — Thu, 27 Sep 2012 20:24:00 +0000

Pat Henneberry is an airline's dream customer. She flies all week, every week, and buying an $800 ticket so that she can have full flexibility is standard operating procedure. She's an American Airlines platinum customer. But she is fed up with the endless delays and cancellations.

"On Monday I didn't get on the plane. Basically, they said they're going to be late, then an hour later they said they're canceling. It's a direct flight to Chicago. It's easy to get equipment. They said it was maintenance.

American Airlines Warns It's Eliminating Jobs

Wade Goodwyn — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 09:27:00 +0000

American Airlines is notifying more than 11,000 employees that they might get laid off. The move is part of the company's ongoing bankruptcy reorganization which continues to be rocky.

Smoke Cleared, Texas Gun Owners Remain Wary

Wade Goodwyn — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 19:21:00 +0000

Texas state Rep. Wayne Christian was born two blocks from where he now lives in what is called Deep East Texas.

"We were not wealthy people, [we were] common laborers, but that was typical in rural East Texas at that time," he says.

When he was growing up, Christian says, by first or second grade, an East Texas boy would accompany his father or grandfather on a hunting trip. But before a boy got a gun, he had to learn how to act — how to address the other men respectfully, to watch how it worked.

In these rituals of the woods, you saw and were seen.

Many Texans Bereaved Over 'Dead' Voter Purge

Wade Goodwyn — Sun, 16 Sep 2012 10:23:00 +0000

Quite a few Texas voters are seeing dead people in the mirror these days when they go to brush their teeth in the morning.

In Houston, high school nurse Terry Collins got a letter informing her that after 34 years of voting she was off the Harris County rolls. Sorry.

"Friday of last week, I got a letter saying that my voting registration would be revoked because I'm deceased, I'm dead. I was like, 'Oh, no I'm not!' " Collins says.

In order to stay on the rolls, the 52-year-old nurse had to call and inform the registrar of her status among the living.