Daily Dispatch 1/16/24: The Power Stays On In Texas - For Now, and More

Stories we're following this morning at Progress Texas: Shamefully, it's of national note that the Texas power grid has mostly stayed functional amidst the current winter blast: https://www.cbsnews.com/texas/video/good-news-texas-power-grid-holding-up/ ...ERCOT's most recent plea to conserve power is in effect as we publish this morning: https://www.fox7austin.com/news/texas-winter-weather-ercot-power-conservation-appeal-jan-16 ...The cold snap arrived as inspections of power facilities remained incomplete: https://www.nbcdfw.com/investigations/hundreds-of-ercot-power-facility-inspections-were-not-completed-before-winter-blast/3434953/ ...It's even colder in Chicago, where Governor Abbott continues sending migrants into lacking shelter: https://www.cnn.com/2024/01/15/us/chicago-migrants-cold-weather/index.html As the MLK weekend began, three Mexican migrants drowned in the Rio Grande in a section of Eagle Pass that "Texas Military Department" personnel have blocked from access by federal Border Patrol agents: https://www.cnn.com/2024/01/15/us/what-we-know-about-the-drownings-of-3-migrants-in-eagle-pass-texas/index.html ...Texas officials deny neglect in these drownings: https://nypost.com/2024/01/15/news/texas-military-deny-stopping-cbp-saving-drowning-migrants/ ...The Biden Administration has given Texas authorities until tomorrow to stop blocking federal access to Shelby Park: https://www.texastribune.org/2024/01/13/henry-cuellar-texas-border-eagle-pass/ A notorious Amarillo anti-abortion activist judge has allowed three other states to join a lawsuit alleging that mifepristone is unsafe: https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/nation-world/abortion-pill-texas-judge-grants-motion-allowing-idaho-join-lawsuit-against-fda-over-mifepristone/277-c2de6586-b4d8-4f8f-be46-bd3d161d9032 ...While our Tatum Owens writes on an apparently unnecessary death of a pregnant woman in Luling: https://progresstexas.org/baby-shower-turned-funeral Texas Republican Party Chair Matt Rinaldi is found to be on the payroll of Defend Texas Liberty founder Farris Wilks: https://www.texastribune.org/2024/01/12/farris-wilks-matt-rinaldi-defend-texas-liberty/ National Democrats' confidence in wins in Texas and Florida is growing: https://www.wvua23.com/democrats-target-gop-strongholds-texas-and-florida-with-senate-majority-on-the-line/ Ted Cruz invites freezing Texans to join him in Cancun, and curses the Dallas Cowboys to another ugly playoff loss: https://klaq.com/?p=828976 And Thursday's debate among candidates for House District 32 has been moved, and will also feature more candidates: https://www.mobilize.us/richardsonareademocrats/event/597311/ Thanks for listening! Please check out our web store and more ways to help Progress Texas continue our important work at https://progresstexas.org/.