TPUSA's Halftime Show Drew In Over 6 Million Viewers

This is News Radio 740, KTRH, Houston, and I Heart Radio station, guaranteed human. Now, the latest news, weather, and traffic. It's more of what matters to you from the John Moore Services Studios. Good morning, 5 a.m. our time here in Houston's morning news. I'm Jimmy Amy Coney Barrett. Among our top stories to get started this morning, Turning Point USA's halftime show. Drew more than 6 million viewers. Texas DPS has a five-year plan to deal with Biden's illegals. And coming up at 508, is Houston really the second most dangerous city in America? Details in the minutes ahead. First, we're checking out that morning. Drive for the first time. Happy Monday, Skymite. Dude, good morning. We're looking at, first of all, a little fog. I'm checking out around KD. Freeway, way out Danigan Road. And, boy, if you're playing the home game with me, camera 356, Brazzis River, it's getting to be a visibility thing on the outbound side, inbound both ways. And we're looking out from Park Road to the President says it's 25 minutes, but visibility is your thing this morning. I'm Skymike and the generator supercenter.com. From our KTRH, top tax defenders, 24-hour weather, there's some areas of dense fog to start our day, then becoming partly cloudy with a high temperature right about 80. We'll get you the complete forecast. Terry Smith at the Weather Channel, we'll talk to her in nine minutes, right now 58, and your officials, severe weather station, News Radio 740, KTRH. It's time now for the news. Here's Cliff Saunders. Good morning, everyone. It is 501 on KTRH, our top story this morning.

The patriotic halftime show put on by Turning Point USA at the Super Bowl featuring Kid Rock, Lee Bryce, Brantley Gilbert. It drew about 6 million live viewers on YouTube last night. It was the alternative to the NFL show put on with rapper Bad Bunny. Really, there was no agenda. It was just good music for Americans, for people that wanted to feel proud about their country, wanted to love their country, love their God, and love some great music. Turning points, Andrew Stephen Colbert, Colvitt on Fox. The show is up to 19 million views on YouTube, and we have it at KTRH.com, our Facebook, and our X page. Now, the Bad Bunny show is getting panned online. The rapper performed in Spanish. He yelled a football, claiming, quote, together we are America. On truth, social, President Trump called it, quote, absolutely terrible. one of the worst ever. In his pre-super Bowl interview on NBC, the president stood by his administration's immigration enforcement ops in Minneapolis. The crime numbers in Minnesota and Minneapolis, in particular, down 25, 30 percent because we've removed thousands of criminals from the area. These are hardened criminals. They came in many of them. Most of them came into an open border. He also got a win on deportations over the weekend as a federal appeals court upheld. DHS policy allowing illegal aliens to be detained without bond. Funding for that department runs out at the end of the week, and one Democrat senator is warning about yet another partial government shutdown. I hope it doesn't shut down because we could all agree to focus on those things, and that's where I'm going to be and where my vote's going to be. Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman. It's now 503. The Trump administration has launched a new portal to report and track foreign-owned land in America. Texas has the largest amount of that kind of land out of any state. It really is only about 3.6% of the land that is in Texas that is used for agriculture. A lot of those interests from foreign entities is timber, forestry, and more recently, the large-scale renewable energy projects. But Gary, joining with the Texas Farm Bureau does say that China tried unsuccessfully to buy land near a Texas Air Force base just a few short years ago. So to that end, Governor Greg Abbott, along with Texas DPS, as unveiled the new Texas Homeland Security Plan. New plan, same problem, cleanup after the Biden border disaster. We're going to see a lot of that damage for many years to come, unfortunately. That is border security expert Art del Quedo who credits Texas for not letting up. Thank God that it's getting done in Texas because I can tell you there's areas like California, there's areas like even Arizona, New Mexico that are not getting that same support by some of the local authorities. The five-year plan will also include AI, cameras, and drones. Jeff Andy Biggs News Radio 740, KT or H.

The governor is one of the state's top Republicans getting involved in the Agriculture Commissioner primary next month, endorsing challenger Nate Shates and Nate Sheets and not the incumbent Sid Miller. Do you remember like the movie Casino? The bosses have finally, you know, had enough. It's like, you know, how much more are they going to take? Rice's Mark Jay Jones says Miller has repeatedly angered the state's GOP leadership. Land Commissioner Dr. Dawn Buckingham has also endorsed sheets. Early voting for that primary begins in just eight days. Some voters, though, have yet to receive their registration cards. Upgrades to the state's election software has delayed mailing of those cards. Experts say it's no big deal because they can't be used as an ID when you go to vote. Texans are using their driver's license. And if they're not using their driver's license, then they're probably using their handgun license. Byron Fisher at the Election Protection Project says it's probably better that the cards get sent out closer to the election. That way, they'll serve as a reminder that it's almost time to vote. Early voting in the March primaries starts next week. That is KTRH's Rex Oates. Our news time is now 506. The search for Nancy Guthrie continues with less than 24 hours to go before an alleged ransom deadline. We beg you now to return our mother to us so that we can celebrate with her. NBC's Savannah Guthrie in a video that came out over the weekend. The FBI is offering a reward of $50,000 in the case. They've put up billboards nationwide, including some, across Houston. The Seattle Seahawks beat New England last night, 29 to 13, to win the Super Bowl, making a champion at a former first round bust Sam Darnold. Some people called me crazy throughout my career for believing in myself so much and having so much confidence. But, you know, it was because of my parents because of the way that they believed in me throughout my entire career. And it allowed me to go out there and play free and have a ton of confidence. Running back, Kenneth Walker was named MVP. This is the second Super Bowl wing in Seattle's history. I'm Cliff Saunders on Houston's News Weather and Traffic Station News Radio 740, KTRH. The preset that sets the record straight. It's just made my whole day more efficient. On News Radio 740, KTRH. I don't think it could take the highway into the danger zone when it comes to climate change. You know, I haven't seen a climate change story in a while. It's kind of like they gave up doing climate change stories, but I saw this one and it mentioned us. So I thought I would just mention it to you so we could all poo-poo it together. The title of the story is the four most dangerous cities to live in. Number one on the list, Miami, Florida. We ranked number two, by the way. But before I get to us, here's what they said about Miami. We live in cities because they promise opportunity, culture, and connection. They're magnus for millions who hope for better lives. Yet there's a darker pattern emergency. One that already is set in motion and harder to reverse than most people realize. Some cities are headed straight into a conversion of threats that few governments want to acknowledge publicly. Sure, you've heard about crime statistics, you've seen the unusual rankings. What you haven't been told is the hidden danger lurking beneath those headlines. Studies estimate the surrounding sea level in Miami could rise by six inches by 2030. That's four years from now.

I don't think that's going to happen. Maps show increasingly uninhabitable conditions of Miami by 2030, 2016, 2100. Well, hang on, 2100 is 70 years from now. Are you saying, if the sea level rose six inches, would anybody be able to live in Miami 70 years from now? If that really were going to happen? Miami has always been gorgeous, but the city is built on porous limestone, just feet above sea level. Environmental experts have suggested there's virtually no scenario under which Miami can exist at the end of the century, as sea levels rise faster than other world areas. All right, what do they say about us? We came in number two. Houston, Texas, sinking while flooding. Parts of Houston are sinking at a rate of two inches per year due to excessive groundwater pumping. making the city more vulnerable to disasters like Hurricane Harvey, which damaged nearly 135,000 homes. Think about that for a second. Hang on. Think about, what was it, 41 or 50, 41 inches of rain. I mean, what's the likelihood of, and somehow we survived it? The water's receded. All right, it goes on to say the ground itself is collapsing underneath one of America's largest cities. Houston subtropical climate getting hotter. With extreme heat days and warm nights on the rise, and the city struggles with industrial pollution at a petrochemical hub compounding environmental stresses like poor air quality. Each year, more homes enter floodplains, which is harrowing when you remember Hurricane Hover's 48 inches of rain in just four days. Here's the thing, though. Houston launched a resilient Houston plan to restore native prairie and wetland plans along bayous and remove all homes from the highest risk floodway by 2030. That sounds promising, but it's a race against nature's accelerating timeline. We're doomed! Yeah, well, it's climate hype, but we haven't had some in a while. Just thought I'd throw it out there. Are you worried about Houston disappearing in the next, let's say, 70 years? 5-10, time for traffic and weathered together. Sky Mike joins us. I live a mile from Greens Point. I have bigger problems. Yes, yes. You have more immediate danger concerns. Yeah. It's not the sinking that concerns you. It's the shooting. I get it. I get it. I sleep with my windows open. Let's do some north side here as you're coming down from the woodlands, 45 north. Fog is the thing this morning. I'd love to hear from everybody. What do you see? What do you not see? and Woodlands down 23 minutes. Now it's easy going so far. Always, always, always. Look where you're going when you're on the roadways. We found out on I-10 East where that sinkhole was last week. You just never know what's going to crumble here. On the south side of 45, Gulf Freeway looks good. Texas City up rocking along 38 minutes. And something smunched up Beaumont. It looks like they've got some kind of, ooh, it looks like they had a rough wreck after Finette. If you see what I can't see, 7132, 2-1-2-T-I-PS. I know there's a smunch there. I'm just not sure what's going on. We'll visit that at 520. Hi. Hi, Sky. Oh, good Lord. Captain Jack. Oh, good Lord. And the Jimmy, dude.

be very bad at the others in the outer face at highway 6. Good Lord. First, right, more. Oh, God. We're off to a start, aren't we, Terry? I'm in the generator supercenter.com traffic center. We got areas of dense fog this morning. Jimmy, it's dense fog. Damn. From our KTRH top tax defenders, 24-R-Wather, Senator Terry is here. Took a while for, we had a lot of fog yesterday morning, too. Took a while for that. In fact, we didn't really see the sun until the afternoon. Oh, well. That could be the case, I guess, today. The dense fog advisory is until 9 a.m. visibility should start to improve. But no, I think we'll see a little bit of sunshine later on this morning. So it's a fairly quiet stretch of weather. Overall, though we may get some rain midweek and later in the week as well. No rain today. We'll turn out sunny. It is going to be warm from the mid-70s to low 80s today. And tomorrow, I think the clouds will hang around a little. bit more. Mid to upper 70s tomorrow. There's a 20% chance of some rain Wednesday, Thursday right now looking dry. Friday also a 20% chance of rain. I don't see a lot of change in the temperatures fairly warm through the week. Anywhere from the 70s to low 80s through Friday. Right now 58 at your official's severe weather station, news radio 740KTRH. 59 inbound at the loop is always a problem. KTRH time saving traffic. Next on the 10. So I was going to ask you for your impressions today of the Super Bowl, Super Bowl commercials, anything you wanted to comment on. But I get the sneaking suspicion that probably like me, a lot of you just kind of passively watched it. The first half was boring. Was it 9 to nothing at the half time? No way I was watching halftime. That's what I decided to call today. So I don't know. I don't know if we should make it a question or not, because I don't know. I don't know how many of you bothered to stick with it. 520. Time for traffic and weathered together. I just found out who won at 5 o'clock this morning. Well, you wouldn't, like the second half, I guess was better than the first half, Skymike. I watched a documentary about the BGs last night. That sounds like more fun to me. Yeah, yeah, I had a good time. Let's go to the Golden Triangle here. I 10 out past Bennett. There's something going on. I think there was a wreck that was so bad. that they had to do something to the roadways there, maybe a hazmat deal or whatever. It's kind of a mystery. I'll have to check in with Jefferson County, but I can see the backup now from 365. Is that what it is in Phonet on the eastbound, outbound toward Beaumont? So it looks like to be about a 20-minute backup this way. Might be a good time to jump on 73 or 90, get around it. They're lovely drives anyway. I'm Skymike. It's the generator supercenter.com traffic center from our KTRH. Top tax defenders, 24-hour weather center, areas of dense fog to start our day, becoming partly cloudy, looks like about 80. Tomorrow, mainly cloudy, 70-gate. Wednesday, considerable clouds, like chance of a shower with a hive 77. Temperature right now is 58, and your official, severe weather station, news radio 740, KTRH.

It's a Monday morning. Cliff is here and he has an update on some of our top stories. Another teen murdered in the city. It happened overnight at a car meetup in Greens Point. An eight-year-old is dead to others injured after a major crash in northwest Harris County last night. And the Alamo Draft House movie theater chain closing its last Houston location this weekend, which was in Katie. At the latest news anytime at KTRH.com, our next update is at 5.30. What's started in your car now works on your phone with the new I Heart Radio app. The new presets are fantastic. Get Houston's news, weather and traffic. That's how I listen to KTRH. Instantly. 522 now here on Houston's morning news. All right. You've gotten your first paycheck for 2026. Have you noticed a difference? Is it more than it was last year? I mean, any races aside. Assuming you're getting paid the exact same thing to start this year that you're being paid to end last year, have you noticed a change? I did. My paycheck was probably $300 more, and I assume it's less in taxes, which is exactly what we were told was going to happen. is that 2026 would be when people were going to start to notice all of a sudden that they've got more money. Treasury Secretary Kevin Hassett asked about this and filling us in on not necessarily just how much more money you're going to get, but the fact that we're all going to be getting more money. First of all, I gotta say that the market was very nervous earlier the week because the market didn't understand something that Art Laffer and Larry Cudlow have been teaching us forever, which is when there's a productivity boom, like we're seeing because of artificial intelligence, that everybody's better off. That's where prosperity comes from. If you go back to the dawn of the pre-industrial age, right? It was the introduction of new inventions and so on that built our wealth over time. And right now we're in the midst of a productivity unlike anything we've ever seen, and it's being fed by great policies. We've got a big beautiful bill that's making it so that the people get to expense when they build these AI centers. And when all the capital spending comes in, it's up six and a half percent since the big beautiful bill, then that makes everybody's wage go up. And one of the things I can remember a few months ago, every time I came on TV, people said, oh, but the people aren't feeling it, and I've said, and you taught me to say this, people will feel it when they see it in their wallets. And guess what happens in January? That's when people people often get their annual salary adjustment. And all of a sudden, even the Democrats in the Michigan survey are celebrating because they're seeing it in their own wallets. And so the people are seeing it in their paychecks. We're seeing it in the surveys because now they see, oh gosh, look at all the extra money you got in my paycheck. And we're seeing it in equity markets. And so it really is a kind of golden age. Final thought, we're now seeing GDP down a little bit from the five to four and a halfie. But if we get that, then that means we had a 3% year. And the IMF forecast that we'd have a 1.5% year. And so we've doubled the expectation of, you know, the IMF, the big forecaster. And we did that even though Joe Biden had one quarter. And so this is what Trump's economy looks like. And you might have noticed that the Dow Industrial average closed about 50,000 for the first time in history on Friday. I don't know about you, but I got my report on my investments.

And January was a very, very strong month as far as those of us who were invested in stocks and bonds and those types of things made pretty good money for the last month. So I've got to feel like maybe this is when things start to kick in a little bit for some folks. And they go, okay, the economy is obviously growing. I've seen more money in my paycheck. I'm getting a bigger refund. I'm starting to feel a little bit better about things. 526 here in Houston's morning news. Time to take a look at your money. Good morning. For the first time ever, the Dow Jay Jones Industrial Average top 50,000 on Friday. The index has jumped 4.3% this year outpacing the S&P 500. In the last six months, sharp gains from Goldman Sachs and Caterpillar have driven more than half of the advance in the Blue Chip Index. I'm Courtney Donahoe, Bloomberg Business on News Radio 740, KTRH. Houston's news. Weather traffic. Plus breaking news 24-7. This is News Radio 740 KTRH. Live everywhere with the IRA. More of what's happening now from the John Moore Services Studios. It's 5.30. Houston's morning news. I'm Jimmy Amy Coney Barrett. Among our top stories this F.R. We have a Friday of the 13th partial government shutdown deadline. Local government in Texas, $550 billion in debt. and coming up at 538. So what does the inside of your car look like right now? Details in the minutes ahead first. Dirty. Let's check out that morning drive. Here's Sky Mike. And move that food. Gulf Freeway, northbound, there's a smunch right at 69. Got a stall vehicle. That's a little squeeze down. There's only two lanes. Such a great design. We're backed up almost from U of H an extra four or five minutes here. I don't think he'll be there long. Stay the course. And east side, way out east, Golden Triangle. This is I10 Pass Spinnett. Got a pretty serious wreck here. A 20 minute wait. Let's go ahead and reroute it to 90. I'm Sky Mike and the ability tree experts. Traffic Center. From our KTRH generator super center, 24-hour weather center, here is a dense fog to start the day, becoming partly cloudy with a high right about 80. We'll get you the complete forecast. Terry Smith said the Weather Channel. We'll talk to her in nine minutes. Currently 58. Add your official severe weather station, news radio 740 KTRH. It's time now for the news. Here's Cliff Saunders. It is 531. Good morning, everyone. Our top story this morning. We'll have an open discussion with them, but we are not going to prohibit ICE from enforcing the nation's laws at all. Oklahoma Senator Markwayne Mullin as another partial government shutdown looms late this week. Democratic senators spelled out their proposal to fund DHS ahead of a Friday midnight deadline. The text is said to contain demands to reform immigration and customs. enforcement procedures to include unmasking agents and body camera usage in their enforcement. Colonel Scott reporting the House will also vote this week on the Save America Act. It's an election integrity bill. Texas Congressman Pat Fallon says it's just common sense. We live in America where you have to need you need an ID to go on an airplane. You need an ID if you want to purchase alcohol.

The bill would require Americans to show proof of citizenship when registering to vote and present a government-issued photo ID to vote at the polls. The Save America Act already has the backing of President Trump. We need fair elections. We need elections where people aren't able to cheat. And we're going to do that. I'm going to do that. I'm going to get it done. Trump on NBC before the Super Bowl last night. By the way, around 6 million people watch the Turning Point USA halftime show live with Kid Rock. By the way, it's up to almost 19 million views on YouTube as of this morning. We've got it for you on KTRH.com, our Facebook page and our ex page. More on that's what the president had to say about bad money as well at 6 o'clock. It's now 533. While the state of Texas has done well with a budget surplus, a new report finds that local government debt in the Lone Star State has soared to 552. billion dollars. The Texas Public Policy Foundation continues to look at ways that government is growing excessively. Local debt tends to bring about a rise in property taxes. James Quintero with the TPPF says the report found that the city of Houston, Harris County, and Houston ISD owe a combined $30 billion plus. The state attorney general's race gets most of the attention for the March primary, but locally the race to replace Lina Hidalgo as Harris County judge is coming into focus. Anice Parker and Marty Langton surge ahead in funding, but it means little. If one candidate has $500,000 and an opponent has $250,000, if you spend your $250,000 effectively, the difference in the money is not going to matter. Gary Pollan of the Texas Conservative Review says Latisha Plummer and Orlando Sanchez were next up, and the race depends on if voters think national. You nationalize the election and the candidates and what they can do from their standpoint is much more difficult and they're dependent on forces they don't. control. He says if people focus locally, the GOP could win the seat. Andre Parrard News Radio 740, KTRH. At 534, looking at your money, overnight futures are down this morning after the Dow closed above $50,000 for the first time ever on Friday. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says these records mean one thing. The Trump economic agenda is working. Wall Street is telling you that Main Street is about to prosper. We are seeing a big cyclical recovery. The president's agenda set the table in 2025, and now the American people are going to benefit in 26. By the way, Trump is now predicting that the Dow will hit 100,000 by the end of his term. Despite this, more than 50 percent told CBS that opportunities for the middle class are decreasing.

This all started by Joe Biden's inflation, by the way. Breitbart's Warner Todd Houston says even those in higher income brackets are feeling the pinch. How many of us know people that are making, you know, $80,000 a year and can barely get pie here in some of these states across the country, especially the blue states. But what the mainstream media ignored was this little statistic. 51% said that their financial situation is either fair or very good. On the housing front. It turns out that not everything is bigger than tech's bigger in Texas when it comes to buying a home. Tiny home sales have peaked and affordability matters, according to a new report by Realtor.com. Housing expert Lance Thrillkill says the median price is closer to 100k, allowing renters to see homeownership become a reality. Stop paying somebody else for your house instead of putting money in your own bank with equity. Thrillkill says the down payments are as low as 4K. Even at 20% down on a $100,000 house versus a $400,000 house. It's a big difference. The problem is rent is too high for people to save. I'm Erica Smith. News Radio 740, KTRH. More Americans are turning to AI for help with their taxes. Tech expert Peter Shankman says, now it can be useful for explaining concepts or spotting potential strategies. But you really should have a human do your taxes. If you want to use AI as a first pass, go for it. But it can't be your only pass. Shankman adds that the IRS still holds you, the taxpayer, fully responsible for mistakes, regardless of whether or not your tax advice came from human or machine. 536, the Seahawks beat New England to win the Super Bowl, 29 to 13, and Alperin Shangoon of the Rockets is going to the NBA All-Star game as an injury replacement. I'm Cliff Saunders on Houston's News Weather and Traffic Station, News Radio 740, KTRH. U.S. News. You shut down the government. That means no money for FEMA. And global views. Beautiful Armada, floating beautifully toward a rent. On News Radio 740, KTRH. 538 our time here in Houston's morning news I like this topic this is close to home for me because I am meticulous when it comes to my cars I mean I'm a neat freak when it comes to my cars and I blame it on my father ever tell you this story about the car I had to drive when I was in high school it was a super old it was like a 62 Chrysler Newport with a push button transmission of course now push button transmissions are back again And the thing had a big, huge honking engine, and it idled at about 25 miles per hour. You take your foot off the brake. It'd go 25 miles per hour without even putting a foot on the gas. But it was all tore up and beat up and nasty looking. And the gauges didn't even work in the thing. I got pulled over by a police officer after football practice for speeding. He said, son, do you have any idea how fast you were going?

I said, no, sir, the speedometer doesn't work, the odometer doesn't work, and the gas gauge doesn't work. I have no idea how fast I'm going, how far I've been, or how much gas I've got left to get there. He basically said, you tell your old man to fix this car, okay? Yes, sir, I'll tell him. But anyway, it was always a mess, too, because he didn't care what it looked like. So I became a meticulous person when it comes to that. You could eat off the floor of my truck right now. It is pristine and clean. He goes to the car wash usually once a week. I have one of those subscriptions because they go so often. I see a speck of dirt. I run it back through again. But a new poll says 34% of people who own a car say they'd be embarrassed for someone to look inside their car. 21% admit that there's currently food on the floor in their vehicle. 33% say they have random clothing in their car. 23% say there's trash and food wrappers. 36% admit there are bottles and cans littered around, and 21% say there's actual food on the floor. Over half of car owners filled the current state of their car's interior, quote, is a fair reflection of their personality for better or for worse. Meanwhile, 46% of us say our car is very or somewhat clean and organized. So here's my question. Two questions. Actually, you can roll it into one. What is the current condition of your vehicle? The inside of your vehicle. Is it pristine? Are there food wrappers? Is there clothing from last week? If we were to take a look inside your vehicle, what would we find? And by the way, what's the most unusual thing that you have in your car or truck that's in there that we wouldn't expect to find, like, I don't know, an uncash lottery ticket? old Halloween decorations, whatever it is. You go to the iHeart radio app, KTRH, first name where you're calling from, and what the inside of your vehicle looks like right now. 540, time for traffic and weather together. I think I have St. Patrick's Day stuff in the little Bermuda Triangle there. You know, there's that little thing between your seat and the console deal. Yes. And that's called the Bermuda Triangle, Terry. It's where all the food falls and all that business. You could probably feed a colony of rats down there. Oh, golly. Thank you. And I don't know how to clean that out. Let's do some Gulf Freeway. Golf Freeway northbound, that's a transition. Coming into 69, we've got a stall there. It's a little squeezed down there. lanes and now we're backed up from U of H on the northbound. All right. I did talk to Jefferson County and they do confirm there's a wreck after Finette. I want to say around Smith Road heading outbound toward, heading outbound toward Beaumont. And that's got to be about a 20 minute backup here. Nobody knows the laneage. So if you're coming in from the Golden Triangle inbound, let me know what you see over that way, 713212 T-IPS or hit us on your free I-Heart Radio app. I'm Scott Mike. It's the generator. Supercenter.com traffic center from our KTRH generator super center 24 hour weather center Terry's here we got some fog to start today Terry but another chance to get to 80 degrees I know it's it's gonna be warm really most of the week I see our temperatures staying in the 70s and

at times into the low 80s, including today, possibly some low 80s. So a quiet week overall and a warm week, and clouds and fog are possible, at least the next couple of mornings. We'll see how this all plays out the rest of the week. But the dense fog advisory through 9 a.m., I'm seeing a number of places reporting visibility around a quarter of a mile, so you'll probably notice a little bit of fog. We'll turn out sunny today, mid-70s to low 80s this afternoon. Looks like mid... to upper 70s tomorrow. Wednesday there's a slight chance of rain. Friday there's a slight chance of rain like a 20% chance of rain. And that is it for wet weather this work week at least. Okay. Current temperature by the waste. Not bad. 58 at your official's severe weather station. News Radio 740KTRH. Problems in traffic around the Beltway and around 610. KTRH time saving traffic. Next on the 10. It's just about 5.50 here on Houston's morning news. All right. So, polling data. Do you pay a lot of attention to polling data? I follow it passively, but I know that a lot of the polling is skewed. A lot of... A lot of stories were generated out of this latest Pew Research piece showing Trump with a really high disapproval rating, really low approval rating, and some other things that would make you think that things aren't looking really good for the Trump administration or for the midterm elections. A McLaughlin poll, however, is a completely different deal. So what's the difference between the two polls? We'll have more on that story coming up next. First, though, at 5.50, let's do a little traffic and weather together. What's you got, Sky Mike? I got eyes on I-10 out in Rice Country. Rob from Beaumont, hit us on the free I-Heart Radio app. Guy Mike, all lanes. East. Bound at Smith Road going towards Beaumont from Houston. They're diverting everybody to the feeder road. It's a mess. All right. I suspect nothing good is going on. That's I-10 outbound, eastbound Smith Road heading toward Beaumont. We might want to start rerouting to 90. You can do 73 and get around that too. I'm Skymike and the Ability Tree Experts Traffic Center. From our KTRH Generator Supercenter, 24-hour weather center, areas of dense fog to start. Becoming partly cloudy about 80 today, mainly cloudy 78 tomorrow. Conservative clouds like chance of a shower Wednesday with a hive 77. Current temperature is 57 at your official's severe weather station. News Radio 740KTRH. Let's get you caught up on some of our top Monday morning stories. Here's Cliff. President Trump doubles down on his crime crackdown and deportations on NBC. Attorneys for Ghislaine Maxwell say she will plead the fifth at a House oversight deposition hearing today. And Fredericksburg has made Booking.com's top 10 of the world's most welcoming cities. It's also number one in all of America. Get the latest news anytime at KTRH.com. Our next update is at six.

Learned how to listen from you. I don't miss a show. Talk about it here. I cannot help but listen to you all the time. News Radio 740, KTRH. All righty, friends. Time to look at some polling a date. 552 is our time here in Houston's morning news. Like I said, Pew Research didn't look so good. for President Trump. And, of course, everybody's running all the mainstream. He's talking about the Pew Research piece because of those poll numbers being so low. You look at the McLaughlin piece. And I will say this right from the top out of transparency. McLaughlin is a Republican pollster. But his methodology is a lot better and a lot different than what Pew does. So here is Bill O'Reilly. with Robert McLaughlin talking about his poll and how different the poll is and why the poll is different from each other. Question. Do you approve or disprove of the job Donald Trump is doing? Prove 50, disapprove 47. That is the biggest discrepancy I've seen quite some time. Okay? Do you support or oppose? deporting known criminal and terrorist migrants. Support 87, oppose 10. Do you support or oppose deporting all migrants? Support 62, oppose 32. That startling number right there. Joining us now is John McLaughlin from upstate New York. So when you saw the Pew poll goes way the opposite way of your poll, you said to yourself what? Let me check the internals. Let me check the demographics, how they did it. And it's only... It's literally 28% Republican. We model ours after actual voter turnout. My survey matches up with the CNN exit polls from the last presidential race. Their poll. We have Republicans 35%, Democrats 34, very close to the CNN poll. Their poll has only 28% Republicans. So are you saying they cook the books here? Sure, they've been cooking the books, these media polls have been cooking the books against Trump since 2016. Remember the Hillary Locke? There's no way Trump could win. All right, so that's a pretty strong accusation you're making against Pew that they're cooking the books. They're trying to get the negative number to hurt Trump going forward. And you believe that. I believe it. Because it's adults, and they know it's not apples to apples, but they get a big headline. And you look at polls, I mean, there's been a series of them in the last couple of weeks. Our friend Larry Kudlow did a series on this where you have like, when you look at the New York Times poll that was registered voters, they only have 38% Trump voters.

We got 50 in the last election. We got 50% of the vote. We won the popular vote. You have polls like the Economist YouGov. They come out with a poll where they had in their poll, you're referring to notes. I've got to refer to my notes. But they had more Harris voters, 46% to only 34% Trump voters out of 1722 adults. This is adults. They could be interviewing illegal immigrants for all I know. And probably are. So at the end of the day, I would say this. Pick a poll. If you want to follow polls and try to get a grasp on how things are really going, pick a poll. I would pick the McLaughlin poll. And let's just track that. Let's see how those numbers look month to month. And if the numbers for Trump start going down in that poll, then you have a reason to be concerned. If they don't, if his approval rating holds steady or even maybe goes up a little bit as the economy improves here in 2026, which I believe it will, then maybe that will bode very well for the midterm elections. In other words, don't pay attention to all. Know the methodology, I guess. If you're going to follow any sort of a poll, know the methodology that's being used before you follow it. 5.56 now here on Houston's morning news.

is News Radio 740, KTRH, Houston, and I Heart Radio Station, guaranteed human. Now, the latest news, weather, and traffic. It's more of what matters to you from the John Moore Services Studios. 6 a.m. our time here on Houston's morning news. I'm Jimmy Amy Coney Barrett. Among our top stories this half hour, Texas DPS. They have a five-year plan to deal with leftover problems from the Biden years. Turning Points halftime show drew millions of viewers. And coming up at 608, the current condition of the interior of your car. Details in the minutes ahead. First, let's check out that boarding drive. Here's Sky Mike. All right, out in Rice Country, we've got a big problem here. This is I-10 heading toward Beaumont-Smith Road. Nothing good is happening there. That's a wreck. Rob from Beaumont, let me know that it's all lanes blocked. They're forcing you off under the feeder. This would be a great morning to take a nice drive on Highway 90 instead. I'm Sky Mike. It's your ability tree experts traffic center. From our KTRH, top tax defenders, 24-hour weather center, dense fog advisory until 9. nine this morning. And aside from the fall, becoming partly cloudy today with high temperature right about 80. We'll take a look at the rest of the forecast with Terry Smith at the weather channel in nine minutes. Right now 57. Ed, your official, severe weather station, news radio 740, KTRH. Time now for the news. Here's Cliff Saunders. And we're sponsored by Shopper's Farm Supply, our top story this hour. Look at what happened in Louisiana. I got a call from the governor. Right. Please do something with New Orleans. We went there four weeks ago. Crime is down 71%. President Trump on NBC, doubling down on the crackdown on crime that has had proven results in several cities, including D.C. Now, that interview aired before the Super Bowl last night. The Turning Point USA halftime show with Kid Rock and Brantley Gilbert. scored a big win. Millions tuned in lives turning away from Bad Bunny. We saw at one point across all the different social channels, we saw over 10 million concurrent views. So that was adding up all of Rumble and all of our partners just on the social side. So and now we, the numbers keep trickling in. Yeah, turning points Andrew Colvitt on Fox. More than 18 million have watched the show on YouTube. alone. We have it linked for you at KTRH.com on Facebook and on X. The president also took the truth social to rip the bad bunny halftime show, posting that, quote, this show is just a slap in the face to our country. The anti-Trump Puerto Rican rapper was also ripped for performing in Spanish and sending a political message by holding a football that said, quote, together we are America. It's now 602. A warning from Democrat Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman. We're just days away from yet another partial government shutdown, and it's being driven by his own party. If I had to say now, they would probably expect that there is going to be a shutdown because things are just drunk, drick, drink, excuse me, drown down to commit it to do that. John Fetterman on Fox, DHS funding runs out on Friday.

A new Texas Homeland Security Plan has officially been released by DPS and Governor Greg Abbott. Border Security Advisor Arch Del Quito says the five-year commitment here is key. This cannot go away in one election year, and that's what people need to realize. Texas doing this is important because it solidifies them in a position to be having safe borders, not mattering who gets elected afterwards. And it also points out that Texas will still be paying for the Biden border disaster for many years to come. The state also has a new tool to track foreign land ownership in the Lone Star State. The USDA has launched a new portal for reporting and tracking foreign ownership of American land, with Texas having the largest amount of foreign-owned agricultural land. Gary Joyner with the Texas Farm Bureau says that still only amounts to about 3% of the state's ag land. Canada, the Netherlands, Germany, and Sweden are the top holders of agricultural land in Texas. The other headlines related to China and countries that are more considered adversarial. Those are much smaller land holdings. Last year, Texas passed a lot of restrict land and business purchases from China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea. Corey Olson, News Radio 740, KTRH. It is now 604. Texas primary is March 3rd. Early voting starts at eight days. Upgrades to the election software in Texas mean that those registration cards are being mailed later than usual. The experts say this is no big deal. The cards themselves are not required to vote. They're not a form of identification. Byron Fisher at the Election Protection Project says it's probably better that the cards get sent out closer to the vote anyway. They serve as a reminder. He says it's almost time to vote early voting in the March primary starts next week. The state attorney general primary gets most of the headlines, but you might want to pay attention to what's happening in the race for agriculture commissioner. The incumbent Commissioner Sid Miller is losing endorsements left and right. That includes the governor who has endorsed Miller's opponent. Rice political analyst Mark Jay Jones says that shouldn't be surprising. Miller openly supported opponents to Greg Abbott and then 2022 Republican primary. The Texas Land Commissioner has also endorsed Miller's opponent calling for an end to Miller's disruptive antics. The last draw may have been Miller's support for smokable hemp products. That was a big deal last session. KTRH is Beth Myers. By the way, Miller is scheduled to join us at 750. On the national front, Democrats after 2020 are now trying to convince you that President Trump is the one trying to rig the midterms. What Donald Trump wants to do is try to nationalize the election. Translation, steal it, and we're not going to let it happen. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries crying on CNN, also ignoring that a judge found probable cause to sign a search warrant in Georgia. to look into what happened in the election six years ago. 606, the search for Nancy Guthrie continues. It's now in day number nine. Not a lot of activity at Nancy Guthrie's house in Tucson. Investigators back on the property looking at some sort of drain outlet. They were putting some long device down into the drain. We don't know, obviously, whether they were looking for a particular item or whether they were taking samples.

Jonathan Hunt in Arizona on the ground this morning. There's a alleged ransom deadline coming up at 6 o'clock Houston time tonight. The Seattle Seahawks beat the Patriots 29 to 13 to win the Super Bowl. It's the second Super Bowl win in Seahawks history. Thank God for Mike McDonald and John Schneider. Those guys rock. Man, it's Sam Donald. This rocks, man. I'm just so proud. Seahawks running back, Kenneth Walker, is the MVP after running for 135 yards. I'm Cliff Saunders on Houston's News Weather and Traffic Station, News Radio 740, KTRH. Hey, how many beers of that fan have? About seven or eight. In any event, these drug boats, Ukraine, Russia, travel ban, re-migration, health care plan, check in. The latest. News Radio 740, KTRH. I love that. Honey, I wish you could be as dirty as my car. 607 our time here in Houston's morning news. All right. That's our question today. Go, the I Heart Radio app, KTRH, first name where you're calling from. Please link us number one on your preset. If you haven't already done so, so you can get there nice and fast, didn't you see? This is the result of a poll that said 34% of us are embarrassed. or would be embarrassed to have somebody look inside our car. 21% admit there's currently food on the floor of the vehicle, not rappers, actual food. 23% say there's trash. 36% admit there are bottles and cans. And about half of the owners say that the current state of affairs in their car, their car interior is a reflection of their personality for better or for worse. So if you are a pack rat, or a borderline hoarder, you might have half of your belongings in that vehicle, right? They're with you just in case you need them. So I'm asking you to be honest here today. I'm a neat freak. I couldn't do that. My car is pristine. It is very, very clean, and there's not much stuff in there. And what little is in there, if there's a dog bed in there, You know, for traveling around a swiper. And there is, what else is in there? Oh, my duffel bag. which carries the tools of my trade. My headphones and the things I need, but I come to work. That's it. That's the only thing you'll find in there. But you go to the I Heart Radio App, KTRH, first name where you're calling from, what will we find in the interior of your car? This is Wes and Baycliffe. My jeep's in pretty good shape. It's got some sand in it from all the beach and I do. But have you ever noticed that a lot of women use their cars for a mobile storage shed? What's up with that? from Angleton. My car is an absolute disaster. The most unusual thing that I have in my car currently is an anthem. You just never know when you're going to need it. I travel about...

90 to 100 miles a day, but this is definitely not a reflection of me. You could eat off my kitchen floor. My house is immaculate. Have a great day. Dave on Lake Conroe. The inside of my car looks like I work for Sanford's sons. You need a run real, tackle box, blood bait. Good morning. This is Jackson, Connecticut. I has a full-time Uber driver, and my car is pretty much clean. Now the central console looks like a junk drawer. Other than that, my car's pretty much clean. Oh, you know, I didn't think of the center council. In the center council, what do I have in there? Napkins, straws, plastic fork and spoon. And those are the things that Elizabeth are left over, like if you go to a drive-thru. I don't like going through a drive-thru because I don't like to eat in my car. I don't want food crumbs in my car. but I do that as a concession to her, and then when we get extra stuff like napkins and forks and... She'll stick into my console. 610, time for traffic and weathered together. Fred Sanford would throw up looking what's between my seat and my console in there. I don't know. Just everything I've ever eaten. Let's hit Mike from Magnolia. He's coming in on 290. First, before I go to Mike, we've got this problem popped up on the North Freeway I-45. Terry, I put you in on the home game here. It's on camera 224. See there right there? Look at all that scratch. 2-24. This is North Freeway at West Mount Houston. and one, two, three, right lanes blocked here. It looks like a big response. We're backed up from Greens Point. If you're coming in from the hood, you're losing about five to six minutes on the southbound. If you're a big shot like Terry, you've got the toll sticker. Do you do the Hardy Toll Road? Commenters take the East Techs. Mike from Magnollia, dude. Hey, Sky Mike, pretty foggy coming out of Magnolia towards 99. And you can also mark me safe from watching any pregame Super Bowl or halftime show yesterday. Enjoyed my day just chilling out with my... I didn't even know Bad Bunny was a person. I was forced to play him at weddings sometimes. Uber, Mike. Hey. Bad is the airport. Willie C., up to Lee Road, backed up. And Mike, that little space in between the seat and the console, I like to. That is the airport. Will he see up to Lee Road backed up. And Mike, that little space in between the seat and the console, I like to call that the black hole. My car is immaculate. I'm Magdalene. I'm Maguire. You need it on the floor. I call it the Bermuda Triangle. I'm Skymic and the Ability Tree Experts Traffic Center. From our KTRH, top taxed vendors, 24-hour weather center. Terry is here. Would we find any makeup in your car? Hmm, just like lipstick kind of stuff. All right. That's it. That seems kind of dangerous to leave in your car. Doesn't the sun melt your lipstick if you leave it in the car? It does make it a little bit soft, but it's in the container, so, you know, it stays in one place. I got you. Just put it under the air conditioner van if it's too soft to apply to put on. Okay. There you go. All right. Okay.

If you are out in about early this morning, we are seeing a little bit in the way of some fog, low visibility. Looks like it'll hang around through about mid morning and then the sunshine shows up. I'm telling you, I'm loving this spring weather that we've got, and we've got it all week long. Mid-70s to low 80s today. tomorrow and Wednesday in the mid to upper 70s. Now, we may get a brief shower Wednesday, like a 20% chance of some rain. Thursdays dry Friday, a 20% chance of a shower. Expect temperatures for the most part mid to upper 70s and a few of us in the low 80s through the week. Temperature right now, 57 at your officials, severe weather station, news radio 740KTRH. I live in Pasadena. Sharptown, Southwest. Next on the 10, time-saving traffic on 740 KTRH. So you total up local government debt. And we're talking about the amount owed by cities, counties, school districts, special districts. We're up to $552 billion. That's with a B, $552 billion in fiscal year 2025. We'll talk to James Quintero, policy director at the Texas Public Policy Foundation about this. Coming up next. First, though, traffic and weather together. Check out the drive again. Here's Skymike. Clear the North Freeway, Westmount, Houston, wreck. Stay the course. It was outbound. Southwest Freeway. Let me get you some lineage on that Fondren wreck outbound at the next break. And we've got I10 and Finette at Smith Road completely shut down eastbound. I'm Skymike from the Ability Tree Experts Traffic Center. From our KTRH. Generator Supercenter, 24-hour weather center for today. Dense fog advisory till 9 and then partly cloudy right about 80. Tomorrow, Claudia, cloudy, 78. Current temperature. is 57 at your official severe weather station news radio 740 kTRH This area has an update on our top stories. Sponsored by Republic Grand Rash. The House votes this week on an election integrity act that the Dems are fighting. Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu meets President Trump to discuss Iran on Wednesday, and Lindsey Vaughn crashed and broke her leg at the Olympics. She was trying to compete just days after blowing out her ACL. At the latest news anytime at KTRH.com, next update is at 6.30. The preset that sets the record straight. This just made my whole day more efficient. On News Radio 740, KTRH. I don't know if government is busted because they always have the taxpayers to fall back on, but that $552 billion in debt, that said, that gets your attention. James Quintero joins us, Policy Director at the Texas Public Policy Foundation. I think what got my attention even more than that, James, is that is over $50 billion more than they had the previous year in debt. What the heck happened? Yeah, good morning, Jimmy, and you're right. We are adding debt at an unsustainable rate. When you go back just one year from today, what you find is that we had a total local debt picture of about $499 billion. And of course, as you've stated, that has now jumped to $552 billion in one year alone. So to your question, you know, what's happening here? I think in part what you're seeing is...

kind of a feasting at the trough of the taxpayer. And what I mean is you have this cadre of architects, engineers, bond lawyers, construction firms, and some others who have figured out how to game the school district bond issuance process. And they pitch these massive bonds every May and November. And they've gotten really good at passing these things. And then they go out and build these Taj Mahal facilities at taxpayer expense. And that is adding tremendously to the debt burden and to everyone's tax bill. Oh, yeah. Are most of these schools or other public buildings involved in this? Yeah, that's a great question. So when you take that $552 billion and you break it down by local government type, what you find is 42% of that total is attributable to school districts alone, right? So they're kind of the big boy in the room. And when you take that $234 billion of school district debt and you break it down on a per student basis. What you find is that we all currently owe about $42,000, I'm sorry, $42,000 for every student enrolled right now in Texas public schools. And, of course, public schools is seeing something of an enrollment stagnation, if not decline, in some areas. And so, you know, again, that raises a question. Why are these public schools going so heavily into debt when you have, you know, people leaving the system? on some scale. And clearly we don't need the level of facilities we're seeing, let alone the quality, the Taj Mahal quality of the facilities that are coming into place. Yeah, it's funny you should mention that because my wife used to work at a local school that they described as the Taj Mahal. It was kind of, you know, it was state of the art. Look more like a shopping mall than like a high school. But, you know, we have, most of our high schools have over 3,000 kids in them. Where are we overspending when we're building? We have to build big schools in many cases, especially in growing areas. I guess where we can save money, we don't have to build a $15 or $20 million football stadium, right? That's right. We need to get back to the basics, not just in the school district context, but also in your cities and your counties and your special districts too. One of the frustrations I have with the current setup, and this criticism particularly applies to school districts, is that you see a lot of propaganda coming forward. A lot of government-sponsored propaganda coming from school district trustees who regularly tie out the line that if you vote for this bond, it won't increase your tax rate. They always put the emphasis on the tax rate. What most people don't recognize is that, you know, you can hold your tax rate steady and still pay higher taxes because your values are going up, right? So they've commonly used this misconception about how the system works to get these big bonds passed. And then again, you're left at the end of the day with everyone frustrated about the direction of property taxes.

And they don't necessarily make the connection between new debt and higher taxes. So we've got to really simplify the system and make it more transparent. Sounds like it. James, thanks as always, sir. Appreciate James Quintero. He's the policy director of the Texas Public Policy Foundation. 628, it's time to take a look at your money. Good morning job growth in Texas was almost flat last year. According to the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, employers added just 10,700 jobs last year. I'm Courtney Donahoe, Bloomberg Business on News Radio 740, KTRH. Houston's news, weather traffic, plus breaking news 24-7. This is News Radio 740, KTRH. Live everywhere with the IRS. More of what's happening now from the John Moore Services Studios. 632, here on Houston's morning news. I'm Jimmy Amy Coney Barrett. Among our top stories this hour, local government in Texas, at 552 billion in debt and counting. Now the shutdown likely this Friday, and coming up at 638, a shootout. Over nachos? Details in the minutes ahead. First, we're checking out their morning drive again with Sky Mike. It's the Southwest Freeway. I knew there was a wreck there. KTRH listeners were the first to know. This is Bel Air. It's all lanes. They're putting you on the feeder. Nothing good is happening in Rice Country. I10 east, eastbound toward Beaumont, Smith Road. That big wreck. It's all lanes blocked here. And we cleared the North Freeway Westmount. Now there's a wreck behind it at Gulf Bank. That's outbound, not inbound. Skymike and the ability tree experts. Traffic Center. From our KTRH generated. Supercenter, 24-hour weather center dense fog advisory until 9 this morning, becoming partly clotting by the high right about 80. We'll get the rest of the forecast for the work week with Terry Smith at the Weather Channel in about seven minutes. Current temperature is 57 at your official severe weather station news radio 740KTRH. It's time now for the news. Here's Cliff Saunders. It is 633 in our top story, big week in Washington. The House votes on the Save America Act. Texas Congressman Brandon Gill says we need it to make sure elections aren't rigged. The American people are with us every single time in illegal alien votes that cancels out the vote of an American citizen. What we want is actually to enfranchise the American people. This has the support of President Trump. The Turning Point USA halftime show is a big winner at the Super Bowl last night, getting over 6 million live views on YouTube alone. It's got nearly 19 million views on YouTube as of this morning. We've got it linked up at KTRH.com, our Facebook page.

and on X. We are also days away from yet another partial government shutdown with the fight over funding DHS. Democrats want no masks for ICE and no roving patrols. But the calendar is the biggest enemy. DHS money expires just after midnight eastern on Valentine's Day. ICE is funded through 2029, thanks to the one big, beautiful bill. But a shutdown means TSA isn't paid again. It also interrupts FEMA recovery efforts and upends the Coast Guard. Fox's chat, Pergrim, 6.30, four more weekend violence with at least four shootings. Two people dead, including a teen, killed at a car meet overnight. Another person is in critical condition. The area just doesn't have a crime problem. Spending is out of control, as is local government debt. That's according to a new report from the Texas Public Policy Foundation. The city of Houston Harris County and Houston ISD all owe a combined $30 billion plus. And that's James Quintero with the TPPF. These numbers continue to get worse and worse as cities, counties, and school districts put a lot on the taxpayer credit card. Right now, local government debt across the state of Texas is at $552 billion with a B. Jeff Andy Biggs News Radio 740, KTRate. These are all key issues in the upcoming election with Anise Parker and Marty Langton leading in funding in the Harris County judge's race. Gary Pollan of the Texas Conservative Review says if voters think nationally, An East Parker probably wins. But if they focus on local... In focus on, in this case, county commissioners' failure in many instances with the Democrats' domination, that can become a major asset for Republicans. And the wildcard, of course, is Greg Abbott and the money he says he will spend in Harris County and the effectiveness of that money being spent. It is now 635. Looking at your money after closing above 50,000 for the first time ever. Dow futures are down this morning by about 44 points. The mainstream media is trying to ignore these record numbers. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says that's because they don't want to give Trump the credit he deserves. The president's plan is working. The Trump economy is delivering for the American people. We have strong growth. Trump is predicting the Dow to hit 100,000 by the end of his term. That said, there's a new CBS poll claiming more than half say the middle class is shrinking.

The survey found 53% of the respondents say middle class families struggle to get ahead. Breitbart's Warner Todd Houston points to lower prices at the pump and the grocery store. It is beginning to help. But you know how long it takes people to finally realize things, you know. Reversing the damage from the Biden era takes time. The survey showed 83% of the respondents said they also struggle to buy their first home. Trump has headwinds against them, too. You know, with the Fed won't cut interest rates. As Trump checks off the boxes, let's hope more people take notice. I'm Erica Smith. News Radio 740, KTRH. Seattle beats New England to win the Super Bowl 29 to 13, and Alperin Shanguna the Rockets is going to the NBA All-Star game. I'm Cliff Saunders on Houston's News Weather and Traffic Station News Radio 740 KTRH. I live in Sugar Land. Be prepared for wild Houston weather. Next on the 10 on 740 KTRH. You all love nachos. I love nachos. But I don't think I could get angry enough about nachos to open fire on a restaurant selling nachos because I discovered that the nachos were a little pricey. At least I thought they were a little pricey. Chachos, which is a place, they have several locations here in the greater Houston area, one of them on the North Freeway. This story involves the one on the North Freeway, where evidently somebody got really upset about the price of the monster. Notchos. Here's a report from KHOU 11. Cell phone video shared with K211 shows the chaos that followed just after 9 Saturday night. Employees inside the restaurant watching in fear as police and paramedics rushed in to help a gunshot victim. Upon arrival, officers learned that an irate customer from inside of the store, sorry, inside of the restaurant was refused service. And so he went out to his vehicle and took out his firearm and started shooting in the direction of the restaurant. Employees say the suspect was part of a group of three, two women and one man who had just been inside this chachos on the North Freeway. The restaurant's manager tells us the group became upset while trying to order the restaurant's monster nachos priced at $25.99, saying it was too expensive. After the cashier refused service, the man threatened to go get a gun. Employees say moments later, eight bullets came flying back into the restaurant, leaving everyone terrified. Employees say that bullet tore through the wall, hitting a female customer walking toward the restroom. She sustained one gunshot wound and was transported by HFT to a local area hospital. Self a video captures the moment paramedics wheeled her out, passing shattered glass still lining the restaurant. The person who shared these video clips asked to remain anonymous. By daylight, the damage still visible. Three windows now taped up. The restaurant manager tells us surveillance cameras were not working at the time. And as for the suspect, police say he had already taken off. The suspect was already gone upon arrival when officers arrived. And if anyone has the information regarding the incident, we entered them to contact crime stoppers of the HB major assaults of vision.

Oh, so the surveillance cameras weren't working at the time. How often does that happen? By the way, I wonder if this had something to do with the disagreement here, which obviously got kind of heated because that's why they refused to serve him. They say on their website about our prices, we charge slightly different prices at different times. In general, our drive-through prices are generally lower because our costs are much lower with food ordered at the drive-thru, since we don't have to provide a dining room, washed dishes, etc. We also charge slightly higher prices at night and when we're very busy because our costs are higher at those times, but our pricing is always reasonable. So they have a floating price scale. Maybe that's part of what got this guy upset. 6.40, time for traffic and weather together. Would you like fries with those bullets? Jeez. Remind me not to order nachos at 9 o'clock on a Saturday night within the city limits, Skymike. I'll bet that's five miles from my house or less. Let's go out to the rice country here, I-10, and this is a pretty serious wreck here. I'm not done a very good job of helping the people on TV, but this morning I-10 East at Smith Road. This is going toward Beaumont, eastbound, after Finette. Big wreck, it's ugly. I know there's nothing good happening. It's a complete closure. Let's reroute to 90. Let's do 73. 73, lumberjack Bob from Port Arthur. Scott Mike, eastbound laid, the valley bridge, and it is a bit of a scrunch, seven or eight minutes on there. All right, so that's one of your routes there. That's still better than I-10. You could do 90 and go through all the rice that way instead. Southwest Freeway. We found the wreck at Bel Air First. It's all lanes. They're putting it on the feeder. We've got backups now 12 extra minutes here. Another wreck on the North Freeway outbound at Gulf Bank. It's outbound, not inbound, Sky Mike and the Ability Tree Experts Traffic Center. From our KTRH Generator Supercenter 24 Our weather's there. Terry's here. We got some dense fog to deal with first Terry, but after that, things get pretty nice. Yeah, it's actually a very quiet stretch of weather this week. I'd expect the fog around in the morning the next couple of days. I don't really see much of a change in that. and then some sunshine. Today, another warm day, mid-70s to low 80s, tomorrow and Wednesday in the mid-dupper 70s. Now, we may get a shower to Wednesday, Thursday's dry, a shower two Friday. There really isn't much rain at all through Friday. Temperature right now is 57 at your official severe weather station. News Radio 740KTRH. I live in Conroe. Your best ways around Houston. Next on the 10 on 740 KTRH. All right, the timeline is right around the corner.

So stay tuned for that. First, though, we've got traffic and weather together, and Sky Mike is standing by. He has an update on your drive. I got two shutdowns. East, that's eastbound I-10 and Phonet at Smith Road. Totally shut down. Big wreck there. Southwest Freeway, nothing good is happening at Bel Air. That's outbound, not inbound. And you've got a new problem coming over by the Hartman Bridge. 99 Grand Parkway, the ramp that goes from Grand Parkway, Baytown to the Hartman. I've got a wreck. I'll get you lane into 7 o'clock in the Ability Tree Experts Traffic Center. From our KTRH, generator super center 24-hour weather center dense fog advisory until nine, then partly cloudy right about 80. Cloudy tomorrow 78. Current temperature 56. And your official, severe weather station, news radio 740, KTRH. Let's get you an update on some of our top stories this morning. Here's Cliff. Millions have turned into the Turning Point USA halftime show of the Super Bowl last night. The search for Natalie Guthrie is now in day nine. And back on this day in 1964, America officially met the Beatles. as they perform on the Ed Dan Sullivan Show. At the latest news anytime at KTRH.com, our next update is at 7. I live in Clear Lake. Humble. Reliable. KTRH, traffic and weather. Next on the 10. 6.53 our time here in Houston's morning news. All right. Yes, the ransom note, the whole ransom thing. I have seen so many theories about what could possibly be going on with this Guthrie case. Let's get another one. Here's a retired FBI agent with her thoughts on exactly what is going on here with the Nancy Guthrie missing person. Is she kidnapped case? No, they... They're not good at avoiding apprehension. That's the good news for the most part. But I work narcotics and gangs in Los Angeles for 19 years. So I saw some of those kidnappings that you would traditionally see more of in South America. Like it's very common if I have two kilos of cocaine and it either gets ripped off or the police sees it, I'm still on the hook to pay that dealer back for that money. And I've got to come up with it really quickly. So that was one. of the type of kidnappings we happen to see. But it's interesting, Trey, because all the really seasoned homicide detectives and the people you really respect at work that you know do a fantastic job, one thing all of them said in all these kidnapping cases that we worked was they would ask the question, does this offender have a predisposition or proclivity toward violence? And in this case with Nancy, the answer is a resounding yes. And they say that if that's how this case starts, we're in a world of hurt. Let me ask you about that. Let me stay with the psychology of it. Profilers, behavioral scientists, they can be incredibly helpful. I use them, but I typically used them when I had run out of leads or did not have a prime suspect in mind. Could they hear, can they still be helpful here in this case under these facts? Absolutely 100%. And one of the best profilers, or two of the best are two of my dearest friends. And I co-hosts a podcast with one of them who I was just on the phone with. Because one of these letters, this last one, is addressed dear Samantha, not to anybody else. And we know Samantha's got the money, but I thought that was strange. So I called him. And he thought it was very telling.

That it's dear. What kidnapper who injured your mother is going to say, or Savannah? What kidnapper is going to say dear? That's a very, that one word jumped out at me. I immediately got on the phone with him and I didn't tell him what was surprising. And that jumped out to him also. Yeah, that's a little strange. Does that seem strange? Seems really strange. All right. We have a four pack of tickets today with pit party passes to give away on our prize today. Monster Jam, by the way, is the event. It's Sunday, February 15th at NRG. Tickets to all three Monster Jam events. We're on sale right now at Ticketmaster.com, but you can win a pair. Just tell us what year today's timelines from. Members of Congress. It was February. The President of the United States. President Obama delivers his State of the Union address. The state of our union is strong. On TV. And the Grammy goes to... The best new artist at the Grammy Awards goes to... Fun! My one guilty pleasure is a good rack of ribs. And Netflix has a new hit as House of Cards makes its debut. Where I come from in South Carolina, people didn't have two pennies to rub together. And in Hollywood, it's so Richard Parker went ahead of me. The Life of Pie takes home a few Oscar awards. The next part of the story will find a hard to get it. On the radio.

Pink is number one with Try. What year was it? If you know, 713-212-58-74, that is 713-212-K-T-R-H. Good luck. All right, we have a winner. That'd be Tammy and Uphlnew. The right year was 2013. Tammy get that four-pack of tickets with pit party passes for Monster Jam this Sunday at NRG. Enjoy the show, and thank you for listening to Houston's Morning News. This is News Radio 740, KTRH, Houston, and I Heart Radio Station, guaranteed human. Now, the latest news, weather, and traffic. It's more of what matters to you from the John Moore Services Studios. 7 a.m. our time here in Houston's morning news. I'm Jimmy Amy Coney Barrett, among our top stories this half hour. A lot of us checked out the Turning Point halftime show instead of Bad Bunny. Five-year plan to fix what Biden did to Texas. And coming up at 708, more reports on the interior of your car. Details in the minutes ahead. First, let's check out that morning drive is Sky Mike. Katie Freeway after Grand Parkway, that's an inbound smudge. We have a left lane block with a wreck. I think we're okay. Big back up here from Penn Oak Road. You've got North Freeway, West Road, outbound cleared that east freeway. Mercury, we're sitting there in the left shoulder. It's a wreck packed from federal and out in Rice Country I-10 Smith Road completely shut down. Nothing good is happening there. Let's do the reroute on 90. I'm Sky Mike from the Ability Tree Experts Traffic Center. From our KTRH, top tax defenders, 24-hour weather center dense fog advisory until 9 this morning. Then partly cloudy with a high temperature right about 80. We'll get the rest of the forecast with Terry Smith at the Weather Channel in eight minutes. Temperature right now, 56 at your official's severe weather station. News Radio 740, KTRH. It's time now for the news. Here's Cliff Saunders. Sponsored by Shop as Farm Supply. It's 702.

The patriotic halftime show put on by Turning Point featuring Kid Rock drew about 6 million live viewers last night, an alternative to the NFL's choice of bad bunny. Really, there was no agenda. It was just good music for Americans, for people that wanted to feel proud about their country, wanted to love their country, love their God, and love some great music. Journey points Andrew Colvin on Fox, the YouTube portion of this show, by the way, approaching 20 million views. Bad Bunny getting ripped online. The rapper performed in Spanish held a football claiming, quote, together, we are America on truth social. President Donald Trump called it, quote, absolutely terrible. of the worst ever. And in his pre-super Bowl interview on NBC, Trump stood by his administration's immigration operations. The crime numbers in Minnesota and Minneapolis in particular down 25, 30 percent because we've removed thousands of criminals from the area. These are hardened criminals. They came in, many of them, most of them came in through an open border. And a win for the administration on deportations is a federal appeals court upheld the DHS policy, allowing illegals to be detained without bond. Funding for DHS runs out at the end of the week. One Democrat senator is afraid that his colleagues will force yet another partial government shutdown. I hope it doesn't shut down because we could all agree to focus on those things and that's where I'm going to be and where my vote's going to be. Pennsylvania's John Fetterman. It's now 703, the administration launching a portal to report and track foreign-owned land in the U.S. Texas has the largest amount of foreign-owned land agriculture of any state. It really is only about 3.6% of the land that is in Texas that is used for agriculture. A lot of those interests from foreign entities is timber, forestry, and more recently, the large-scale renewable energy projects. Gary Joyner with the Texas Farm Bureau. By the way, China owns far less agricultural property in Texas, but they did try unsuccessfully to buy land near it. Air Force Base in Texas a few years ago. To that end, Governor Greg Abbott, along with Texas DPS, has unveiled the new Texas Homeland Security Plan. New plan, same problem, cleanup after the Biden border disaster. We're going to see a lot of that damage for many years to come, unfortunately. That is border security expert Art Del Quedo, who credits Texas for not letting up. Thank God that it's getting done in Texas because I can tell you, there's areas like California, there's areas like even Arizona, New Mexico that are not getting that same support by some of the local authorities.

The five-year plan will also include AI, cameras, and drones. Jeff Andy Biggs News Radio 740, KT, or H. The governor is one of the state's top Republicans getting involved in the primary for Agriculture Commissioner endorsing the Challenger and not incumbent Sid Miller. I remember the movie Casino? The bosses have finally, you know, had enough. It's like, you know, how much more are they going to take? Rice's Mark Jay Jones says Miller has repeatedly angered the state's top leadership of the GOP. Land Commissioner Dr. Don Buckingham has also endorsed Nate Cheats. Early voting for the March primary starts in eight days. Some voters still haven't received their registration cards. Upgrades to the state's election software has delayed mailing of those cards. Experts say it's no big deal because they can't be used as an ID when you go to vote. Most Texans are using their driver's license, and if they're not using their driver's license, then they're probably using their handgun license. Byron Fisher at the Election Protection Project says it's probably better that the cards get sent out closer to the election. That way, they'll serve as a reminder that it's almost time to vote. Early voting in the March primaries starts next week. That's KTRH's Rex O. It's 706, the search for Nancy Guthrie continues with less than 24 hours to go before an alleged ransom deadline. We beg you now. to return our mother to us so that we can celebrate with her. NBC Savannah Guthrie in a video released over the weekend. The FBI is offering a award of $50,000 in the case. They've put up billboards nationwide, including here in the Houston area. The Seattle Seahawks beat New England 29 to 13 to win the Super Bowl, making a champion out of former first round bust Sam Darnold. Some people called me crazy throughout my career for believing in myself so much and having so much confidence. But, you know, it was because of my parents because of the way that they believed in me throughout my entire career. And it allowed me to go out there and play free and have a ton of confidence. Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker is the MVP. He ran for 135 yards. It's the second Super Bowl win in Seahawks franchise history. I'm Cliff Saunders on Houston's News Weather and Traffic Station News Radio 740. KTR. A series of events. We can't afford to miss. In any event. Affornability crisis. Lower our interest rate. Check in. Blowing narco terrorists out of the water. Use Radio 740. KTRH. This cracks me up. I think you're one of two things. Most people are one or two things when it comes to their car. It either is a complete junkie filled with a collection of whatever. Basically a rolling trash can. or you're fastidious about it, like me, and you can't stand if it's dirty, and you're constantly taking into the car wash or getting it detailed or whatever. I guess there's a few folks in between, but I find that most people I know are either one way or the other. They either really, really, really care about what's going on with the interior of their car, or they really, really don't. New Pole says 34% of people own a car say they're embarrassed.

for someone they know to look inside. Oh, be okay if a complete stranger did? 21% admit that there currently is food on the floor in their vehicle. I mean, not talking rappers, actual food. Also, 33% say they have random clothing in the car. 23% say there's trash and food wrappers. 36% admit there are bottles and cans. And 21% say there's actual food on the floor right now. So I was asking, what is the current condition of the interior of your car? You go to the iHeart radio app, KTRH, first name where you're calling from, and the interior of your car. This is Debbie from Baytown to answer Wes's question from Baycliffe about why women have so much stuff in their car. Well, mainly women take their kids to school, take them to ball, they go to work, they go to the grocery store, they come home, they have to do all these other things. So maybe priority is not cleaning out the car. But it would be nice to have a hubby to help him out when all they do is go to work, come home, sit down, clean the car out. This is Henry from Spring. The inside of my Hummer is immaculate. The only thing I have in there is my go bag, first aid kit, and a rack of weapons. Let's go back to the first caller, though, because... As somebody who's very fastidious about his car and having a wife who is not, we don't have any kids. We don't, you know, she isn't constantly on the run doing all those types of errands you're describing. There are plenty of women who are, but yet her car is still like that. She has a collection of, I don't know what all in there. Some of it is stuff from work a couple of years ago that are in boxes in the back end of her car. So I think, I think this is just an observation. I think men are generally more fastidious about their cars than women are. I realize that's an overgenitalized statement, but if I had to do it on a percentage basis, I would say more men than women are concerned about not having. A bunch of junk in the car. 7-10. Time for traffic and weather together. Yes, Guy Mike. Debbie from Baytown, getting a little chippy on West from Baycliffe. Yes, she was getting a little chippy. It's okay. No, we like that. Well, let's do. He said, she says at 740. Let's go to the Southwest Freeway. You got a what, Terry, got a what? Go ahead. I missed out on what Debbie had to say. It was a little chippy. We'll get to it. You got Southwest Freeway Hillcroft outbound. What was going on at, Beller? That wreck is clear, but I've got something else. It sure looks like it's the HOB. We're dragging it now from Fondering in spots. It looks like it's getting better. I'm going to just stay the course here. Katie Freeway, just inside Grand Parkway. Got a wreck here. It's the left lane. Everybody's fine. About a three minutes skunch there. East Freeway. Mercury, why can't we get that guy out of the left lane? We have the suckage now from federal, inbound. I-10 heading to Beaumont, right there in Rice Country, Terry. That's outbound. All lanes are blocked here. Take a beautiful scenic drive on 90 East Tech. Hello.

Guy Mike 29 Northbound at Lyon's equipment. There is a stall in the center lane. There's no ninjas on site. Oh, well said. It's starting to cluster pretty good. All right. You know what? That's extra points right there. Hit them, kitty. I'm in the generator, supercenter.com traffic center. From our KTRH, top tax defenders 24-hour weather center. Dense fog for some folks this morning. For others, not so much. Yeah, I drove in and out of it all morning. Oh, okay. Well, it's still hanging around, though. I'm starting to see the visibility's improving some in a few spots. So hopefully we're on the improving trend here. We're going to wind up with sunshine today. Mid-70s to low 80s this afternoon, similar yesterday. Warmer in a few spots, but similar. Tomorrow morning clouds and then still cloudy, mid-topper 70s. Next chance of any rain is Wednesday. It's a 20% chance of a shower. Thursdays dry Friday or 20% chance of showers. Temperatures are not going to change much through Friday. Temperature right now, 56, and your official severe weather station. News Radio 740, KTRH. I live in Clear Lake. Humble. Reliable. KTRH, traffic and weather. Next on the 10. So the big student walkouts on Friday at several different. suburban systems, including Conroe, Spring, Pearland. It looked like there's a pretty relatively healthy turnout, but then it gets Friday and you're skipping school, right? And you're not really worried about anything happening to you as a result of all that. By the way, Governor Greg Abbott says, and he believes the Supreme Court agrees with him, that there are, you don't necessarily see a... Translation of Freedom of Speech, Rights to Students. We'll have more on that story coming up next. First, though, traffic and weather together. Hey, Sky Mike. Hey, it's I-10. Katie Freeway, inbound. Clear the wreck at Grand Parkway. We don't have that much suckage considering. Stay the course on the Katie West Park. Brexit, 1464. East Freeway, please move that wreck at Mercury inbound. And I-10 going toward Beaumont. All lanes are blocked at Smith Road. Nothing good's happening there. It's an 18-wheeler. Skymike on the generator supercenter.com traffic center. From our KTRH. top tax defenders 24-hour weather center, dense fog advisory until 9 this morning. Becoming partly cloudy 80 today, cloudy 78 tomorrow, considerable clouds 20% chance of a shower 77 on Wednesday. Right now, temperature is 56 at your official, severe weather station, news radio 740KTRH. Let's get you caught up on some of our top stories. Here's Cliff. We're sponsored by the Texas Center for Cosmetic Dentistry. We're looking at another potential government shutdown this week. Safety concerns at UHH after another armed robbery near campus over the weekend. And 26 million people are expected to call into work sick today with an element known as the Super Bowl flu. At the latest news anytime at KTRH.com, our next update is at 7.30. In any event, these drug boats, Ukraine, Russia, travel ban, re-migration, healthcare plan, check in. The latest. Use Radio 740, KTRH. I'm skipping school today. I'm skipping school today. Yeah, that's pretty much what happened on Friday. You're skipping school. Yeah, now, there are probably some teachers there. Yeah, go ahead. Maybe even some principals who said, yeah, go ahead.

But at the end of the day, Governor Greg Abbott would like to get tough if he can. on those who were skipping school and those who were telling the kids it was perfectly okay to protest on school time. Here's a report from our television partner, KPRC 2. The governor is clear on this point, and he says a Supreme Court is on his side. The right to free speech is not absolute, he says, and you do not have the right to walk out of school to attend a protest and expect there not be any repercussions. The Supreme Court has been very clear about free speech of students, and that free speech of students does not include leaving the school. Both the governor and the Texas Education Agency say students should and will face repercussions for walking out during school to protest. Punishment will most likely be an unexcused absence. And for a teacher that encourages walkouts, it can get a lot worse than that. The teacher could lose his or her license. School districts can't facilitate protests in any way either. They could also lose funding. Is all of this true? Would it stand up in court? We asked a constitutional law expert. I think there's three layers to talk me to. The first is the students. Students have some free speech rights at school, but they can't cause a disruption. I think the entire point of a walkout is to cause a disruption. Teachers likewise have no obligation. In fact, they're allowed to encourage students to leave school. They can encourage them to protest after school or on a weekend, but not during the school day. And these school districts, I think, would be very weary of having a punishment imposed upon them, and even monitors imposed by the state. This all may be tested in court at some point, and some of it may hinge on the language for... example what exactly constitutes facilitating a walkout we'll have to wait and see won't we just like we'll have to wait and see what sort of punishment you get for one unexcused absence you probably don't get any punishment so if you're a student and you so what if i have an unexcused absence 726 it's time to take a look at your money Good morning for the first time ever, the Dow Jay Jones Industrial Average top 50,000 on Friday. I'm Courtney Dunahoe, Bloomberg Business on News Radio 740, KTRH.

Houston's news weather traffic plus breaking news 24-7. This is News 740 KTRH. Live everywhere with the IRRF. More of what's happening now from the John Moore Services Studios. 7.30 are time. Houston's morning news. I'm Jimmy Amy Coney Barrett. Among our top stories this half hour will Friday bring another government shutdown. Local government racking up huge debt. And coming up at 738, they were supposed to recycle those used wind turbine blades. They didn't. Details in the minutes ahead. First, let's check out that morning drive again. What do you got, Sky Mike? I got to East Tech. We called this a stall a few minutes ago. We did have the incident first, but it turns out to be a wreck. This is out coming downtown, northbound, outbound at Quitman. Watch out. It's messing up. You're elevated both ways now. East Freeway. They're pointing at things at Mercury. That's all. Left lane, blocked inbound. A wreck were packed from Federal Road and out in Rice Country I-10 at Smith Road. Completely shut down eastbound heading to Beaumont. I'm Sky Mike from the generator supercenter.com. Traffic, sir. From our KTRH, generator super center, 24-hour weather center, areas of dense fog. Those are breaking up as I speak, becoming partly cloudy with a high temperature today, about 80. And then it stays pretty warm all week long. We'll check that out with Terry Smith of the Weather Channel in nine minutes. Right now 56. At your official severe weather station, News Radio 740, KTRH. I'm now for the news. Here's Cliff Launders. 731 on KTRH. Our top story, another partial government shutdown looms in Washington later this week. Democratic senators spelled out their proposal to fund DHS ahead of a Friday midnight deadline. The text is said to contain demands to reform immigration and customs enforcement procedures to include unmasking agents and body camera usage in their enforcement. Fox is Granal Scott. The House will vote this week as well on the Save America Act. It's an election integrity bill that Texas Congressman Pat Fallon says is just common sense. We live in America where you have to need you need an ID to go on an airplane. You need an ID if you want to purchase alcohol. And the bill would require Americans to show proof of citizenship when registering to vote and to present a government issued photo ID. at the polls. That legislation already has the backing of the president. We need fair elections. We need elections where people aren't able to cheat. And we're going to do that. I'm going to do that. I'm going to get it done. Trump on NBC before the Super Bowl last night. By the way, around 6 million people live on YouTube watch the Turning Point USA halftime show with Kid Rock. We've got that linked up for you at KTRH.com. We've also got it on Facebook and X. On YouTube since then, 19 million plus views.

so far and that's just on youtube that does not include rumble it is now 733 while the state of texas is done well with a budget surplus there's a new report finding that local government debt has climbed to an astronomical $552 billion. The Texas Public Policy Foundation continues to look at ways that government is growing excessively. Local debt tends to bring about a rise in property taxes. James Quintero with TPPF says the report found that the city of Houston, Harris County, and Houston ISD. combined $0.30 billion. State Attorney General's race gets most of the attention for the March primary locally. The race to replace Lina Hidalgo as Harris County judge is coming into focus. Anise Parker and Marty Langton surge ahead in funding, but it means little. If one candidate has $500,000 and an opponent has $250,000, if you spend your $250,000 effectively, the difference in the money is not going to matter. Gary Pollan of the Texas Conservative Review says Latisha Plummer and Orlando Sanchez were next up, and the race depends on if voters think national. You nationalize the election than the candidates. and what they can do from their standpoint is much more difficult and they're dependent on forces they don't control. He says if people focus locally, the GOP could win the seat. Andre Parrard News Radio 740, KTRH. It is now 734 looking at your money. Overnight futures are flat after the Dow closed above 50,000 for the first time on Friday. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says these records mean one thing. The president's economic agenda is working. Wall Street is telling you that Main Street is about to prosper. We are seeing a big cyclical recovery. The president's agenda set the table in 2025, and now the American people are going to benefit in 26. Trump is predicting the doubt it hit 100,000 by the end of his term. Despite this, more than 50 percent told CBS that opportunities for the middle class are decreasing. And all started by Joe Biden's inflation and Breitbart's Warner Todd Houston says even those in higher income tax brackets are feeling it. How many of us know people that are making, you know, $80,000 a year and can barely get a pie here in some of these states across the country, especially the blue states. The mainstream media also ignored this as part of the poll. Despite the skepticism, more than half, said their personal financial situation is either fair or very good. On the housing front, it turns out not everything is bigger in Texas when it comes to buying a home. Tiny home sales have peaked and affordability matters, according to a new report by Realture.com. Housing expert Lance Thrillkill says the median price is closer to 100K, allowing renters to see homeownership become a reality. Stop paying.

somebody else for your house instead of putting money in your own bank with equity. Thrill Hill says the down payments are as low as 4K. Even a 20% down on a $100,000 house versus a $400,000 house. It's a big difference. The problem is rent is too high for people to save. I'm Erica Smith. News Radio 740, KTRH. More Americans are turning to AI to help with their taxes. Tech expert Peter Shankman says it can be useful for explaining concepts or even spotting potential strategies, but you really should get it done by, you know, a human. If you want to use AI as a first pass, go for it. But it can't be your only pass. Keep this in mind. The IRS holds taxpayers fully responsible for mistakes. It doesn't matter whether the advice came from a human or machine. Seahawks beat New England to win the Super Bowl. 2913. Alperin Shingoon of the Rockets is going to the All-Star game. I'm Cliff Saunders on Houston's News Weather and Traffic Station, KTRH. The tools you need to take on the day. News in the morning weather and traffic. This is Houston's morning news with Jimmy Amy Coney Barrett. Our Attorney General Ken Paxton is suing Global Fiberglass Solutions of Texas LLC. Who, by the way, is not based in Texas. They're located in Kirkland, Washington. Turns out that part of what they were supposed to do... was to properly dispose of materials for wind turbines. You know, that very environmentally friendly way we generate power here in Texas with the wind turbines? Well, they don't last forever. They break down. And when it's time to replace them, you've got to take down those big, huge wind turbines. And they were supposed to recycle them. Uh, guess that's easier said than done. Because according to Ken Paxton's lawsuit, the company failed to properly dispose of those materials and have instead created a stockpile of over 3,000 turbine parts. He said the illegal disposal of wind turbines hurts our land and will never be permitted under my watch. Just because the radical left calls something a green industry does not give any company a free pass to harm Texas countryside, break our laws, and leave Texans to deal with the negative impacts. Company has been investigated since about 2018 after the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality received an anonymous complaint that the agency investigated the company's two locations in Sweetwater. The investigation revealed that Global LLC engaged in recycling activities without notifying the TCEQ. Investigators also concluded that Global LLC specatively accumulated wind turbine blades and associated industrial solid waste at the facilities. Investigators also discovered the company was not meeting the annual 75% of materials recycled threshold to be exempt from needing to permit to store solid waste. So they aren't recycling it, they're just storing it on Texas land, big old pile of wind turbine blades.

in other parts. 740, time for traffic and weather together. That's the only thing that's not laying around between my seat and my console. I can't fit one of those. You can't get this turbine bladed there. I got all kinds of food, though. Who wants to eat? I didn't east, Terry. Let's look at this wreck here. They were just now pointing and clipboarding at Mercury inbound. They had that left lane block for a long time. We've got the packups now from Greens Bayou, 20 extra minutes. This way you hit more breaks at Lockwood. You got 225 something's scunching us up on the inbound. Right at Scarborough. It doesn't look major. In fact, that looks like a stall to me. We'll have to zoom that at the 50 break. I-10. I'll make that I-69, downtown north of 10, right there before Quitman Lions. We found that wreck also one of our callers at 713212 T-IPS. It's a center lane. They're working on it. HFD's there. Now the elevator, it's terrible both ways between Quitman and the fan and exit. Off the tip line, it's Melanie from Lamarck. I have dense calls on 2-O-4 headed out towards flashes. Huh. And eight-per-mile visibility. Be safe. I wonder what she's doing in Palaces. I get a hard hat vibe off, Melanie. And Southwest Freeway, Clear Belair, and Hillcroft, inbound. You've got breaks from Fondred. SkyMike and the Ability Tree Experts Traffic Center from our KTRH. Generator Supercenter, 24-hour weather center. Terry is here. Brilliant sunshine where I am in midtown. I'm not sure. I guess most of the fog is probably up north at this point. Where do you see the least visibilities right now, Terry? Conroe's down to a quarter mile. Hooks Airport quarter mile. Sugar Lynn, less than a quarter of a mile. How about that? It's kind of patchy, but it is improving. That is the trend, and that will continue. We'll wind up with some sunshine today. It's a warm day, much like yesterday, but temperatures will range anywhere from the mid-70s to low 80s this afternoon. Tomorrow, clouds in the morning, and then more clouds. We're dry, though, mid-dupper 70s. Wednesday, there's only a 20% chance of rain. Thursday right now, I don't see any rain Friday, a 20% chance of a shower. Temperatures really are going to stay in the mid-to-pper 70s with a few locations in the low 80s through Friday. Right now, 56 at your official Severe Weather Station, News Radio 740KTRH. I live in the woodlands. Your best ways around Houston. Next on the 10. On 740 KTRH. Well, you just heard that tack ad against Sid Miller, the Texas Agriculture Commissioner, will be joining us to talk about maybe what's gone wrong in his relationship with Governor Greg Abbott, but also an online portal for reporting foreign-owned American land. That's coming up next. First, though, traffic and weather together. Go ahead, Skymike. Clear the East Tech's leaving downtown equipment. We still have suckage both ways from Lyons, southbound, from the merge with 288 northbound through the canyon. I'm Skymike and the Ability Tree Experts Traffic Center. From our KTRH, Generator Supercenter, 24-hour weather center. It's a Mary's a fog this morning, becoming Bartley-Claughty, high temperature of 80, cloudy, 78 tomorrow, conservative clouds with a 20% shower chance on Wednesday and high of 77.

Right now, 56 of your officials, Severe Weather Station, News Radio 740, KTRH. Live is here, he has an update on some of our top stories. Unless a deal is made to fund DHS, we could have another shutdown this week. The president doubles down on his crime crackdown, and that Virginia raccoon who went viral for breaking into a liquor store and getting drunk before passing out, well, it's got a merchandise line branded as the love drunk raccoon in time for Valentine's Day. Get the latest news anytime at KTRH.com. Our next update is at 8 o'clock. I live in Katie. I live in Edo. Your reliable forecast next on the 10 on 740 KTRH. Well, you know, our next guest has seen miles and miles of Texas, especially the rural one. Sid Miller is our Texas Agriculture Commissioner. He has a new online portal. Let's start with that, Commissioner. Tell us about this new online portal to report foreign-owned American land. Well, sure, yeah, that's a good thing. It's actually not mine. That's the USDA's. It's a federal online portal. And we have a real problem to figure out when these foreign entities buy our land. Ten years ago, I raised the alarm that we have to stop our enemies from buying around. One of the stupidest things we've ever done is let Sina by 120,000 acres. next to Laughlin Air Force Base, the wind farm. So we finally, this last legislative session, got it passed, and we've outlawed that in Texas. Well, you've probably heard the attack ads against you that make it sound like you're doing just the opposite as far as preventing foreigners for owning Texas land. What in the world do you do to Governor Greg Abbott to get him so mad at you? Well, look, I'm my ad commissioner and I have to stand up for agriculture. And sometimes he, he, you know, does things as detrimental to ag culture and I have to hold him accountable. I'll give you just a couple of examples. Back during COVID, when he had essential business, not essential, he shut down agricultural businesses, livestock auctions. He'd seed fertilizer dealer. So I have authority, executive authority over the agriculture code. So I use my own executive authority to open up the livestock auctions, feed seat, fertilizer dealers, trailer manufacturers, guns shops, western stores, anybody that, you know, supported agriculture, was an agriculture business. That really set him off. And then the second thing, he decided to shut the Texas border down to inspect trucks coming in from Mexico, even though it had already been inspected. And he shut that down for seven days. And we lost $3 billion worth of product rotting. We had thousands and thousands of Texas trucks in Mexico that couldn't get back. And retaliation, the cartels set our trucks afire. You know, dozens and dozens of trucks were just set on fire. So I stepped in. My job is our coach commissioners, you know, to hold him accountable for that and, you know, get him to stop doing that.

So a few things like that, you know, kind of rub him wrong. I mean, you know, most people wouldn't, wouldn't, you know, be strong enough to, you know, take on the governor. But, hey, that's my job. I'm trying to be the best head and go to the commissioner that has ever had. And those trips that I'm going on, I don't go on any of those trips. Hang on. According to the ad that your opponent's had, 48 taxpayer-funded trips that you've been on. That's not true? No, not even close. In fact, we haven't been on them yet. It's 45. It's right number first. And those are all funded by the Southern United States Trade Association. Not one taxes taxpayer dollar are going to fund those trips. And I'm not going. I've got 12 ambassadors going. I just have a team come back from. Dubai, one from Oman, and one from Mexico City. And the reason we're doing that is we have a $50 billion trade deficit. Biden left us. We are buying more food that we're selling. We've never had that happen in America before. So this is an urgent, urgent need to try to open these markets for our farmers and ranchers and get our products back out that. We've always been the breadbast in the world. We feed herself and a lot of other people around the world. That changed under Biden. They did not sign one agriculture export contract in four years, none. We've not any new contracts. We didn't even keep our old customers. We lost them. But we're, we got with Taiwan, they've agreed to buy $10 billion extra from us. So we've only got 10 billion off that 50, right off the bat. And we're going to continue to be aggressively. search out new markets for our Texas farmers and ranchers. All right, said, I've got to leave it at that because the show's over. But thank you for your time, sir. As always, Texas Agriculture Commissioner, Sid Miller. You all have a great day. We'll see tomorrow morning, Bright and Early 5. Hope to see you this afternoon of 4 on AM 950 KPRC.