Hello Houston: The Commuter Cut

Hello Houston – The Commuter Cut (June 11, 2026)

In today's edition of "The Commuter Cut," Ernie and guest host Nicole Ellis [https://www.pbs.org/newshour/author/nicole-ellis] talk with Thomas A. Saenz [https://www.maldef.org/about/thomas-a-saenz/], President and General Counsel of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, who discusses the future of the Texas Dream Act. Then, we hear from Christine Ruiz Hopkins [https://reedypress.com/author/hopkins/christine-hopkins/] and Heidi Lutz [https://reedypress.com/author/lutz/heidi-lutz/], authors of Secret Galveston: A Guide to the Weird, Wonderful, and Obscure, who both educate us on Galveston's lesser-known facts and folklore, and its Juneteenth history, with the island being its birthplace. Plus, Alfredo Rodriguez [https://www.alfredomusic.com/band], the internationally acclaimed pianist and leader of the Alfredo Rodriguez trio, joins us to tell us about Havana Grooves [https://www.thehobbycenter.org/events/havana-grooves/], a Live at the Founders Club concert that he’ll be performing in for the next two nights at the Hobby Center.

Hello Houston – The Commuter Cut (June 10, 2026)

In today’s edition of “The Commuter Cut,” Ernie and guest host Nicole Ellis [https://www.nicoleellis.co/aboutme] talk with actor Adam Brett, who discusses playing the character Wadsworth in the national tour of CLUE [https://www.thehobbycenter.org/events/clue/], which is running at the Hobby Center now through Sunday, June 14th. Next, Nikolas Guggenberger [https://www.law.uh.edu/faculty/main.asp?PID=7475], Assistant Professor of Law at the University of Houston Law Center, joins us to discuss Florida’s lawsuit against OpenAI and its CEO, for allegedly concealing risks about ChatGPT from its users, and what this could mean for the future of AI regulation. Plus, we learn about the upcoming special film screening Juneteenth on Screen [https://www.posthtx.com/event/juneteenth-on-screen-stories-of-freedom], with award-winning documentarian Gordon S. Williams [https://www.gordonswilliams.com/biography] and Dr. Michelle Tovar [https://buffalosoldiersmuseum.org/2023/09/meet-our-director-of-education-dr-michelle-tovar/], Director of Education and Outreach at the Buffalo Soldiers National Museum [https://buffalosoldiersmuseum.org/].

Hello Houston – The Commuter Cut (June 9, 2026)

In today's edition of "The Commuter Cut," Ernie and guest host Donna Reed [https://www.instagram.com/donnareedvo/] talk with the University of Houston's Gail Buttorff [https://www.uh.edu/hobby/about/faculty/gail-buttorff/index.php] and Maria Perez Arguelles [https://www.uh.edu/hobby/about/faculty/maria-perez-arguelles/index.php], who break down a new study that explores how Houston neighborhoods help shape mobility and community health. Then, we hear from Deandre Prescott [https://www.colliers.com/en/experts/deandre-prescott], the Research Director for Colliers in Houston, who explains what’s happening with Houston’s growing apartment market, why we’re seeing new apartments being constructed in the suburbs, and what changing development patterns could mean for renters.

Hello Houston – The Commuter Cut (June 8, 2026)

In today’s edition of “The Commuter Cut,” Ernie and guest host Houston Public Media reporter Michael Adkison [https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/author/michael-adkison/] talk with the Houston People’s Budget Campaign’s Alice Liu and Felix Kapoor, who discuss the organization’s amendment proposals for Mayor Whitmire’s city budget plan.   Then, we hear from former U.S. ambassador Chase Untermeyer [https://www.untermeyer.com/resume/], who, along with Nicholas Sawicki, executive director of the Houston Public Library Foundation, joins us to discuss his new role as Diplomat-in-Residence at Houston Public Library [https://houstonlibrary.org/home], the first role of its kind at any public library in the entire country.

Hello Houston – The Commuter Cut (June 5, 2026)

In today's edition of "The Commuter Cut," Ernie and guest host Tessa Barerra [https://www.instagram.com/tess1tess2/?hl=en] talk with Heidi Russell [https://www.bakerinstitute.org/expert/heidi-russell], Director of the Center for Health Policy at Rice University's Baker Institute, who discusses how healthcare policy has changed during President Trump’s second term in office.  Also, we hear from legendary Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Lyle Lovett [https://www.lylelovett.com/], who joins us to talk about his concert tonight [https://houstonsymphony.org/performance/lyle-lovett-with-the-houston-symphony/] in which he’ll be performing with the Houston Symphony, as well as his family life, and some of the many musicians he’s worked with throughout his career.