Axios Austin

July 14, 2025
🇫🇷 Happy Monday — and happy Bastille Day, les amis.
☀️ Today's weather: Mostly sunny, with a high in the mid 90s.
🎶 Sounds like: "Worn Out American Dream," by Austin singer-songwriter BettySoo, who will perform at Waterloo Records tonight at 5pm as part of a release party for her newest album, "If You Never Go Away."
Today's newsletter is 811 words — a 3-minute read.
1 big thing: Trump defends federal response in Texas
President Trump defended his administration's response to the Texas Hill Country flooding after surveying the damage and meeting with victims' families on Friday in Kerrville.
The big picture: The president's visit comes amid questions about the federal response to the flooding, as he looks to overhaul the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
- FEMA did not deploy search and rescue teams to Texas until more than 72 hours after the flooding, per CNN.
- Still, Trump arrived to friendly faces in Texas, where Gov. Greg Abbott and other Texas officials have continued to praise his response.
The latest: At least 129 people were confirmed dead and more than 170 still missing on Friday, a week after the floods hit, per CBS News.
- President Trump also on Friday approved Abbott's request for federal disaster assistance for more counties, in addition to the hard-hit Kerr County.
What they're saying: "My administration is doing everything in its power to help Texas," Trump said at a roundtable press conference, surrounded by Texas Republican leaders.
- "When the request was made for the emergency funds ... we gave it within about two minutes, maybe less, and they had everything they needed right immediately."
By the numbers: The federal government has deployed more than 400 first responders to Texas, Trump said, and enabled more than 1,500 rescues.
- He did not specify what agency those first responders were working for, but said FEMA has deployed "multiple emergency response units."
State of play: Trump signed the first major disaster declaration on July 6, two days after the worst flooding, for the hard hit Kerr County, about an hour's drive northwest of San Antonio.
- It will help people with things like temporary housing and home repairs that aren't covered by insurance.
Between the lines: Trump deflected questions about blame and what went wrong in warning people about the flooding.
- Meanwhile, he said the administration is "taking historic action to ensure that such a nightmare never happens again."
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2. Tips for talking to children about Texas Hill Country flooding
Children are among the survivors of the deadly Fourth of July flooding in the Hill Country, and experts are offering advice about how to support them through their grief and trauma.
What they're saying: Children can be especially vulnerable to the effects of traumatic events, Adriana McKinnon, a licensed counselor at the Children's Bereavement Center of South Texas, told KSAT.
- "They're just not able to process it as adults do," she said.
Zoom in: If kids have not brought the subject up, parents should consider opening the line of communication, Ana Ugueto of Texas Children's Hospital said in a Facebook Live video.
- It's important to use simple, straightforward language and speak calmly, Ugueto said.
The National Child Traumatic Stress Network has some more tips for parents on speaking to adolescents after disasters. They include:
- If a child is feeling detached and guilty, emphasize that their feelings are common. Redirect excessive self-blame with explanations of what actually could have been done.
- If a youngster is having fears that the event might happen again, help them to differentiate between the disaster itself and any smells, sounds or feelings they might associate with it.
- Remind them that they need family and friends for support.
Go deeper: The Children's Bereavement Center of South Texas also shared resources specific to the Hill Country flooding.
3. 🤠 The Roundup: Wrangling the news
💰 George Strait will host a July 27 concert in Boerne, with proceeds benefitting people impacted by the Central Texas floods. (Rolling Stone)
🚒 The Austin Firefighters Union on Friday overwhelmingly approved a vote of no-confidence in fire chief Joel Baker. (KUT)
☎️ Dispatch audio from the Kerr County flood shows first responders requesting an emergency alert at 4:22 a.m., more than three hours after the National Weather Service issued a flash flood warning. (KXAN)
🚙 Austin officials have yet to receive information from Tesla about where the company is operating its robotaxis. (Bloomberg)
4. Social calendar
Here's what's knocking around Austin this summer workweek.
Monday
👢 Pull on your boots for Queer Linedance Night at the Sagebrush. Doors at 7pm, $10.
Tuesday
💃🏽 Swing your hips at the Pan Am Hillside Summer Concert Series, featuring La Distancia, Nova Band and others. Show starts at 6pm at the Pan American Recreation Center and Neighborhood Park. Free.
Wednesday
🐝 Learn to identify pollens and nectars in honey by taste and how bees make honey at the Talking Bees Roadshow, at the Howson Branch library. 6pm, free.
Thursday
🍿 Catch the dystopian Los Angeles sci-fi thriller "Strange Days" at the Paramount. 7:30pm, $12.
Thanks to Astrid Galván and Bob Gee for editing this newsletter.
🍔 Asher is catching up on this Austin Chronicle story sorting burger joints by vibes.
❤️ Nicole can't stop thinking about this story from Texas Monthly's Aaron Parsley.
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