Sunday, July 5, 2026

Good Morning! On this day in 1855, Governor Elisha Pease authorized James Hughes Callahan to lead a force across the Rio Grande after cross-border raiders. The campaign ended months later with the Texans burning Piedras Negras, opposite Eagle Pass.

As our nation commemorates its 250th birthday, we’ll be sending out shortened editions through Monday, July 6, so The Texas Flyover staff can celebrate the holiday with friends and family. Our regular edition will be back on Tuesday.

America just turned 250, and we invited the entire world to the party. For years, the world has been told that this country is angry, divided, and not what it used to be. Then over a million international visitors poured into our cities this summer for the World Cup, and they are seeing something completely different. Late-night Waffle House runs, brisket the size of a small child, and strangers going out of their way to help. A lot of them showed up braced for the worst and instead fell head over heels. Tune in to today’s Flyover Podcast as Amy shares what the world is discovering about America. Tune in here!

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The whole world came to America for the World Cup this summer, and over a million visitors are discovering why this country is truly one of a kind. (Watch Now)

Hill Country Flood, One Year Later

Across the Hill Country, families and neighbors gathered this weekend to mark one year since the July 4 flood that killed more than 130 people along the Guadalupe River.

The centerpiece in Kerr County was a Saturday morning ceremony dedicating a new 20-foot steel cross at Flat Rock Park in Kerrville, with remarks, music, prayer, and a moment of silence.

Tributes filled the days around it. The Coming King Foundation dedicated a Hill Country Flood Memorial Wall on Friday, and a “Faith and Fellowship” gathering at Louise Hays Park had residents lighting candles and painting mosaic tiles for a future memorial.

The remembrances reached beyond Kerrville: a memorial walk set out from Temple, Center Point’s volunteer firefighters held morning prayer, and Unity of the Hill Country opened a three-day “Weekend of Hope and Healing.” In Hunt, the school district created new awards honoring the children it lost.

Arlington’s Parade Marks 150 and 250

Downtown Arlington’s Independence Day parade, the largest in Texas, rolled off Saturday morning as the city celebrated its 150th birthday alongside America’s 250th.

What started as a 1965 bike parade in Randol Mill Park is now one of the nation’s biggest. More than 100 entries—floats, car clubs, and every Arlington high school band—wound through downtown and the University of Texas at Arlington.

Organizers expected about 75,000 spectators, a crowd they figured could grow with World Cup fans in town after Friday’s Egypt-Australia match at AT&T Stadium in Arlington.

New this year was a 9 a.m. “ring out,” with church bells and handbells across downtown pealing for America’s 250th, an idea borrowed from the Daughters of the American Revolution. The party continues today with Light Up Arlington and its expanded fireworks and drone show.

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➤ Big Bend: U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s updated “Smart Wall Map” shows two 30-foot wall segments planned through about 2 miles of Big Bend Ranch State Park’s western edge near the Rio Grande. (See Details)

➤ Statewide: With new research showing Texas aquifers dropping to worrying lows, residents are pushing lawmakers to rein in the state’s AI data centers. Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham called for ending the centers’ tax breaks and making them fund their projects, while warning against ceding the AI race to China. (More)

➤ Hidalgo: U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found 112 packages of cocaine, about 279 pounds worth roughly $3.7 million, hidden in a cucumber shipment at the Hidalgo port of entry on June 24. Homeland Security Investigations opened a case, with no arrests announced. (See Details)

➤ Katy: DoorDash driver Michael David Butler, 44, was charged July 1 with manslaughter in the June 19 death of Martha Avila, 76, after his Tesla tore through her home. Investigators say he overrode Full Self-Driving, floored it to 73 mph and never braked. Avila’s family sued Butler and Tesla. (See Details)

➤ Odessa: One year after Officer Bailey Martin died in the July 4 Hill Country flooding while vacationing with family, the Odessa Police Department unveiled a memorial to him in its front lobby, built around the police badge recovered from the Guadalupe River. The public is invited to visit. (See Photos)

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