The Playlist: Listen to Me

Candidates in the race for governor and lieutenant governor took to the airwaves to make their case in two televised debates this week, so our playlist inspired by Texas politics and policy news begins with "Listen to Me" by The Hollies.

The easiest way to enjoy the playlist is to download Spotify, a free program. But even without it, you can still follow along. Here are the other selections for the week:

We have a trio of songs dedicated to news that a man in Texas was diagnosed with Ebola this week, starting with MGMT's "Mystery Disease." Then, because it occurred in Dallas, we have The Flatlanders singing their song that shares its name with the city. And because people from the man's neighborhood are concerned about a stigma developing, we have "Stigmatized" by The Calling.

It turns out the Obama administration deported a record-breaking 438,421 people in 2013, so we have Sean Paul's "Deport Them."

Then there's Bob Dylan's "Things Have Changed," because Austin is expecting a more racially and ideologically diverse city council following a major shift in how it conducts elections. Meanwhile, the city is trying to figure out how to regulate vehicle-for-hire apps like Uber and Lyft while maintaining traditional taxi services, which inspired the addition of "Take Me for a Ride" by Neon Trees.

Former University of Texas at Brownsville President Juliet García was in Washington, D.C., this week, hoping to stir up interest in two policy proposals she has developed. So we added "Just an Idea" by Big D and the Kids Table. At the Texas A&M Transportation Institute, researchers were crashing trucks into steel barriers as a test to see if they could adequately defend federal embassies, so we have Matt Nathanson's "Car Crash."

And finally, because Gov. Rick Perry said this week that he would be better prepared than he was in 2012 if he decides to run for president again in 2016, we close with Eisley's "I Wasn't Prepared."

Enjoy!