Plus, we’re suing the U.S. Department of Labor again.

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** THE WEEKLY REVEAL
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Saturday, Nov. 19, 2022

Hello! In this issue:
* A look forward ([link removed]) at what the midterm elections mean for 2024.

* Tesla’s labor problems, leaked audio from an anti-abortion strategy meeting and a Texas plan to create ‘election marshals’ – all in this week’s headlines.

* We’re suing the U.S. Department of Labor, again.


** THIS WEEK’S PODCAST
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** How Democracy Survived the Midterm Elections
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[link removed]

This week on Reveal ([link removed]) , host Al Letson talks with leading academics and journalists to take the temperature of American democracy. What do the midterm elections mean for 2024? And what will the future of voting look like in America, amid gerrymandering and tough new election crimes laws?
Listen to the episode ([link removed])
🎧 Other places to listen: Apple Podcasts ([link removed]) , Spotify ([link removed]) , Google Podcasts ([link removed]) , Stitcher ([link removed]) or wherever you get your podcasts.


** JOURNALISM THAT DEFENDS DEMOCRACY

American democracy survived a major test on Election Day. But make no mistake: The attacks aren’t going away. And we need to be ready to investigate them.

If you believe in journalism that defends democracy, help us raise $125,000 by the end of the year. Donate today ([link removed]) to support our work.
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** IN THE HEADLINES
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** What’s Happening in the News – with a Reveal context
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** Credit: Gabriel Hongsdusit/Reveal
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Workers allege labor violations at Tesla’s Texas Gigafactory. “On Tuesday, workers filed a pair of complaints, one claiming employers involved with site construction violated federal minimum wage and overtime pay laws and another alleging falsified safety credentials,” Axios ([link removed]) writes.

The Guardian reports ([link removed]) that one whistleblower said “he and his colleagues were expected to keep up production on a flooded first floor – despite observing there was live wiring all over the place and cords in the water.” He said he told his wife, “I’m going to die in this factory.”

This is an area we know a lot about. In 2018, we reported that former safety professionals at Tesla blamed the company’s injury problems directly on CEO Elon Musk. The company cut back on safety precautions to suit his eccentric tastes, the reporting showed: He didn’t like yellow paint, safety signs or the beeping of backing up forklifts. “Frantic growth, constant changes and lax rules, combined with a CEO whom senior managers were afraid to cross, created an atmosphere in which few dared to stand up for worker safety.” Read the investigation ([link removed]) .

Leaked audio from a strategy call between anti-abortion movement leaders and Tennessee lawmakers suggests that IVF and contraception could be their next policy target. ProPublica obtained audio ([link removed]) from an Oct. 27 webinar in which representatives from the Tennessee affiliate of National Right to Life and Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America urged legislators to hold the line on their state’s abortion ban, considered one of the strictest in the nation.

In the audio ([link removed]) , Stephen Billy, the vice president of state affairs for Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, “advises lawmakers not to discuss regulating in vitro fertilization and contraception with voters when discussing the current law,” ProPublica reports ([link removed]) .

In our recent show ([link removed]) – The Long Campaign to Turn Birth Control Into the New Abortion – we told the back story of how many in the anti-abortion movement have set their sights on hormonal birth control because they claim that hormonal contraceptives like IUDs and the pill can actually cause abortions. The show also looks to the future of how conservatives are aiming to use birth control as their new wedge issue. Take a listen ([link removed]) .

After Texas’ largest county experienced voting troubles on Election Day, a new Texas bill proposes “election marshals” to investigate voting during elections. Some polling locations in Harris County experienced ([link removed]) voting troubles last week, like running out of ballot paper or being short staffed. There are no indications that the problems affected the outcome on Election Day.

But election-denying Republican officials there have seized on the mix-up. They’ve filed suit ([link removed]) against the county elections administrator, and Governor Greg Abbott has called ([link removed]) for a state investigation that would include the secretary of state, the attorney general’s office and the Texas Rangers.

Republican state lawmakers pointed to the voting issues in Harris County to introduce a new bill that would “direct the secretary of state to appoint state police officers as ‘election marshals’ to investigate voting during elections,” Bolts ([link removed]) writes. “What happened in the November 8th election in Harris County is absolutely abominable and can NEVER happen again. Which is why I will continue to champion voter integrity bills,” said State Senator Paul Bettencourt in a statement ([link removed]) . He is the Republican state lawmaker who filed the bill.

Last month, our voter suppression investigation ([link removed]) highlighted how lawmakers in 42 states have introduced legislation that would dramatically criminalize voting activity. In our process of identifying all of the bills, one category included empowering a law enforcement agency by giving it more power or resources – just as the proposed legislation in Texas calls to do.

You can search the crime bills that target voting and elections in your state here ([link removed]) . This is a topic our democracy team is going to continue to track.


** On Social
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[link removed]
We’re suing the U.S. Department of Labor for withholding federal contractor diversity data. Again.

The Labor Department refused to release most reports to us even after a federal judge ruled in 2019 that the reports weren’t confidential business information. In August, we also reported that the federal government had invited thousands of companies to fight the public release of their diversity numbers.

📝 Get the full background: We Forced the Government to Share Corporate Diversity Data. It’s Giving Companies an Out Instead. ([link removed])


** In Case You Missed It
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These Sheriffs Say They’re More Powerful Than the President. Now, They’re Targeting Elections. ([link removed])

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Big Lie Proponents Are Creating Harsh Criminal Penalties for Elections Activity ([link removed])


** Final Notes
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▶️ We’re bringing our podcast to YouTube. Slowly. We always want to meet our audience where they are. If you’re an avid podcast listener on YouTube, find us at @reveal ([link removed]) . We’ll be experimenting in the next few months with different approaches. For now, you can listen to our The Ballot Boogeymen ([link removed]) show on the platform.

📽️ Watch “The Grab” online. Our new feature film documentary tracks our yearslong investigation into the shadowy international scramble to buy up food and water supplies via covert land grabs. DOC NYC ([link removed]) has tickets available to screen the film online now and through Nov. 27. Buy your ticket today ([link removed]) .
This issue of The Weekly Reveal was written by Kassie Navarro and edited by Andrew Donohue. If you enjoyed this issue, forward it to a friend ([link removed]) . Have some thoughts? Drop us a line (mailto:[email protected]) with feedback or ideas!

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