Jeremy Schwartz is an investigative reporter for the ProPublica-Texas Tribune Investigative Initiative. He’s been a watchdog reporter in Texas for nearly a decade for the Austin American-Statesman and USA Today Network. His work has resulted in the overhaul of Texas’ inspection process for farmworker housing, sparked Congressional investigations of a failed Department of Veterans Affairs research program and uncovered misleading border arrest and drug seizure statistics maintained by the Texas Department of Public Safety. Schwartz has won the National Association of Hispanic Journalists’ Latino Issues award for his 2017 investigation into the political underrepresentation of Latinos in Texas cities and counties, and the Headliners Foundation of Texas Reporter of the Year award, among other honors. He’s previously reported on Latin America from Mexico City.
A Texas county’s refusal to remove two books from the children’s section of the library sparked a yearslong political battle. Now school board races have taken on a deeply partisan tone, and elections serve as a purity test for far-right politics.
Michele Carew, an elections administrator with 14 years of experience, has resigned after a monthslong campaign by Trump loyalists to oust her. “I’m leaving on my own accord,” she said.
The political battle in one Texas county where Trump got 81% of the vote offers a rare view into the virulent distrust and unyielding pressure facing elections administrators.
Texas regulators and lawmakers knew about the grid’s vulnerabilities for years, but time and again they furthered the interests of large electricity providers.
The government’s strategy of awarding contracts before acquiring titles to land in Texas has led to millions of dollars in costs for delays. Things could get even more complicated if President-elect Joe Biden stops border wall construction.
As the presidential election nears, a review of federal spending data found modifications to contracts have increased the price of the border wall by billions, costing about five times more per mile than it did under previous administrations.
A ban from Facebook has apparently done little to slow Brian Kolfage, charged last month for defrauding thousands in a “build the wall” effort, and who regularly uses personal attacks and misinformation to sic his online following on perceived detractors.
In the early days of the coronavirus pandemic when testing supplies were limited, local politicians went to great lengths to help a businessman with a criminal past try to sell telehealth and COVID-19 services across Texas. This is their story.
El informe, presentado ante un tribunal federal la semana pasada, confirma los reportajes de ProPublica y The Texas Tribune que mostraron que partes del muro estaban en peligro de derrumbarse si no se reparaban, debido a la extensa erosión que apareció solo meses después de haberse construido.
The report, set to be filed in federal court this week, confirms reporting from ProPublica and The Texas Tribune that found portions of the wall were in danger of overturning if not fixed due to extensive erosion just months after it was built.
Investigators say fundraisers for nonprofit We Build the Wall, including Steve Bannon and founder Brian Kolfage, lied to donors and pocketed funds. Trump has tried to distance himself from the group but Kolfage has bragged about their ties.
El huracán Hanna descargó lluvias torrenciales sobre un muro fronterizo que construyeron partidarios de Trump, dejando huecos enormes y grietas que llegan hasta la cintura en las riberas del Río Bravo, las cuales amenazan su estabilidad a largo plazo.
Partidarios de Trump financiaron un muro fronterizo privado en la ribera del Río Bravo, ayudando al constructor a obtener $1,700 millones de dólares en contratos federales. Ahora los expertos dicen que ese “Lamborghini” de los muros fronterizos corre peligro de caerse al río si no se actúa al respecto.
Hurricane Hanna dumped torrential rainfall on a border wall that Trump supporters built, leaving gaping holes and waist-deep cracks on the banks of the Rio Grande that threaten the wall’s long-term stability.
President Trump now claims this privately funded border wall — touted as the “Lamborghini” of fences — was built to “make me look bad,” even though the project’s builder and funders are Trump supporters.
Months after the “Lamborghini” of border walls was built along the Rio Grande, the builder agreed to an engineering inspection of his controversial structure. Experts say the wall is showing signs of erosion that threatens its stability.
Trump supporters funded a private border wall on the banks of the Rio Grande, helping the builder secure $1.7 billion in federal contracts. Now the “Lamborghini” of border walls is in danger of falling into the river if nothing is done, experts say.
An ER owner bought 20,000 rapid COVID-19 tests, but a week later they were seized by the federal government. It’s a bitter example of what can go wrong when local governments try to buy supplies on the open market from unknown manufacturers.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott promised that all those who need a coronavirus test “will get one,” but near the border tests are scarce, and the death toll is beginning to rise.
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