Archive - Midwest

In Minnesota, the Mayo Clinic Sometimes Called the Shots With Gov. Tim Walz

The governor’s ties to the Mayo Clinic raise questions about the world-renowned hospital’s potential influence on federal health care reform.

Election Skeptics Are Targeting Voting Officials With Ads That Suggest They Don’t Have to Certify Results

The ads, which have been placed in swing states like Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, come from a new group with deep ties to activists who have challenged the legitimacy of recent elections.

The Small Midwestern Cities That Could Play a Pivotal Role in This Year’s Elections

For all the talk about big-city Democrats and rural Republicans, it’s the voters in overlooked places like Sandusky, Ohio, and Racine, Wisconsin, who could decide everything from key congressional races to the presidency.

What Happened in Whitewater

How immigration is affecting one small Wisconsin city.

“Not Medically Necessary”: Inside the Company Helping America’s Biggest Health Insurers Deny Coverage for Care

When companies like Aetna or UnitedHealthcare want to rein in costs, they turn to EviCore, whose business model depends on turning down payments for care recommended by doctors for their patients.

Who’s Mailing the Catholic Tribune? It’s Not the Church, It’s Partisan Media.

ProPublica has traced these mass-mailed newspapers to a “pink slime” network known for misinformation and its financial ties to right-wing super PACs and billionaires.

Opponents of Missouri Abortion Rights Amendment Turn to Anti-Trans Messaging and Misinformation

Facing poll numbers showing support for a proposed amendment that would ensure reproductive rights in the state, abortion opponents have poured more than $1 million into a last-minute campaign to undermine support leading up to the election.

Right-Wing Activists Pushed False Claims About Election Fraud. Now They’re Recruiting Poll Workers in Swing States.

Experts say these poll workers could sow distrust in democracy and bolster court cases challenging the election. ProPublica and Wisconsin Watch reviewed dozens of hours of trainings and presentations in which activists discussed their plans.

Battle Over Ballot Drop Boxes Rages On in Wisconsin as Officials Put Them at Center of Election Integrity Debate

After court rulings that first outlawed the boxes and then made them legal again, conspiracy theories continue to stir opposition that will result in heightened surveillance at sites this election. The hijacking of one box reflects the controversy.

Fossil Fuel Interests Are Working to Kill Solar in One Ohio County. The Hometown Newspaper Is Helping.

A retired gas industry executive, a shadowy “grassroots” group and a controversial media company are spreading misinformation while turning residents against a proposed solar farm — and each other.

Maylia and Jack: A Story of Teens and Fentanyl

Police knew she was selling fake Percocet but did not stop her. His mother sought the right treatment for his addiction but could not find it. Two teens got caught up in a system unprepared to handle kids on either side of the drug trade.

Desperate Times Led Wisconsin Tribe to High-Interest Lending, Dubious Partnerships and Legal Jeopardy

Facing financial ruin, the Lac du Flambeau tribe began offering short-term loans online with annual rates often over 600%. But as the tribe rose in an industry derided for predatory practices, it put its reputation at risk and drew costly lawsuits.

Emails Reveal How Walz Struggled to Deal With Unrest, Reach Consensus With Critics After Police Killings

Spring 2021 saw escalating tensions in Minnesota: Police had killed Daunte Wright less than a year after George Floyd. Caught between the demands of Black organizers and Republican lawmakers, Tim Walz struggled to chart a course for police reform.

In an Unprecedented Move, Ohio Is Funding the Construction of Private Religious Schools

The state is giving millions in taxpayer dollars directly to private schools to help them renovate and expand their campuses. It may be the next frontier in the push to increase the use of school vouchers, proponents say.

School District With Highest Student Arrest Rate in the Nation Agrees to Reform How It Disciplines Disabled Students

Following a ProPublica-Chicago Tribune investigation, the Garrison School in Illinois will change its disciplinary practices and provide services to those who missed class due to being arrested or sent to a seclusion room.

El Departamento de Justicia llega a un acuerdo con un Sheriff de Wisconsin para mejorar servicios para quienes no hablan inglés

Años después de que los agentes del Condado Dane culparan por error a un trabajador inmigrante por la muerte de su hijo en una granja lechera, la oficina del alguacil acordó reformas destinadas a garantizar que los residentes que hablan inglés limitado puedan obtener los servicios necesarios.

DOJ Reaches Agreement With Wisconsin Sheriff’s Office to Improve Services for People Who Don’t Speak English

Years after deputies in Dane County, Wisconsin, mistakenly blamed an immigrant worker for his son’s death on a dairy farm, the sheriff’s office has agreed to reforms meant to ensure that residents who speak limited English can get needed services.

A Vexing To-Do List for Michigan’s Gretchen Whitmer

As the governor, now a rising Democratic star, finishes out her final term, key populist pledges have been unfulfilled and her presidential resume is still being written.

Trump Assassination Attempt Laid Bare Long-standing Vulnerabilities in the Secret Service

A Spotlight PA, ProPublica and Butler Eagle investigation found the process for securing campaign events was susceptible to attack for years.

Missouri Outlawed Abortion, and Now It’s Funding an Anti-Abortion Group That Works in Other States

With millions in expanded tax credits and direct state funding going to anti-abortion groups, the nonprofit Coalition Life has expanded its operations beyond Missouri and into states where the procedure is still legal.

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