'Death Star' State: The GOP's War on Democracy

 

 

A battle for the future of democracy is raging in Greg Abbott's Texas. In the summer of 2023, amid a deadly, record-breaking global heatwave, Republican Governor Abbott signed a bill that eliminated mandated water breaks for outdoor workers. When TRNN's Marc Steiner traveled to Texas to investigate this shocking story, he quickly learned that eliminating water breaks was just the tip of the iceberg. What House Bill 2127, known by opponents as the "Death Star Bill," actually does, and what it will actually mean for the people of Texas, is much more sinister. And people across the state, from unions and migrant justice groups to Democratic legislators and Republican Mayors, are pissed. In this special documentary report, "‘Death Star’ State: The GOP’s War on Democracy," Steiner reports from Austin and San Antonio on the state GOP's massive, authoritarian, corporate-serving power grab, stripping the people’s right to govern themselves and consolidating power in the Statehouse, the Governor’s Office, and the Chamber of Commerce.