Lesley Stahl report examines Trump administration election efforts
Lesley Stahl delivered a scathing report on President Donald Trump’s federal election-meddling efforts on a Sunday broadcast, just one week after an alleged editorial clash with her boss, Bari Weiss, according to The Daily Beast. The 84-year-old correspondent examined how the Trump administration has attempted to undermine the reliability of elections, speaking with state and local officials about unprecedented federal actions regarding election security.
Federal Interventions in Georgia and Utah Examined
Stahl spoke with Fulton County Commissioner Dana Barrett regarding a January FBI raid on a local Georgia election facility. Barrett, a Democrat, described how dozens of armed federal agents wearing vests arrived at the warehouse with a criminal search warrant and seized hundreds of boxes containing ballots and voter rolls from the 2020 presidential election. Barrett told Stahl she had no choice but to let them seize the materials and that she still has no idea where the boxes went. Stahl characterized the event as part of a concerted national effort to undermine faith in elections.
The report also featured Utah Republican Lieutenant Governor Deidre Henderson, who revealed that the Department of Justice is investigating her over her refusal to turn over sensitive voter information. Henderson stated that the DOJ demanded statewide voter registration lists containing confidential data such as Social Security numbers, full dates of birth, and driver’s license numbers without explaining why the information was needed. Henderson told Stahl she found only 52 cases of noncitizen voting among more than 2 million votes cast in Utah, a figure Stahl calculated as two-thousandths of one percent. Despite being notified last month that she is officially under investigation, Henderson maintained that she will continue holding the line.
Trump Signs Executive Orders to Create Federal Voting Rules
Stahl pointed out that Trump has signed two executive orders attempting to create new federal voting rules, despite elections constitutionally remaining under the purview of towns, counties, and states. Stahl noted that during the first 21 months of his second term, Trump has claimed the vote cannot be trusted more than 150 times.
Appearing on the segment, DOJ Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon claimed there are thousands of cases of noncitizen voting that the department is examining. Dhillon dismissed suggestions that the administration plans to station federal ICE agents at polling locations or challenge midterm results, calling such ideas paranoia.
The Preceding Editorial Dispute at CBS News
The broadcast followed reports of a heated debate between Stahl and CBS News Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss regarding a previous 60 Minutes segment on violent Israeli settlers, according to Status reporting cited by The Daily Beast. Insiders revealed that Weiss and deputy managing editor Charles Forelle were very hands-on during the editorial process and considered shelving the report. Following an aggressive back-and-forth between Stahl and her superiors, the story ultimately aired on a Sunday after screenings stretched into Saturday.
Status sources indicated Stahl, Bill Whitaker, and Jon Wertheim subsequently met on Monday for a discussion, while the atmosphere between Stahl and her superiors remains unclear. A CBS spokesperson defended the network’s editorial process, calling the narrative a ludicrous and twisted account and stating that all pieces undergo a rigorous review.
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