The Note's Must-reads For Monday, September 10, 2012

When Gwen Williams’ mother was dying, taking her to an in-person appointment to get more medicine seemed impossible. So Williams made a telehealth appointment with the doctor—a video call. It was that easy. “Her comfort was paramount,” Williams, who lives in Minnesota, recounts. “My mother wasn’t conscious during the visit, but [the doctor] was able to see her and was able to get the hospice medications and everything refilled.” Williams’ mother was on Medicare, as is she.

Mayor Mike Johnston’s pointed comments last week about Denverites resisting a federal mass-deportation effort — including a suggestion that he would mobilize the Denver police department to face off with federal and National Guard troops — have generated blowback in Colorado and across the country. Even billionaire Elon Musk, President-elect Donald Trump’s most visible benefactor and adviser, appeared to weigh in on Saturday on X, the social media platform that Musk owns. “Those who break the law will be arrested, and that includes mayors,” Musk posted in response to another post about the mayor’s comments. On Monday, Johnston reiterated his commitment to resisting what he views as a desire by Trump to abuse the power of the presidency by initiating a nationwide roundup and mass deportation of undocumented immigrants. But the second-year mayor stopped short of providing any specifics of what that resistance might look like. “Denver is proud to be a welcoming city, and we will do everything in our power to protect those who live here,” Johnston said in a statement.

Colorado U. S. Rep. Lauren Boebert broke new ground over the weekend when she became the first sitting member of Congress to offer personalized messages for sale — starting at $250 — through the video platform Cameo. The Windsor Republican, who won election to a new congressional seat this month after moving across the state, started the account Saturday.

Donald Trump has gotten away with causing a violent attack on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, as part of scheme to overturn the 2020 election, hiding top secret documents from the federal government, and other alleged crimes. Special counsel Jack Smith on Monday made official what Trump’s election victory made clear, moving to dismiss the election interference case in which Trump was charged with promoting conspiracies to defraud the United States, obstruct an official government proceeding, and deprive Americans of their civil rights through his attempts to stop Congress from certifying President Joe Biden’s victory.

To be sure, the media isn’t entirely responsible for the sad state of our representative republic, but their contribution to our current tribulations is enormous and destructive.

Truly, we live in interesting times.