Today on Colorado Edition: We look at the impacts of the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in the faithless electors case. Plus, we examine the state's special investigation into the case of Elijah McClain. We'll also hear about Northern Colorado's largest wind farm and how video games may provide stress relief.
Faithless Electors
The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled on Monday that states can require presidential electors to back their states' popular vote winner in the electoral college. The so-called "faithless elector" case has ties to Colorado and the 2016 presidential election when Hillary Clinton won the state's popular vote — but electoral college elector Michael Baca said he would cast his vote for another candidate. He was removed by then, Republican Secretary of State Wayne Williams who appointed a replacement to vote for Clinton. To learn more about the impact of the ruling, we spoke with Keith Whittington, professor of politics at Princeton University.
Wind Farming
Northern Colorado’s largest wind farm is now up and running. The Roundhouse wind project is located along the Colorado-Wyoming border and is big enough to power over 100,000 homes. KUNC’s Matt Bloom visited the site to learn more about how it fits into the region’s plans to transition away from fossil fuels.
Special Investigation Into The Case Of Elijah McClain
The recent protests over police brutality and systemic racism have renewed interest in the death of Elijah McClain. Last August, the 23-year-old Black man was stopped by Aurora police officers who had received reports of a suspicious person. There were reports of a struggle and officers used a chokehold, then had paramedics inject him with a powerful tranquilizer.
McClain died several days later at the hospital. The District Attorney for the 17th judicial district declined to file charges. On June 25, Gov. Jared Polis appointed Colorado’s Attorney General as a special prosecutor to investigate the case. Jesse Paul with the Colorado Sun has been reporting on this investigation, and joined us to explain why this happened and where it may lead. You can read his reporting here.
Video Game Respite
Between a global pandemic, the economic downturn and civil unrest across the country, Americans are facing high levels of stress and uncertainty. And many are turning to video games for relief. For KUNC, Noah Glick explores whether these virtual experiences can help in the real world.
Colorado Edition is made possible with support from our KUNC members. Thank you!
Our theme music was composed by Colorado musicians Briana Harris and Johnny Burroughs. Other music in the show by Blue Dot Sessions.
Colorado Edition is hosted by Erin O'Toole (@ErinOtoole1) and Henry Zimmerman (@HWZimmerman), and produced by Lily Tyson. The web was edited by digital editor Jackie Hai. Managing editor Brian Larson contributed to this episode. We get production help from Rae Solomon.
KUNC's Colorado Edition is a news magazine taking an in-depth look at the issues and culture of Northern Colorado. It's available on our website, as well as on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. You can hear the show on KUNC's air, Monday through Thursday at 6:30 p.m.
