Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) says the Michigan protesters pushing back against the state’s stay-at-home orders may be the reason why people are indoors longer.
Whitmer discussed the ordeal during an interview with MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow where she admitted her greatest concern, at the moment, is a resurgence of coronavirus cases.
The Michigan governor is concerned about the consequences of reopening prematurely which could lead to a deadlier second wave of the coronavirus.
“The thing that I’m concerned most about, and that I think my fellow governors are as well, is a resurgence,” Whitmer said.
She went on to note the dangers of the protests that were held outside of Michigan’s state capitol in Lansing. Whitmer pointed out that the protests ignore most of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines about large gatherings.
“When you see a political rally — that’s what it was yesterday — a political rally where people aren’t wearing masks and they’re in close quarters and they’re touching one another, you know that that’s precisely what makes this kind of disease drag out and expose more people,” Whitmer said.
Check out Whitmer’s remarks below:
WATCH: Gov. Whitmer tells @Maddow that Wednesday's protest at Michigan's Capitol is the “kind of irresponsible action that puts us in this situation where we might have to actually think about extending stay-at-home orders, which is supposedly what they protesting." pic.twitter.com/WxVtTVEeia
— MSNBC (@MSNBC) April 17, 2020
In multiple videos circulating on social media, different groups of unmasked protesters can be seen standing in proximity to one another.
Michigan MAGA protestors broke social distancing orders that the very organizers said shouldn’t be broken. They’re bringing guns, they’re bringing confederate flags and some, I assume, are good people. pic.twitter.com/kPUz1OaKhe
— José (@josecanyousee) April 15, 2020
Whitmer went on to describe the behavior of protestors as the “kind of irresponsible action that puts us in this situation where we might have to actually think about extending stay-at-home orders, which is supposedly what they are protesting.”
The governor’s interview comes as protestors gathered outside of Michigan’s state capitol this week, pushing back against her stay-at-home order. Whitmer is also facing two federal lawsuits over the stay-at-home orders, as previously reported on IJR.
Despite the demands for the order to be lifted, Michigan is currently the fourth state in the United States with the most coronavirus cases, as there are more than 29,000 positive cases statewide, as of early Friday.