Democrat County Exec Blasts Gretchen Whitmer, ‘Unimpressed’ with Continued Michigan Lockdown

The Associated Press
The Associated Press
Kyle Olson

A top Democrat from the important swing county of Macomb in Michigan is criticizing Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) and her handling of the coronavirus shutdown.

Mark Hackel, the elected county executive, told WDIV that Whitmer needs to “ease up” on her executive orders keeping much of the state shuttered and many Michiganders out of work.

WDIV reporter Rod Meloni noted the state’s goal was to “flatten the curve,” which has been done.

“And now the goal post has been moved to something he doesn’t even recognize,” Meloni said of Hackel.

“Why are we still pushing forward with this nonessential opening in a slow, progressive sort of way?” Hackel said.

According to Local 4, Hackel was “unimpressed” with Whitmer’s six-stage reopening plan.

“Let’s be honest, once it came out, nobody paid attention to it or is looking at it anymore,” he said.

Hackel said he gets many calls from business owners who are confused by the multi-step chart and just want to know when they can reopen.

He wondered exactly what data Whitmer is using to make her decisions.

“What is it we’re looking for?” he said. “What is the number? Is there a percentage? Is there a percentage less of people getting sick?”

He wondered what Whitmer is looking for.

“I don’t think anybody has that answer,” he said.

Meloni said that Hackel “wants to be very clear that the state can open safely.”

“They want to do it. They want to do it now,” Meloni said.

On Monday, Detroit state Rep. Leslie Love (D) criticized Whitmer’s nursing home policy, which required seniors who test positive for coronavirus be kept in the same facility or transferred to “regional hubs.”

“To return seniors into an environment, seniors with the virus still recovering from the virus, into an environment with, well, seniors, just didn’t seem — it’s not a good idea,” Love said.

“That would break my heart because I’ve been on the front lines of this, trying to make sure our seniors — my mother, your mother, anybody else’s mother — does not get sick and die from this, particularly if they’re in a nursing home,” she said.

Donald Trump won Macomb County with 53.6 percent of the vote in 2016.

Barack Obama defeated Mitt Romney there in 2012 with 51.6 percent.

Kyle Olson is a reporter for Breitbart News. He is also the host of the syndicated “Kyle Olson Show,” found on Michigan radio stations on Saturdays. Follow him on Twitter and like him on Facebook.

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