'It depicted some of the worst racism and most awful parts of US history': Gov. Gretchen Whitmer slams anti-lockdown protesters at Michigan capitol and says their 'Confederate flags, nooses and swastikas are not representative of who we are'
- Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has decried protests staged inside the state’s Capitol building last week
- Whitmer said the event acted as a reminder of some of the most ‘awful’ parts of US history
- The 'American Patriot Rally', organized by Michigan United for Liberty, was staged Thursday in contempt for Whitmer’s statewide stay-at-home orders
- Whitmer called the demonstrators a ‘small group’ and praised the vast majority of Michagan residents for ‘doing the right thing’ by staying at home
- The United States recorded its deadliest 24 hours on Thursday, the day of the protest, after more than 2,900 people died from coronavirus
- Michigan, meanwhile, has the highest coronavirus fatality rate in the United States at 9.3 percent, as deaths increased by 232 across Saturday
- Here’s how to help people impacted by Covid-19
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has decried protests staged inside the state’s Capitol building last week - which featured demonstrators with assault weapons, swastikas and Confederate flags - saying the event acted as a reminder of some of the most ‘awful’ parts of US history.
‘Some of the outrageousness of what happened at our capitol depicted some of the worst racism and awful parts of our history in this country,’ Whitmer said on CNN’s State of the Union on Sunday.
‘The Confederate Flags, and nooses, the swastikas, the behavior that you have seen in all of the clips is not representative of who we are in Michigan,’ she continued.
The 'American Patriot Rally', organized by Michigan United for Liberty, was staged Thursday in contempt for Whitmer’s statewide stay-at-home orders put in place to stop the spread of coronavirus.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has decried protests staged inside the state’s Capitol building last week - which featured demonstrators with assault weapons, swastikas and Confederate flags - saying the event acted as a reminder of the most ‘awful’ parts of US history
The 'American Patriot Rally', organized by Michigan United for Liberty, was staged Thursday in contempt for Whitmer’s statewide stay-at-home orders put in place to stop the spread of coronavirus
Hundreds of protesters - waving pro-Trump banners and carrying assault rifles - descended on the state capitol to oppose the shutdown, which is currently in place till May 15.
Most of them appeared to be ignoring state social-distancing guidelines as they clustered together within six feet of each other. Few people wore masks.
Photos from inside the Michigan House Chamber showed elected officials wearing bulletproof vests while men holding guns stood above them. Others were heard chanting: 'Let us in! Let us in!' from outside.
The protests came as the second time in as many weeks that conservative state demonstrators have stormed the Capitol.
Despite the fallout, Whitmer doubled down on her stay-at-home orders – which include some of the most strict measures in the nation – and downplayed any unrest, calling the demonstrators a ‘small group’ and praising the vast majority of residents for ‘doing the right thing’ by staying at home.
Hundreds of protesters - many waving pro-Trump banners while others carried assault rifles - descended on the state capitol to oppose the shutdown, which is currently in place till May 15
Protestor with a sign that has Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whittmer depicted as Adolph Hitler is seen at an American Patriot Rally
The democratic governor reiterated several times to CNN the importance of heeding experts and epidemiologists’ advice to guide her state’s response to the on-going novel coronavirus pandemic, rather than partisan rhetoric.
‘When you think about the fact that this is a state of almost 10 million people, the vast majority are doing the right thing,’ Whitmer said, crediting the effort as the reason the curve in the spread of the coronavirus has continued to flatten in Michigan.
‘We’ve saved lives in the process. We have to keep listening to the epidemiologists and experts and not listen to the partisan rhetoric, or these political rallies or tweets, for that matter. We have to keep doing the right thing.’
The United States recorded its deadliest 24 hours on Thursday, the day of the protest, after more than 2,900 people died from coronavirus.
So far, that number is the highest daily COVID-19 death toll that the US has seen since the pandemic hit America.
Michigan, meanwhile, has the highest coronavirus fatality rate in the United States at 9.3 percent, as deaths increased by 232 across Saturday, bringing state-wide deaths up to 4,021.
“We owe it to every woman who has a story to, to listen to that story and then vet that story… I don’t believe that it’s consistent with the Joe Biden I know and I do believe Joe Biden,” Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer reacts to Tara Reade's allegation against Biden. #CNNSOTU pic.twitter.com/5h0fvzgV4K— State of the Union (@CNNSotu) May 3, 2020
‘Whether you agree with me or not, I'm working to protect your life if you live in the state of Michigan,’ Whitmer continued. ‘We're going to listen to facts and science because we've got to get this right.’
Whitmer also added her support to Biden Sunday, arguing not 'every claim is equal' in relation to accusations the presumptive Democratic nominee sexually assaulted former Senate staffer Tara Reade in 1993. She told CNN: 'We need to give people an opportunity to tell their story. But then we have a duty to vet it. And just because you're a survivor doesn't mean that every claim is equal.'
Whitmer continued: 'I have read a lot about this current allegation. I know Joe Biden, and I have watched his defense. And there's not a pattern that goes into this.
'And I think that, for these reasons, I'm very comfortable that Joe Biden is who he says he is…. And I will tell you this. I don't believe that it's consistent with the Joe Biden that I know. And I do believe Joe, and I support Joe Biden.'
