LANSING, Mich. — Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer has had her emergency orders implemented, stripped away, and now possibly returned. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) released an emergency order Monday that reinstates a good portion of Gov. Whitmer’s original COVID-19 precautions. The MDHHS order comes after the Michigan Supreme Court ruled that Gov. Whitmer didn’t have the authority to continue to extend emergency orders.
Gov. Whitmer says there is a 21-day holding period that comes after the court’s decision, which makes her orders stand. But Michigan House Speaker Lee Chatfield argues that’s not true.
Amidst all the confusion, the State Senate will now meet for a session Thursday. Chatfield says the Republicans in the legislature are ready to work with Gov. Whitmer.
Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey says that he won’t support a statewide mask mandate though. Chatfield says both sides need to work together, as Thursday’s session looms.
“This should be a message to the Governor, we have to cooperate," Chatfield said. "This should be a message to the Governor, we have to negotiate.”
Gov. Whitmer appeared on CNN Tuesday night with host Wolf Blitzer. She says she’s frustrated that the mask debate has become politicized, and blamed President Donald Trump for it.
“I mean from day one, from the beginning, when [the Trump administration} started politicizing masking, they’ve undermined our efforts all across this country," Whitmer suggested. "We see that being emulated by Republicans on our local level as well. On the very day that the President was admitted to the hospital for succumbing to COVID-19, our Supreme Court voted on a party-line vote to undermine the executive orders that I’ve been issuing.”
Gov. Whitmer says more safety guidelines will be added by the MDHHS throughout the month.
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