DETROIT — Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed one of the most restrictive stay-at-home orders in the country late last week in hopes of containing the coronavirus outbreak in her state — one of the hardest hit.
The backlash has been immense.
Michiganders, many from the more conservative areas of the state, believe Whitmer's latest order went too far. They accused her of stripping them of their constitutional rights. Online, they pledged to protest, signed petitions calling for her recall and joined Facebook groups dedicated to having the order curtailed.
Whitmer's executive action extended her prior stay-at-home order through the end of April and toughened it up.
For at least until then, Michiganders won't be allowed to travel to in-state vacation residences. They are not permitted to use a motor boat. Business restrictions have been tightened, including that large stores must close areas "dedicated to carpeting, flooring, furniture, garden centers, plant nurseries, or paint," among other measures. Violators could be fined or charged with a misdemeanor, though the practicality of strict enforcement was unclear.
Whitmer spent much of her Monday news conference responding to the push back on the new measures. Prominent conservatives circulated a petition to have her recalled — one that generated more than 200,000 signatures — while more than 300,000 Facebook users joined a group titled "Michiganders Against Excessive Quarantine" in recent days.
"The reason we started this group wasn't that we were against the quarantine. We're not," the group's founder, Garrett Soldano, a chiropractor and former Western Michigan University football player, said in a Facebook Live on Monday. "We were against our very constitutional rights taken away from us."
Whitmer said her actions are centered on flattening Michigan's curve of infections. The new restrictions are aimed at curbing foot traffic in stores and preventing the outbreak — now focused around Detroit — from spreading quickly through the northern and more rural parts of the state, where the health system is not well equipped for a major outbreak.
Full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak
The governor said she understood how difficult the measures could make things for business owners and those who are struggling with shutting down much of their livelihood.
"There's nobody who'd rather be able to push a button and just return to life as normal," Whitmer, a Democrat, said. "But no button exists in this environment."
Multiple protests against the governor are scheduled, including one where critics plan to descend on the state Capitol in Lansing and cause a ruckus — from their cars.
That event, hosted by the Michigan Conservative Coalition and the Michigan Freedom Fund — a DeVos family-linked conservative group — is set for Wednesday. More than 3,000 Facebook users have pledged to attend. Organizers want people to create a traffic jam, honk horns and flash signs.
"People always say: 'Conservatives never protest because they are too busy working,'" the event page says. "Well, guess what. You're not working — so it's time to PROTEST."
Matthew Seely, a spokesman for the Michigan Conservative Coalition, said the event is intended to be "nonpartisan."
"We are asking people to become united on this one issue — all Michiganders to say we've gone too far," he said. "We're responsible adults and can be trusted to go out in public."
Whitmer said it's "OK to be frustrated" and "angry."
"I've got thick skin," she said. "And I'm always going to defend your right to free speech. So, I just ask that those who are protesting these orders do so in a safe manner so you don't get sick and you don't subject our first responders to risk, either."
