{"id":1173892,"date":"2021-12-30T21:34:46","date_gmt":"2021-12-31T02:34:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1173892"},"modified":"2021-12-30T21:34:48","modified_gmt":"2021-12-31T02:34:48","slug":"michigan-democrat-gretchen-whitmers-top-5-coronavirus-rules-for-thee-not-for-me-moments-of-2021","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/michigan-democrat-gretchen-whitmers-top-5-coronavirus-rules-for-thee-not-for-me-moments-of-2021\/","title":{"rendered":"Michigan Democrat Gretchen Whitmer&#039;s Top 5 Coronavirus \u2018Rules for Thee, Not for Me\u2019 Moments of 2021"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">32<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fmichigan-democrat-gretchen-whitmers-top-5-coronavirus-rules-for-thee-not-for-me-moments-of-2021%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1173892&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p class=\"subheading\">Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) imposed some of the most aggressive coronavirus orders of any governor on her residents as cases began surging last year, but in 2021, the Democrat governor repeatedly failed to follow her own guidance.<\/p>\n<p>Whitmer\u2019s various transgressions, such as violating her own restaurant capacity mandate and traveling to Florida and then discouraging travel, occurred in the wake of a slew of stringent mandates she implemented in 2020 and 2021.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"D-ROS-B1\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"M-ROS-B1\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"gmxrevmore\" class=\"H\"><\/figure>\n<p>Whitmer\u2019s executive orders began in spring 2020, when she locked down her state almost entirely, shuttering&nbsp;<a class=\"x5l\" title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.michigan.gov\/whitmer\/0,9309,7-387-90499_90640-524028--,00.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">schools<\/a>&nbsp;and businesses and&nbsp;<a class=\"x5l\" title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.michigan.gov\/whitmer\/0,9309,7-387-90499_90705-522626--,00.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">prohibiting<\/a>&nbsp;people from leaving their homes except for \u201cnecessary\u201d reasons like exercising and grocery shopping.<\/p>\n<p>In June 2020, more than two months after her initial orders were implemented, she lifted some restrictions but slow-walked allowing businesses to open at full capacity. On top of closures and restrictions, Whitmer also&nbsp;<a class=\"x5l\" title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/content.govdelivery.com\/attachments\/MIEOG\/2020\/07\/10\/file_attachments\/1492866\/EO%202020-147%20Emerg%20order%20-%20Masks.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">issued<\/a>&nbsp;a strict mask mandate in July 2020, requiring everyone over the age of four to cover their faces when inside public spaces or outside and unable to maintain distance from others.<\/p>\n<p>Not until June 2021, more than a full year after her initial orders, did Whitmer&nbsp;<a class=\"x5l\" title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.michigan.gov\/whitmer\/0,9309,7-387-90499_90640-562084--,00.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">rescind<\/a>&nbsp;her remaining capacity and mask mandates.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"M-ROS-B2\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<p>Meanwhile, polling in the first half of 2021 reflected increasingly negative perceptions of the governor. An EPIC-MRA poll conducted in February found Whitmer had \u201cslipped in terms of favorability,\u201d the&nbsp;<em>Detroit Free Press<\/em>&nbsp;<a class=\"x5l\" title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.freep.com\/story\/news\/politics\/elections\/2021\/03\/02\/whitmer-job-approval-favorability-polling-coronavirus\/6866890002\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">reported<\/a>. An MRG poll&nbsp;<a class=\"x5l\" title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mrgmi.com\/2021\/03\/23\/mrg-michigan-poll-state-of-the-state-of-public-opinion-4\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">conducted<\/a>&nbsp;in March found the same. A Detroit Regional Chamber poll&nbsp;<a class=\"x5l\" title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.detroitchamber.com\/covid19\/statewide-poll-reveals-opinions-on-political-landscape-covid-19-and-vaccination-perceptions-ongoing-labor-shortage-and-voting-rights\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">conducted<\/a>&nbsp;at the end of May showed nearly an eight-point drop in approval for Whitmer compared with its previous poll from February.<\/p>\n<p>The sacrifices Whitmer forced Michiganders to make did not result in her state controlling virus cases relative to other states. As coronavirus mandate fatigue seemingly took hold in early 2021, a&nbsp;<em>New York Times<\/em>&nbsp;headline&nbsp;<a class=\"x5l\" title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2021\/04\/10\/us\/coronavirus-michigan-gretchen-whitmer.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">read<\/a>, \u201cMichigan\u2019s Virus Cases Are Out of Control, Putting Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in a Bind.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>One side of the \u201cbind\u201d she faced came in the form of public pressure from protests, small businesses publicly bucking orders, and headlines continuously highlighting Whitmer\u2019s inability to follow her own rules.<\/p>\n<p>In May, the Republican National Committee&nbsp;<a class=\"x5l\" title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/gop.com\/research\/democrats-motto-rules-for-thee-but-not-for-me\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">featured<\/a>&nbsp;Whitmer at the top of its \u201crules for thee, but not for me\u201d report, listing out examples of Whitmer following the \u201cdo as I say, not as I do\u201d adage. In September, the conservative Michigan Freedom Fund&nbsp;<a class=\"x5l\" title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.michiganfreedomfund.com\/freedom_fund_releases_whitmers_rules_for_thee_but_not_for_me_playbook\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">released<\/a>&nbsp;a \u201c\u2018rules for thee, but not for me\u2019 playbook\u201d listing out \u201c20 brazen acts of hypocrisy\u201d from Whitmer. Another outspoken group highly critical of Whitmer, Michigan Rising Action,&nbsp;<a class=\"x5l\" title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/MIRisingAction\/status\/1475536841306779649?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">posted<\/a>&nbsp;a Twitter thread in December of \u201cWhitmer\u2019s most glaring instances\u201d of hypocrisy, contending that \u201cMichigan Democrats cemented themselves as the \u2018rules for thee, not for me\u2019 party this year.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Five such moments prompting backlash against Whitmer that relate to coronavirus are below.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"M-ROS-B3\" class=\"a8d adSo\"><\/figure>\n<p><strong>1. Attending President Joe Biden\u2019s inauguration<\/strong>&nbsp;\u2014 Whitmer, who served on Biden\u2019s presidential inaugural committee, left her state and attended the January 20 event in Washington, DC, with roughly 2,000 other people, as first&nbsp;<a class=\"x5l\" title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/coronavirus\/dem-govs-flout-own-covid-restrictions-to-attend-biden-inauguration\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">reported<\/a>&nbsp;by the Washington Free Beacon. The event did not align with Whitmer\u2019s&nbsp;<a class=\"x5l\" title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.michigan.gov\/coronavirus\/0,9753,7-406-98178_98455-549437--,00.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">orders<\/a>&nbsp;she had in place in her own state in which she prohibited average Americans from attending outdoor events with more than 25 people, regardless of distancing or masking. Whitmer responded to the criticism by saying, \u201cI have been following the same directives I\u2019ve asked everyone else to. I can\u2019t stand those people that have one rule for others and a different one for themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">We\u2019re ready. <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/InaugurationDay?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#InaugurationDay<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/n4r9MH8p0j\">pic.twitter.com\/n4r9MH8p0j<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Gretchen Whitmer (@gretchenwhitmer) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/gretchenwhitmer\/status\/1351923229284294656?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">January 20, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<figure id=\"D-ROS-B2\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<p><strong>2. The Florida private jet scandal<\/strong>&nbsp;\u2014 An unvaccinated Whitmer quietly flew to Florida in early March and, less than one month later,&nbsp;<a class=\"x5l\" title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wvpe.org\/post\/whitmer-warns-against-spring-break-travel-florida\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">urged<\/a>&nbsp;spring breakers to avoid travel to Florida specifically. Whitmer eventually admitted to the trip in April, saying she left the state to tend to her father\u2019s health needs and that she worked as governor remotely while there. The mysterious trip, however, prompted a range of questions \u2014 many of which remain unaddressed \u2014 about the suspicious&nbsp;<a title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.breitbart.com\/politics\/2021\/05\/20\/florida-private-jet-scandal-threatens-gretchen-whitmers-political-future\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">source of funds<\/a>&nbsp;for the trip, the&nbsp;<a title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.breitbart.com\/politics\/2021\/05\/12\/gretchen-whitmer-claims-she-did-lot-cooking-cleaning-during-secret-florida-private-jet-trip\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">true necessity<\/a>&nbsp;of the visit, and the reason she continued working as governor, which may have conflicted with the Michigan Constitution.<\/p>\n<p><strong>3. Whitmer aides going on out-of-state vacations<\/strong>&nbsp;\u2014 In April, both Whitmer COO Tricia Foster and&nbsp;Department of Health and Human Services Director Elizabeth Hertel traveled out of state to&nbsp;<a title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.breitbart.com\/politics\/2021\/04\/09\/top-gretchen-whitmer-aide-takes-spring-break-trip-to-florida-ignoring-mi-govs-warning\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Florida<\/a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a class=\"x5l\" title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.freep.com\/story\/news\/politics\/2021\/04\/14\/whitmer-dhhs-director-not-fully-vaccinated-vacation\/7226632002\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Alabama<\/a>, respectively, in violation of their administration\u2019s guidance. While no hard travel ban was in place at the time, just before her Alabama trip, Hertel\u2019s department issued an advisory recommending Michiganders do not travel unless it was \u201cunavoidable\u201d and to not travel at all if they were not fully vaccinated. Hertel was not fully vaccinated at the time of her trip.<\/p>\n<p>Whitmer dismissed reports about the trips, calling them \u201cpartisan hit jobs.\u201d She said, \u201cThere have never been travel restrictions in Michigan. There just haven\u2019t been.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"M-ROS-B4\" class=\"a8d adSo\"><\/figure>\n<p><strong>4. Violating Michigan\u2019s restaurant capacity order<\/strong>&nbsp;\u2014 In a since-deleted Facebook photo first&nbsp;<a title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.breitbart.com\/politics\/2021\/05\/23\/exclusive-photo-gretchen-whitmer-violates-own-coronavirus-orders-at-dive-bar\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">obtained<\/a>&nbsp;by Breitbart News, Whitmer was seen smiling with 12 other people, including Foster, at a table at the Landshark bar in East Lansing in May. At that time, Whitmer had&nbsp;<a title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.breitbart.com\/politics\/2021\/05\/23\/exclusive-photo-gretchen-whitmer-violates-own-coronavirus-orders-at-dive-bar\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">limited<\/a>&nbsp;food service establishments to a maximum of six people per table. The photo was shared by a multitude of media outlets, forcing Whitmer to issue a response in which she apologized for the violation.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_16612994\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/media.breitbart.com\/media\/2021\/05\/full-photo-2.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-16612994 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/full-photo-2-1024x576-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">(Facebook)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u201cBecause we were all vaccinated, we didn\u2019t stop to think about it,\u201d Whitmer&nbsp;<a class=\"x5l\" title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/nation\/2021\/05\/24\/michigan-gretchen-whitmer-social-distance\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">said<\/a>. \u201cIn retrospect, I should have thought about it. I am human. I made a mistake, and I apologize.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>5. Bucking the mask mandate at a bar in D.C.<\/strong>&nbsp;\u2014 Whitmer&nbsp;<a title=\"This external link will open in a new window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.breitbart.com\/politics\/2021\/10\/27\/michigan-gov-gretchen-whitmer-bucks-mask-mandate-at-d-c-bar-before-skipping-campaign-event-for-mcauliffe\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">flew<\/a>&nbsp;to D.C. at the end of October to meet with \u201ckey-decision makers\u201d about \u201cMichigan priorities\u201d and had also planned to door-knock for Virginia Democrat gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe while there. After Whitmer canceled her McAuliffe plans last minute, however, a photo surfaced of Whitmer mingling maskless the night before the canceled event at the posh Vue bar, in violation of Mayor Muriel Bowser\u2019s (D) mask mandate.<\/p>\n<p>The Beacon, which first reported on the photos, reported that Whitmer was not actively eating or drinking while maskless and that \u201cseveral individuals standing near the governor were wearing masks.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">latest:<\/p>\n<p>before bailing on a campaign event for <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TerryMcAuliffe?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@TerryMcAuliffe<\/a> on Saturday, <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/gretchenwhitmer?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@gretchenwhitmer<\/a> was spotted maskless at a swanky bar in D.C. Friday night, as seen in photos sent to the Free Beacon<a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/odgm1JqRMM\">https:\/\/t.co\/odgm1JqRMM<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Alex Nester (@alexmnester) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/alexmnester\/status\/1452750402869473288?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">October 25, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><em>Write to Ashley Oliver at <a href=\"mailto:aoliver@breitbart.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">aoliver@breitbart.com<\/a>. Follow her on Twitter at <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/asholiver\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">@asholiver<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) imposed some of the most aggressive coronavirus orders of any governor on her residents as cases began surging last year, but in 2021, the Democrat &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":49,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1173892","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1173892","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/49"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1173892"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1173892\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1173892"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1173892"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1173892"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}