You’ve been told to “get over” the lockdowns and shutdowns of the pandemic. To put aside the anger and hurt feelings about your child’s lost education, the shuttering of your business, or grandma dying alone in her nursing home bed.
Well, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer never got the memo.
MIRS reports that the Michigan Supreme Court just upheld a $7,500 fine for Marlena’s Bistro. The Bistro’s crime was defying shutdown orders from Queen Whitmer, who deemed gyms and restaurants dangerous, but dispensaries and liquor stores essential.
Whitmer’s threats and actions weren’t limited to the cops, either.
She also used, and uses, the administrative agencies and courts to tie up the time and money of business owners.
Ian Murphy of Iron Pig Smokehose in Gaylord told us all about it:
Now that Republicans run the Michigan House, Speaker Matt Hall has vowed investigations into Whitmer’s handling of Covid, and the weaponization of state government.
As the owners of Marlena’s Bistro can tell you, these are not just historical concerns. It’s happening right here, right now, as we speak. The House Oversight Committee now has the perfect test of strength. Whitmer and the executive agencies continue to use the public’s time and dime to prosecute ancient grudges. What are the House Republicans doing to do about it?
It’s been five years since the pandemic. Whitmer could just drop the case. She could attribute her bite and bark to the fog of war and move on. That’s what someone would do if lockdowns and shutdowns had been about health. Whitmer’s actions show they weren’t.
Whitmer hasn’t moved on from the pandemic. You haven’t moved on from the pandemic. And you will not until there is truth and reconciliation on exactly what happened, exactly why, and why exactly it’s still happening.
Where is our after-action report? What have we learned about vanity and absolute power? Fear and overreach? You don’t move on from the biggest constitutional breach in Michigan history. Not until somebody says “sorry.”
Was Whitmer’s handling of Covid ever about the health of the 10 million people of Michigan, or was it about the ego and political needs of one woman? If we will ever get that answer, the time is now, and the oversight committee is how.
James David Dickson is host of the Enjoyer Podcast. Join him in conversation on X @downi75.
