As Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s (D) emergency declaration hurtles toward its expiration Thursday at midnight, Republicans are so far refusing to play ball as the governor seeks to extend it.
Bristling under what they say is Whitmer’s executive overreach and desiring to reopen local businesses, they spent a nine-hour session on Wednesday declining to take up the emergency extension.
For Whitmer’s part, she doesn’t think she legally needs the legislative Republicans’ approval, maintaining that the state is under an enduring state of emergency.
Just before her Wednesday press conference, she threw down the gauntlet and forwarded an email exchange, obtained by TPM, that her staff was having with the Senate Majority Leader to local news outlets.
During the conversation, Senator Mike Shirkey’s chief of staff (R) proposed a trade.
“The following is what we propose: two one-week extensions in exchange for a public agreement that all future stay-at-home-type orders (and only those) be enacted through bipartisan legislation and the democratic process rather than executive order,” wrote chief of staff Jeremy Hendges.
Whitmer’s staff replied with a message from the governor.
“While I welcome partnership, information sharing and robust discussion with the legislature, I cannot abrogate my duty to act in an emergency to protect the lives of Michiganders,” it read. “We are in the midst of a global pandemic that has already killed 3,670 people and COVID 19 numbers continue to climb in parts of our state. Michigan remains in a state of emergency regardless of the actions you decide to take or not take.”
A spokesperson for Shirley said that he was “very disappointed” about the governor’s decision to make the emails public. “If there was any interest in his caucus working with the governor, it has evaporated,” spokeswoman Amber McCann told Michigan Live.
At her press conference, Whitmer was unabashed.
“The Republicans in the legislature want to negotiate opening up sectors of the economy,” she said. “They are acting as though we are in the midst of a political problem.”
“I don’t know of any other legislature in the country that has just decided to declare that the global pandemic that killed 103 Michiganders since yesterday is over,” she added. “It is not over. We remain in a state of emergency until the order is rescinded, and I do not have any intention of rescinding that right now.”
The legislature is in session Thursday, though it is unclear if the negotiations are still viable.
A spokesman for House Speaker Lee Chatfield (R) took an optimistic tone in a statement to TPM.
“The House is still willing to work with the governor and negotiate for common-sense changes to help families who are struggling during this pandemic,” said spokesman Gideon D’Assandro, though he also qualified Whitmer’s executive orders as “unfair” and “outliers” in the national landscape.
Chatfield has also previously indicated that the legislature would consider legal action if Whitmer continues to act without the lawmakers’ approval.
Part of the issue causing confusion and possible court action is that there are two conflicting state laws that the governor and the legislative Republicans are respectively citing as evidence of their authority.
One, the “Emergency Powers of Governor” enacted in 1945, imbues the governor with broad powers after declaring a state of emergency. It has no time limit, but grants Whitmer such powers in “times of great public crisis, disaster, rioting, catastrophe, or similar public emergency within the state, or reasonable apprehension of immediate danger of a public emergency of that kind, when public safety is imperiled.” Senate Republicans voted to repeal it last week in a purely symbolic move.
The legislature is instead citing the “Emergency Management Act” of 1976 to make its case. It also grants the governor wide powers, but adds the caveat that the state of emergency can only last 28 days. After that, the governor must get legislative approval for an extension.
Meanwhile, the governor’s stay-at-home order doesn’t expire until May 15, possibly giving Republicans fodder to argue that the order is invalid without a legislatively-extended state of emergency.
Protesters, siding with the Republicans, gathered outside the state capitol Thursday afternoon calling for “freedom” from Whitmer’s stay-at-home order. Some of them temporarily entered the building. In a picture taken by Sen. Dayna Polehanki (D), a few men could be seen holding guns. The protesters had been removed from the building and the lawn a few hours after the protests surrounding the capitol began, the Clerk of the House’s office told TPM.
So far, there have been 40,399 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the state. At least 3,670 people have died.
“This is not a political problem, it’s a public health crisis,” said Whitmer Wednesday. “We’ve already lost over 3,700 Michiganders — that’s more than we lost in Vietnam.”
This story has been updated with the email exchange between staff of Gov. Whitmer and the Senate Majority Leader, as well as details from the protest at the capitol.
Yep, same crap the Wisconsin GOP legislature pulled when a Democratic governor was elected. All the powers granted to a GOP gov were withdrawn and legislated out.
The people in Michigan aren’t gonna stand for this anymore than we did/are in WI. The GOP is in big trouble in Michigan. That’s two States down from their column.
I guess we shouldn’t be surprised that Republicans are trying to turn this into a political argument…they hope that during the election they can fire up their base because of Democrats who have “shown they want to control you through the government!!!”. They are ignoring that most people don’t think opening up is a good idea until it is safe, and it’s not safe right now for the majority of things…we need to stay isolated as long as we can to let the virus die out.
Their strategy is likely to get more people killed…forcing people out to work in the middle of a pandemic will mean more sick and dead people, more overwhelmed hospitals, and even more fear and economic devastation. That seems like a far worse platform to run on in November…if it wasn’t for al the suffering that will happen I’d be glad watching them commit political suicide.
And I hope every Dem candidate runs on a platform of, The GOP tried valiantly to kill you on PARTISAN grounds.
Has anyone asked the Republican led legislature and protesters how many deaths will it take for them to take this seriously? Or maybe Whitmer could have her AG Nessel’s staff draw up a legally binding document that anyone who refuses it abide by the Emergency Action can not receive a ventilator or other support care if they choose to ignore.
“If there was any interest in his caucus working with the governor, it has evaporated,”
Narrator: There was never any such interest.
The Emergency Powers of the Governor Act states “It is hereby declared to be the legislative intent to invest the governor with sufficiently broad power of action in the exercise of the police power of the state to provide adequate control over persons and conditions during such periods of impending or actual public crisis or disaster. The provisions of this act shall be broadly construed to effectuate this purpose.”
This law authorizes Whitmer to do everything necessary. The GOP is trying to use the other law to force her into an error. It is not going to happen. They do not have a good negotiating position, which is why they summoned the pot-bellied gun wavers.