When then-candidate Joe Biden said he was looking for a female running mate to join the ticket, Michigan Democrat Gov. Gretchen Whitmer eyed the perfect opportunity to raise her national profile. Whitmer began passing some of the most restrictive and punishing lockdown measures the country has ever seen.
The lockdowns may not have accomplished what Whitmer had hoped -- it turns out Biden preferred a "woman of color" -- but they did help land Michigan in the number one spot among all 50 states in the category of job losses. Why that's just the kind of leadership we could have used at the White House!
According to numbers from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, as noted by Michigan Rising Action, the Wolverine State led the nation with 64,400 lost jobs in the month of December and currently has the 11th highest unemployment rate in the country. Michigan's unemployment now sits at 7.5 percent, up from the 6.1 percent measured in October.
The report also cites data showing the governor's restrictions forced 32 percent of businesses in Michigan to close down, at least on a temporary basis. It's the highest rate of closures out of all 50 states. Winning!
Whitmer indeed elevated her national profile with ridiculous prohibitions on things like garden seeds, paint, carpet, and potted plants. The governor also banned people from activities such as fishing and worshiping in church while allowing places like liquor stores and weed shops to remain open. At the time, Tucker Carlson noted the activities deemed "essential" by Gov. Whitmer seemed to be activities that brought the state revenue. Trust the science!
And as is routine with all Democrats leading the lockdowns, Whitmer defied her own restrictions to partake in left-wing protests.
Joe Biden recently nominated Whitmer to be the ranking member on the Democratic National Committee, a move many fear will only exacerbate the governor's partisan politics. While the governor's national ambitions might one day offer Michigan a reprieve from Whitmer's failed policies, her ambitions don't bode well for the future of the country.