Three years after COVID struck Michigan, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer now admits that many of her early lockdown rules, in retrospect, “don’t make a lot of sense.”
“We had to make some decisions, that in retrospect, don’t make a lot of sense,” Whitmer said in a CNN interview clip posted by the Twitter account @Breaking911.
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State Representative Brad Roae (R-PA-Meadville) this week proposed legislation to permit small businesses to continue operating during potential future states of emergency in Pennsylvania.
His bill, a version of a measure he sponsored in 2020, would permit small businesses to serve one customer at a time during such periods. The earlier legislation passed the House with nearly all Republicans and some Democrats in support but the Senate did not vote on it.
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Lt. Gov. Randy McNally (R-Oak Ridge) was grilled at a Tuesday evening meeting by a large conservative grassroots group in his district that wants the state senate speaker to call a special session to deal with Governor Bill Lee’s executive orders.
McNally said that “a special session is one of the options on the table” and that he wouldn’t rule it out.
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A bill prohibiting government-mandated emergency closures for worship services has been delayed once again, as the Tennessee General Assembly floor session on Monday. State Representative Chris Todd (R-Madison County) delivered the news on behalf of the sponsor, State Representative Rusty Grills (R-Newbern), requesting that the bill be placed on the next available calendar. No explanation was given for this delay.
As The Tennessee Star reported last week, Grills delayed the bill initially due to concerns from legislators opposed to prohibiting church closures. Two Democratic legislators, State Representatives London Lamar (D-Memphis) and Harold Love, Jr. (D-Nashville) expressed concerns that the bill constrained government authorities from stopping church gatherings during a pandemic or other emergencies.
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Gov. Gretchen Whitmer extended Michigan’s state of emergency order on Tuesday, pushing back its end date until October 27.
Whitmer originally declared a state of emergency in Michigan on March 10 in response to the coronavirus pandemic and has continuously extended it since then. She also extended four other executive orders that protect people in prison and long-term care facilities, those who are working in establishments that sell food, and those who are considered at-risk.
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Michigan legislature voted on Tuesday to approve an extension of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s emergency powers through the end of April.
The governor originally asked for a 70-day extension of emergency powers, but Michigan legislators said they felt that was too much.
“I agree that there needs to be an extension; we’re far from being out of the woods on this issue. But I believe 70 days looks too far forward considering the information we have now and how quickly that changes,” said Sen. Rick Outman (R-33-Six Lakes) in a statement. “The best thing to do for the immediate future is continue following suggested protocols and stay at home to keep you, your family and your community safe.”
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