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Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, the Michigan Democrat who blamed travelers for new COVID-19 variants in her state, secretly visited Florida.
MIRS News broke the story Monday, just one day after Whitmer, who has been one of the most pro-lockdown governors, warned citizens not to travel out of state.
“This is the time of year that snowbirds come home from Florida, where people are going on spring break, and all of these things can contribute to spread,” Whitmer told NBC News’ “Meet the Press” over the weekend.
The state’s Republican Party immediately slammed Whitmer for the “blatant display of hypocrisy” and an “insult to every single Michigander impacted by her lockdown orders and travel warnings.”
“Not only did Whitmer and her top staffers vacation to Florida, but they tried to keep it secret because for Whitmer, it’s—rules for thee, but not for me,” Ted Goodman, the party’s communications director told Fox 2 Detroit.
Whitmer’s spokesperson, Tiffany Brown, said the trip was personal and not at the expense of taxpayers.
The governor visited her father who is fighting a chronic illness, she said, noting Whitmer is tested regularly for the virus and her father is vaccinated.
“The governor did not go on spring break, and she has not left the state in over a month,” Brown said in a statement. “In the past six months she has left the state three times, once for the inauguration, once to assist her elderly father who is battling chronic illness, and once to visit Michigan’s National Guard troops.”
The news comes after the governor defended two of her top advisers visiting Alabama and Florida for spring break. Just days before, Whitmer called on everyone in her state to forego travel to Florid due to COVID-19 variants.
Caleb Parke is a senior correspondent for the ‘Todd Starnes Show.’ Follow him on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and connect with him at calebparke.com.