Gretchen Whitmer Lockdown Closed 32% of Michigan Businesses

The ongoing coronavirus lockdowns and restrictions ordered by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) have shuttered 32 percent of Michigan businesses at least temporarily this year.

Michigan was second only to Puerto Rico in the United States for closures, a territory that was hit by a 2017 hurricane and relies heavily on tourism.

Nationally, 19 percent of businesses were impacted by government-mandated lockdowns, the Center Square reported.

Pennsylvania trailed the Great Lakes State with 30 percent, followed by Washington at 27 percent. Vermont, Hawaii and New York each had 26 percent of businesses close during the pandemic.

Each of those states, along with Michigan, are led by Democrat governors.

Conversely, Republican-led states — South Dakota, Arkansas, North Dakota, Utah, Wyoming, and Nebraska — saw less than 10 percent of businesses close.

Michigan is in the midst of an extended “pause,” which is scheduled to expire Sunday. The “pause” resulted in a regression of freedoms in the state and closed in-person dining, classroom learning for high schoolers, and several entertainment establishments, such as bowling alleys and areas, close.

Many believe that will be extended yet again.

Meanwhile, the Michigan Restaurant & Lodging Association (MRLA) said 5,600 restaurant operators predict they will not be in business in six months if the lockdown continues.

Forty-eight percent said they are considering temporarily closing their restaurant until the pandemic passes. Many have attempted to stay afloat by offering takeout service.

Additionally, 52 percent of hotel owners said they are in danger of foreclosure. Sixty-three percent said less than half of their employees are working full time.

“The data is settled,” Justin Winslow, President & CEO of the MRLA, said in a release:

It is fundamentally clear that the pandemic is decimating the hospitality industry in this state to a degree never seen or even imagined. While it will take several years and a stable economy to reclaim the size, impact and opportunities produced by this industry, we have not yet reached the bottom.

Whitmer extended her three-week “pause” over fears of a so-called Thanksgiving surge, after politicians ordered Americans to stay away from their families during the holiday.

That “surge” never materialized as the “experts” predicted, WWMT reported.

Kyle Olson is a reporter for Breitbart News. He is also host of “The Kyle Olson Show,” syndicated on Michigan radio stations on Saturdays–download full podcast episodes. Follow him on Parler.