Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer compared the battle against the coronavirus pandemic to the sacrifice needed during World War II in the 1940s.
"President Trump called this a war, and it is exactly that, so let's act like it," Whitmer, a Democrat, said during a televised address Monday evening. "In World War II, there weren't people lining up at the Capitol to protest the fact that they had to drop everything they were doing and build planes or tanks or to ration food."
About 150 demonstrators last Wednesday stood on the Capitol grounds protesting Whitmer's strict stay-at-home order.
"They rolled up their sleeves, and they got to work," the governor continued. "We were all in this together, and it wasn't indefinite. It was until we'd beaten the enemy. No state shined more in those days than the state of Michigan. We are called to act again. It is our time to shine, to put aside our political differences, to come together and defeat our common enemy.
"To all the people who disagree with the actions that I've taken, or who feel their rights are being infringed, I want to say this: We are taking a limited action for a limited amount of time to save people's lives," the governor continued.
"Who among us wants to be that person who unwittingly brings this virus into their household? Who in this great state actually believes that they care more about jet skiing than saving the lives of the elderly or the vulnerable? This action isn't about our individual right to gather; it's about our parents' right to live."
Michigan cases increased by 576 to 32,000 on Tuesday, while deaths rose by 77 to 2,648.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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