Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s recent warning that she could shut down auto factories in Michigan once again if residents don’t obey her order to wear masks is drawing criticism from an Upper Peninsula businessman. Erik Kiilunen is the leader of the All Business is Essential campaign. He told Michigan News Network this week shutting down the plants would have devastating consequences.
“She shuts down the automotive industry, that’ going to cripple the state of Michigan,” Kiilunen. “You think about how much money the state has lost by the automotive going down. It’s insane, three or four billion probably. Where are you going to make up those revenues? And then she’s petitioning the federal government for aid, and that’s just trying to steal it from a state that has money.”
Kiilunen says the businesses in the Upper Peninsula are operating relatively unimpeded at this point. He adds the governor should avoid taking further measures to that would harm the state economy.
