News Bite

Whitmer’s Unilateral Governance Opposed By More Than Just Trump Supporters

About two dozen lawsuits filed against Michigan governor by a variety of interests

A story on the MLive news site surveyed some reactions to Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer not being selected as the 2020 Democratic Party candidate for vice president.

According to MLIVE, “Her leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic, which hit Michigan harder than most states in the outbreak’s early months, earned her national praise, attacks from Trump supporters and a Saturday Night Live parody.”

Singling out Trump supporters as the ones who have spoken out against the governor downplays the broad range of opposition to Whitmer’s unilateral exercise of extraordinary emergency powers for the past five months.

Roughly two dozen lawsuits have been filed against Whitmer and many of the 161 executive orders she has issued this year.

The businesses and groups that have sued the governor include an orchard farm market, a bowling center association, a real estate company, a property maintenance firm, an automotive glass company, an engine oil and auto parts business, a jewelry store, a dental office, a car wash association, the largest statewide conservation organization in the U.S., an association that represents fitness facilities, a barber and physicians that perform surgeries.

Michigan Capitol Confidential is the news source produced by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. Michigan Capitol Confidential reports with a free-market news perspective.

News Bite

State Offers Corporations $593,913 On Average To Create A Single Job

New Mackinac Center study questions the return from corporate handouts

The state of Michigan’s economic development programs have offered corporations and developers an average of $593,913 a year to create a single job.

That is among the findings of a new study from the Mackinac Center for Public Policy on the effectiveness of three large business subsidy programs operated by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation.

The study examined 1,890 subsidy offers going back to the 1980s, not all of which actually came to fruition. The Mackinac Center study used how much businesses were offered in place of how much money in subsidies were distributed because the MEDC will not release that information in some cases.

Michigan Capitol Confidential is the news source produced by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. Michigan Capitol Confidential reports with a free-market news perspective.

News Story

Did Michigan See 7,431 People Die In April, Or 13,011? Watch Those Revisions

For just COVID-19 the state initially reported 2,386 April deaths; revisions now indicate there were 3,232

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer claims in a legal brief now before the Michigan Supreme Court that COVID-19 killed more people in Michigan during the month of April than heart disease and cancer combined. A hearing in the case is scheduled for Sept. 2.

The claim is not accurate. It was based on figures published by a state website that supported Whitmer’s claim at that time. The site publishes the total deaths right at the start of each month, though the reported figure is considered preliminary. Experience has shown that the actual number may be much larger, which may not be known until months later.

Whitmer’s court brief apparently cited the May 5 version of this state website. The site then indicated there were 10,330 deaths in Michigan from all causes in April, including 2,366 linked to heart disease or cancer, and 2,386 linked to COVID-19.

But by August, the updated tally for April said Michigan had experienced 13,011 deaths from all causes, of which 3,277 were related to heart disease or cancer, and 3,232 were linked to COVID-19.

Michigan Capitol Confidential reported July 9 the total number of deaths in Michigan during June, citing the same state website Whitmer’s legal team mentioned in its Supreme Court brief. The website then reported a total of 7,107 deaths in June, but after updates, the data now indicates there were a total of 8,195 deaths in Michigan that month.

This state website does tell users that the number of reported deaths may change: “Deaths reported to the Michigan Vital Records office may be delayed by 7 days. Verifying the cause of death, and processing the records from adminstrative [sic] records may further delay the reports of deaths for statistical purposes.”

But the site does not inform users that the adjustments can be quite substantial. For example, the initial figure posted for all deaths in April underreported the actual number by 75%.

Specifically, on May 1, the website said 7,431 people had died in Michigan during April. Several months later, the number was revised to show 13,011, or an additional 5,580 people — 75% higher.

Currently, the Aug. 3 version of the state’s website indicates that in July, there were a total 3,198 deaths in Michigan from all causes, including 51 related to COVID-19. But a different state website shows there were 214 COVID-19 deaths here in July. These numbers are likely to be much higher when the site is updated again next month.

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the website, stated that they "publish the data that is available at the time – and note that there are delays in the information being reported to us."

Editor's note: This story was updated with a response from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.

Michigan Capitol Confidential is the news source produced by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. Michigan Capitol Confidential reports with a free-market news perspective.