President Donald Trump on Friday night instructed Vice President Mike Pence not to call Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer regarding the federal government’s coronavirus relief efforts.
But the next morning, the vice president was on the phone with not only Whitmer but also another Michigan elected official: Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, who said the federal government and state of Michigan are now developing a strong working relationship.
“Based on the conversation I just had with the vice president, it sounds like they’re developing a good working relationship with the governor, and that’s what we need,” Duggan said at a Saturday, March 28 press conference at the state fairgrounds, according to video from WXYZ-TV.
Duggan said “a whole bunch of shipments” are now coming to help coronavirus relief efforts in Michigan, which has one of the highest numbers of infections of COVID-19 than any state in the country. Those shipments represent needed aid as the state grapples with hospitals filling up and the task of testing large numbers of residents, he said.
“To have the administration reach out in such a proactive way, to have the vice president so enthused about what we’re doing at this regional testing site and wanting to know how to help, it feels like we got help, and we got help from a lot of people,” Duggan said.
The shipments come after Trump granted Michigan’s request for a major disaster declaration Saturday morning. Whitmer wrote on her Twitter page early on Saturday afternoon that she had also spoken to Pence and said in a video that the state had already received a shipment of more than 112,000 N-95 masks from FEMA.
“This is good news in the midst of a lot of really tough stuff that’s going on,” Whitmer said.
The state-federal cooperation comes after days of back-and-forth between Whitmer and Trump over the federal government’s response to the coronavirus crisis.
Whitmer had criticized the planning for the pandemic done at the federal level as insufficient, leading Trump to in turn say that Whitmer was “not stepping up” in her own efforts.
But on Saturday, both state and local officials were touting the cooperation between Washington and Lansing.
In Detroit, a city the U.S. surgeon general this week labeled a “hot spot” for the coronavirus,” Duggan said that aid has come from numerous sources, including companies like Quicken Loans and DTE Energy.
But one of the hardest-hit cities in the country will also need plenty of help from the federal government, and Duggan said he’s confident that help will be coming now.
“People have been great, but at the end of the day the federal government has to drive the procurement process, and after the conversation I just had with the vice president I feel really good that they’re heading in that direction.”
CORONAVIRUS PREVENTION TIPS
In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus. Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible. Carry hand sanitizer with you, and use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home ( door handles, faucets, countertops ) and when you go into places like stores.
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