‘These are very good people’: Trump urges Michigan governor to ‘make a deal’ with capitol protesters

US President Donald Trump has instructed Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer to “make a deal” with the protesters who have been demonstrating against her decision to prolong the state’s coronavirus lockdown measures.

While the atmosphere has been fraught in Michigan’s state capitol, President Trump suggested that the matter could be resolved quite easily in a tweet on Friday.

“The Governor of Michigan should give a little, and put out the fire. These are very good people, but they are angry,” he said. “They want their lives back again, safely! See them, talk to them, make a deal.”

It comes after crowds of protesters, some carrying weapons, attended the state capitol in Lansing on Thursday to voice their opposition to the state of emergency being prolonged. The measures have now provoked weeks of protests in Michigan. 

The demonstration in the capitol prompted a frantic reaction amongst Democrats and in the mainstream media, with many attempting to portray it as a white nationalist insurrection.

READ MORE: Democrats fume as armed protesters descend on Michigan Capitol to protest lockdown

Michigan’s state house and senate voted against extending the emergency order which was due to expire at midnight on Thursday. However, following those votes Governor Whitmer, a Democrat and a staunch Trump critic, signed three new executive orders, which she said were necessary in order to “continue fighting Covid-19 and save lives.”

The move sparked an outcry from lawmakers and residents with Rep. Lee Chatfield, speaker of the Michigan House, arguing that the governor had failed to uphold the democratic process.

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