By Kaylee McGhee | May 21, 2020

Do Michigan Democrats want President Trump to win reelection?

Many Michiganders are already discontent with the state’s government due to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s heavy-handed, sweeping coronavirus response. Earlier today, for example, hundreds of protesters gathered in the Lansing Capitol lawn to protest Whitmer’s extended shelter-in-place order.

And now, state Attorney General Dana Nessel is threatening to bring charges against Ford, a vital manufacturer in the state, simply because Trump was seen touring one of its plants without a face mask.

“We’re going to have a very serious conversation with Ford in the event that they permitted the president” to go without a mask “in violation of Whitmer’s order requiring anyone who is medically able to wear a mask in an enclosed space," Nessel said. “They knew exactly what the order was, and if they permitted anyone, even the president, to defy that order, I think that has serious health consequences.”

Nessel’s argument is ridiculous. She suggested that Trump will directly infect auto workers at the Ford plant because he wasn’t covering his face, which would only be possible if Trump actually had COVID-19. Not only have Trump’s doctors denied rumors that Trump might have the virus, but common sense also makes it pretty clear that the president would not be out-and-about, traveling across the country if he were seriously ill. It is fair to say Trump should wear a mask in public as an example for the rest of the country. But to suggest that Trump might infect others with a virus that he does not have is silly.

Furthermore, Trump did actually wear a mask throughout the private parts of his tour. He only took it off when the cameras were rolling because he “didn’t want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it,” according to CNN. Again, it’s reasonable to criticize Trump for providing a poor example. But Nessel went far beyond that.

Nessel’s decision to scold (and potentially punish) Ford publicly will not sit well with Michigan’s auto workers, many of whom have sat at home furloughed for the past few months. (Granted, CNN's Wolf Blitzer deserves some of the blame for asking absurd leading questions.)

What’s more: The plant Trump visited in Ypsilanti has been working overtime over the past two months to produce breathing ventilators to battle the COVID-19 pandemic. Ford’s Ypsilanti plant did what it could to help its community, and now, one of the state’s top officials is taking to national television to belittle its efforts — all because plant workers didn’t stop the president from removing his mask.

Compare Nessel’s complaints to Trump’s remarks at the plant on Thursday, and it’s not difficult to understand why Trump flipped the state in 2016.

“One month ago, Ford had never built a single ventilator, and now, you’re a world leader,” the president said, adding that his administration would do whatever it could to help the auto industry get back on its feet and acknowledging the disproportionate effect the coronavirus has had on blue-collar workers and the black community.

The difference in tone between Trump and Nessel is striking, and I can’t help but wonder whether Michigan voters will keep it in mind come November.