FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
News from Progress Michigan
February 1, 2021
Contact: Sam Inglot, 616-916-0574, sam@progressmichigan.org
Shirkey Tied to Funding Effort of Shady “Unlock Michigan” Effort
Michigan! My Michigan! A non-profit tied to Shirkey, donated $500K to petition group
MICHIGAN — Campaign finance reports show a non-profit with ties to Republican Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey funded a right-wing petition drive seeking to undermine public health measures that have saved thousands of lives by preventing the spread of COVID-19.
“Unlock Michigan” made headlines when the effort was caught using illegal signature gathering techniques and one of the co-chairs of the effort, Garrett Soldano, pushed a faux cure for COVID-19.
“Mike Shirkey has spent the past year openly antagonizing Gov. Whitmer and working to undermine her common-sense public health policies, so it’s no surprise that he supports the goals of ‘Unlock Michigan,’” said Lonnie Scott, Executive Director of Progress Michigan. “But these reports show just how far Shirkey will go in his efforts to hamstring Gov. Whitmer’s efforts to keep Michiganders safe, all while disingenuously claiming she’s the one who refuses to work together. This is just one more reminder that ‘Shady Shirkey’ cares far more about the interests of corporate donors than the actual human lives at stake right now.”
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