“Lives would have been saved” had Trump acknowledged reality earlier, Michigan governor says

Michigan Governor, Gretchen Whitmer called out President Trump for finally pledging an “orderly” transfer of power to President-elect Joe Biden on January 20, saying “it’s about damn time.”

“Had he done this earlier, lives would have been saved,” Whitmer told CNN’s Erin Burnett, a day after rioters stormed the US Capitol building. “Had they invested themselves in a peaceful transition and started working with the incoming administration, lives would have been saved.”

What do we know: Rioters on Wednesday breached the Capitol building and the Senate chamber, ransacked the offices of Pelosi and other Capitol offices, and a laptop was stolen from the office of Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley.

One woman was shot and killed by Capitol Police as the crowd breached the building and three others suffered medical emergencies that proved fatal.

“If he’d spent the energy that he has tried to use to sow doubt and violence and seeds of division toward addressing the pandemic, lives would have been saved,” Whitmer added.

“I’m glad he’s come to that conclusion finally. However, we paid an incredible price as a nation for his inability to see the facts and understand them and accept them. This is where we are.”