Tudor Dixon doubles down on jokes comparing Whitmer kidnapping plot to lockdown policies

On Friday, Michigan Gubernatorial candidate Tudor Dixon has come under fire for a comment she made while addressing the crowd at her rally in Troy.

Tudor Dixon, who is the Republican Party’s pick to run the state of Michigan, appeared to poke fun at her opponent Gretchen Whitmer (D-MI) for being a target for kidnappers. Several men were apprehended in 2020, at the height of Covid restrictions, for plotting to kidnap Whitmer and potentially do harm to her.

Dixon appeared to compare the kidnapping for Whitmer to her lockdown policies, which she said harmed many businesses in Michigan.

“The sad thing is that Gretchen will tie your hands, put a gun to your head and ask if you’re ready to talk. For someone so worried about being kidnapped, Gretchen Whitmer sure is good at taking business hostage and holding it for ransom,” Dixon said, the HuffPost reports.

Dixon then went on to talk about Whitmer’s meeting with President Biden at the Detroit car show. Dixon referenced a moment where Biden’s hand touched Whitmer’s.

“The look on her face was like, ‘Oh, my gosh, this is happening. I’d rather be kidnapped by the FBI,’” Dixon said.

Dixon also repeated her statement for a crowd in Detroit.

“Earlier today I said, ‘You know, Gretchen Whitmer, since she’s so worried about kidnapping, she shouldn’t have held our businesses hostage.’ And they were like, ‘She made this joke about kidnapping,’” Dixon said. “And I’m like, no, that wasn’t a joke. If you were afraid of that, you should know what it is to have your life ripped away from you.”

Democrats have pounced on her comments, with Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel describing her remarks as “repugnant.”

“Anyone who would make light of such an effort is not fit to hold public office at any level,” Nessel wrote in a tweet.

Whitmer’s campaign responded with a statement emphasizing that the threat of violence against anyone is not acceptable.

“Threats of violence ― whether to Governor Whitmer or to candidates and elected officials on the other side of the aisle ― are no laughing matter, and the fact that Tudor Dixon thinks it’s a joke shows that she is absolutely unfit to serve in public office,” the statement said.