New questions surround Whitmer’s trip to Florida to visit her sick father

The governor traveled out-of-state three times, spokesman says

DETROIT – More questions and controversy surrounds Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s trip to Florida to visit her sick father in March.

Deadline Detroit reported Whitmer took a private plane to Florida to visit her father.

The Governor’s Office has been scant with the details regarding her trip to Florida, which came weeks before she told Michiganders not to travel to Florida. The office cited concerns over the Governor’s safety after multiple people have been indicted and charged in a domestic terrorism plot to kidnap or kill Whitmer.

The Governor’s Office reiterated Thursday that Whitmer “has complied with the public health protocols throughout the pandemic and has been open about visiting her elderly father, which was not at the expense of taxpayers and was at a time when Michigan had some of the lowest COVID numbers in the nation.”

Local 4 did a search of flight records from early to mid-March from Lansing to Palm Beach and found the flight data of a Gulfstream 280 twin-engine jet.

The private jet left the Coleman A. Young International Airport at 6:20 a.m., March 12 and landed in Lansing before flying to Palm Beach. On March 15, the jet did the reverse trip -- Palm Beach, Capital Region International Airport in Lansing and back to Detroit.

If Whitmer rode in this jet -- which is owned by a Metro Detroit businessman -- the trip would have been longer than she let on.

It’s unknown if this is how Whitmer flew to Florida.

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About the Author:

Rod Meloni is an Emmy Award-winning Business Editor on Local 4 News and a Certified Financial Planner™ Professional.