Trump tweet supports protest at Minnesota governor’s home
Published 12:36 pm Friday, April 17, 2020
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MINNEAPOLIS — President Donald Trump has tweeted his support for a protest by conservatives Friday outside Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s official residence in St Paul.
The protest is being organized under the theme “Liberate Minnesota” by grassroots Trump supporters who oppose Walz’s stay-at-home order. It’s one of several taking part across the country this week as conservatives push back against economic hardships from restrictions meant to slow the COVID-19 pandemic.
“LIBERATE MINNESOTA!” Trump tweeted Friday morning. He also sent similar tweets about Michigan and Virginia, one day after giving the country’s governors a road map for recovering from the economic pain of the pandemic. The guidelines make clear that the return to normalcy will take far longer than Trump initially envisioned, and let governors call the shots.
Minnesota’s count of confirmed COVID-19 cases climbed above 2,000 on Friday, while 17 new fatalities from the coronavirus raised the state’s death toll to 111, the Minnesota Department of Health reported. The 159 new cases reported Friday lifted the state’s total to 2,071. As of Friday, 223 patients were hospitalized, or 10 more than Thursday, while 106 of them were in intensive care, an increase of three. But 1,066 patients have recovered and no longer need isolation.