Two of four men were acquitted Friday in a conspiracy to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in 2020, motivated by fury at the Democrat's tough COVID-19 restrictions early in the pandemic.
Atlas is a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, a conservative-leaning think tank based at the university. He's currently on leave while he works as an adviser to President Trump.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer issued a "three-week pause" to curb coronavirus cases in the state. A Trump administration official encouraged residents to "rise up" against the restrictions.
"I'll be honest, I never could have imagined anything like this," Gov. Gretchen Whitmer says. Over the summer, conspirators allegedly began training for a potential attack.
The state's Supreme Court said Gov. Gretchen Whitmer lacked the authority to extend a state of emergency past April 30. Whitmer had cited two state laws in extending her emergency declarations.
The legislators say the governor is acting illegally; Whitmer says she is protecting citizens from a global pandemic — and Michigan's attorney general agrees.