- Steve Gruber - https://www.stevegruber.com -

Michigan Undercover Agents Target Golf Courses Selling Beer To Golfers

Just when you think the stupidity cannot possibly get worse from Democrat Governors trying to enforce bizarre rules in the name of the pandemic, somebody says hold my beer. No, really.

The administration of Governor Gretchen ‘Big Gretch’ Whitmer in Michigan is using its fast dwindling economic resources to go after businesses that are not bowing to her ridiculous Coronavirus lockdown orders.

I guess she thinks putting them out of business will make her look good to the VP search committee.

Over the last few weeks Whitmer and her henchmen including Attorney General Dana Nessel have been going after anyone who dares to open up in defiance of her orders. Anyone who tries to save their business gets no mercy.

One of those is 77-year old barber Karl Manke [1] and she is openly trying to run him into bankruptcy after 59 years.  His is just one example of the overbearing attacks on business from the state government.

Now, with all the power of the state in hand, Michigan is running sting operations on Golf Course owners for illegally selling beer to golfers. Maybe the Governor has a terrible handicap and she just hates golf as a result. I mean for several weeks she had all Michigan courses shut down, even when most other states were allowing golf. When she finally did allow courses to open she banned golf carts. Anyone who has visited Northern Michigan knows many of those courses are just not walkable for the average player. It was just another ridiculous rule put up with no rhyme or reason.

Then came the topper; somewhere in one of her 102 Executive Orders to date concerning the Coronavirus, she banned the sale of beer to golfers. Now I am not much of a duffer but I do understand that beer and golf go together for millions of people. In fact, many would say beer is ‘essential’ to playing golf under any conditions.

Dave Mahaney who owns The Brookshire Inn in Williamston, Michigan has known that beer goes with golf for almost 35 years. This week Mahaney became the focus of an undercover sting operation by the Michigan Liquor Commission. It seems some anonymous tipster learned that Mahaney had been selling beer to golfers like he has for more than 3 decades- but now in violation of the Governors Executive Order and therefore he had to be stopped.

An undercover Liquor Commission agent appearing like a golfer came to the club and watched as golfers bought beer for a couple rounds. He then dropped his business card on the table and the bomb, he was citing Mahaney and fining him too for good measure.

Is this the new normal? Neighbors calling to turn in people they know because they’ve been told they should?

“It’s unbelievable she wants to put me out of business,” Mahaney exclaimed. “I have never gotten a liquor violation in almost 35 years, I always thought I was doing things right,” he added.

Now, with Whitmer looking to crush what little is left he’s not sure there will be enough in the cupboard come winter to stay open. “She has taken away my restaurant, my bar, my patio, weddings and wedding season, special events, charity events and now she is hitting me for selling beer to golfers. Honestly, there isn’t much left for her to take,” said Mahaney with a clear frustration in his voice.

At this point he isn’t sure The Brookshire can survive the winter. There may be too much lost revenue and not enough time left to rally.

The bigger problem he added is that Whitmer’s approach is so random that he has no idea if or when it will come to an end. By the time she does get around to allowing hair salons to cut hair and golfers to buy beer, it will already be far too late for far too many. In fact, hundreds of Michigan companies have already gone under.

Whitmer keeps saying, ‘it’s about science’ but what she really means is that it’s about political science.

It is time to end all lockdowns, period.