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Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer responded being called a witch by Michigan GOP Chairman Ron Weiser, calling the comments "dangerous" and saying people need to "bring down the heat."
"It's just really a sad moment in America where people who are leading are treated with such disrespect in this dangerous moment where we've seen threats come to those of use in office and a plot to kidnap and kill me,"she told CNN. "We're seeing people in court this week on those charges. And they're continuing to throw gas on this fire. And it is dangerous, it's unacceptable and I've been, for almost a year now, calling on people to bring down the heat."
Weiser had called Whitmer, the state's Secretary of State, Jocelyn Benson, and state Attorney General Dana Nessel the "three witches" at a political event at the North Oakland Republic Club on Thursday.
He said local republican candidates should make sure "they are ready for the burning at the stake" in future elections.
He later apologized.
"In an increasingly vitriolic political environment, we should all do better to treat each other with respect, myself included," Weiser said in a statement. "I fell short of that the other night."