Michigan Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer visited the White House on Wednesday (9) with a bipartisan delegation to discuss a list of issues that affect her state, including a recent ice storm, financing for a air guard base and tariffs.
She came out with a new problem: Donald Trump’s praise.
The president took Whitmer off guard during comments at the Oval Hall, as she was at the bottom of the room while he briefly praised her.
“We are honored to have Gretchen Whitmer from Michigan, great state of Michigan, and she has been, she really did a great job, very good person,” said Trump.
Whitmer was “surprised” that he was taken to the oval hall “without any notice of the matter,” while Trump signed executive orders in front of the press, according to a governor’s spokesman.
The White House meeting, four years after Trump criticized and calling her “The Woman in Michigan”, happens when Whitmer tries to travel a fine line between the demands of being a key to a key to presidential candidate in 2028.
Democrats are facing increasing pressure and anger from voters who require stronger leadership and a more aggressive stance against the Trump administration.
Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer received requests last month to resign after helping to approve a republican financing bill, while young progressives have criticized democrats who say they are not meeting the political moment.
Whitmer herself faced strong online Democrats criticism for being in the oval hall while Trump signed executive orders.
Whitmer’s spokeswoman said her presence in the oval hall was not an endorsement of anything Trump did or said during the event.
At the same time, Whitmer’s evasion from the “resistance” label reflects the political realities of his state, which Trump won in 2016 and 2024.
Michigan Democrats are now expected to work with Republicans, who won the House of Representatives in November.
Whitmer was accompanied to the White House by the President of the Republican Chamber of his state, Matt Hall.
Whitmer’s spokesman added that the governor considered the Trump government’s decision on Wednesday to give a 90-day break over most of the recently announced tariffs as a “one-way step,” although her office is still “concerned about the tariffs that will harm American car companies.”
Whitmer has talked about the balance she had to have in politics since last year’s election, emphasizing that she doesn’t see herself as a resistance leader.
“I shared with some of my colleagues from some of the very democratic states that my situation here in Michigan is very different from theirs. I have a chamber of republican representatives now to work,” she told Associated Press in January. “I have to make sure I can deliver and work with people from the federal government, so I don’t see myself as the opposition leader as some could.”
This act of balance has been more complicated when it comes to tariffs, particularly those that affect cars and parts.
While car manufacturers in their state are against tariffs, many union members are not against tariffs in general.
Democrats attacked the rates Trump announced this week, before their surprise decision to pause most of them for 90 days, but Whitmer was among members of his party who offered more moderate criticism.
“I understand the motivation behind the tariffs, and I can tell you here is where President Trump and I agree: We need to do more things in America, more cars and ships, more steel and ships,” said Whitmer in Washington, DC, Wednesday morning. “We need fair trade.”
During a speech and conversation by the fireplace with journalist Gretchen Carlson, Whitmer said it is not against tariffs directly, but that they should be used as a tool. She also asked for a bipartisan approach to “inaugurate, as President Trump says, the golden age of American manufacturing.”
In her observations, Whitmer also recognized the challenging political environment in which she and other democrats meet. Asked how she would respond to Democrats who have not believed in her bipartisanship appeals, Whitmer said she felt that she had a “duty, and a hope, to try to do things.”
“At this time, it seems that no action comes without criticism of one kingdom or another,” said Whitmer on Wednesday morning (9). “I could protest in the Capitol’s front garden for four weeks in a row and some people would say I had not gone far enough. Just accept the fact that there will always be a critic.”
This content was originally published on a democratic governor’s visit to the Oval Hall highlights Balance with Trump on CNN Brazil.
Source: CNN Brasil
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