Gretchen Whitmer's unexpected Oval Office invite highlights balancing act with Trump
Democratic Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer visited the White House on Wednesday with a bipartisan delegation to discuss a laundry list of issues affecting her state, including a recent ice storm, funding for an Air National Guard Base and tariffs.
She left with a new problem: Donald Trump's praise.
The president caught Whitmer off-guard during remarks in the Oval Office, as she stood in the back of the room while he briefly lauded her.
'We're honored to have Gretchen Whitmer from Michigan, great state of Michigan, and she's been, she's really done an excellent job, very good person,' Trump said.
Whitmer was 'surprised' she was brought into the Oval Office 'without any notice of the subject matter' while Trump signed executive orders in front of the press, according to a spokesperson for the governor.
The White House encounter, four years after Trump lashed out and called her 'the woman in Michigan,' comes as Whitmer attempts to walk a fine line between the demands of being a swing state leader and a potential 2028 presidential candidate.
Democrats are facing increasing pressure, and anger, from base voters demanding stronger leadership and a more aggressive stance against the Trump administration. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer faced calls last month to step down after he helped pass a Republican funding bill, while a handful of young progressives have launched primary challenges against Democrats they say aren't meeting the political moment. Whitmer herself faced strong online criticism from Democrats for standing in the Oval Office while Trump signed executive orders.
The spokesperson for Whitmer said her presence in the Oval Office was not an endorsement of anything Trump did or said during the event.
At the same time, Whitmer's avoidance of the 'resistance' label reflects the political realities of her state, which Trump won in 2016 and 2024. Michigan Democrats, who enjoyed a trifecta for two years, must now work across the aisle with Republicans, who won the state House in November. Whitmer was accompanied to the White House by her state's Republican House Speaker Matt Hall.
Whitmer's spokesperson added that the governor viewed the Trump administration's decision Wednesday to issue a 90-day pause on most of the recently announced tariffs as 'a step in the right direction,' though her office is still 'concerned about tariffs that will hurt American auto companies.'
Whitmer has been vocal about the political tightrope she's had to walk since last year's election, stressing that she doesn't see herself as a resistance leader.
'I have shared with some of my colleagues from some of the very blue states that my situation here in Michigan is very different than theirs. I've got a Republican House of Representatives — majority-Republican House — now to work with,' she told the Associated Press in January. 'I've got to make sure that I can deliver and work with folks of the federal government, and so I don't view myself as the leader of the opposition like some might.'
That balancing act has been trickiest when it comes to tariffs, particularly those impacting automobiles and parts. While automakers in her state are against the tariffs, many union members are not against tariffs in general. Democrats widely blasted the tariffs Trump announced this week, ahead of his surprise decision to pause most of them for 90 days, but Whitmer was among a handful of members of her party who offered more measured criticism.
'I understand the motivation behind the tariffs, and I can tell you here's where President Trump and I do agree: We do need to make more stuff in America, more cars and ships, more steel and ships,' Whitmer said in Washington, DC, Wednesday morning. 'We do need fair trade.'
During a speech and a fireside chat with journalist Gretchen Carlson, Whitmer said that she's not against tariffs outright, but that they should be used as a tool. She also called for a bipartisan approach to 'usher in, as President Trump says, the Golden Age of American manufacturing.'
In her remarks, Whitmer also acknowledged the challenging political environment in which she and other Democrats find themselves. Asked how she would respond to Democrats who haven't bought into her appeals to bipartisanship, Whitmer said she felt she had a 'duty, and a hope, to try and get things done.'
'In this moment, it feels like no action comes without loud criticism from one realm or another,' Whitmer said Wednesday morning. 'I could demonstrate on the front lawn of the Capitol for four weeks on end and some people would say I hadn't gone far enough. Just accept the fact that there's always going to be the critic.'
CNN's Kit Maher contributed to this report.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
16 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump Mobile announced with a $499 gold 'T1' phone
On Monday morning, the Trump Organization announced that it will be launching a Trump-branded smartphone and wireless service in September. A press release for the new company promised that it would be "a transformational, new cellular service designed to deliver top-tier connectivity, unbeatable value and all-American service for our nation's hardest-working people." Trump Mobile also announced the launch of the T1 Phone, a gold-colored, made-in-America smartphone etched with an American flag that will retail for $499. The company's signature mobile plan, the 47 plan, will offer unlimited talk, text, and data for $47.45 per month. Credit: Trump Mobile Ever since the introduction of his "Liberation Day" tariffs, President Donald Trump has been pressuring Apple CEO Tim Cook to start building the iPhone in America. As Mashable has previously reported, a made-in-America iPhone could cost as much as $3,000, while Apple itself would potentially need to spend billions to create the domestic infrastructure needed to build its flagship smartphone in the United States. Trump has targeted Cook with Truth Social posts, even threatening to place a 25 percent tariff on iPhones and other smartphones. "Trump Mobile is going to change the game, we're building on the movement to put America first, and we will deliver the highest levels of quality and service. Our company is based right here in the United States because we know it's what our customers want and deserve," said Donald Trump Jr, EVP of The Trump Organization, in a press release. The announcement was timed to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the launch of President Trump's first campaign for president. Once upon a time, U.S. presidents were expected to eschew investment and financial opportunities while occupying The White House to avoid conflicts of interest. In fact, the U.S. Constitution includes an Emoluments Clause, which explicitly prohibits the president from profiting off the office. Former president Jimmy Carter even put his beloved peanut farm into a blind trust while he was in office to avoid even the appearance of a conflict of interest. The Emoluments Clause is essentially enforced by the honor system; the Trump Administration has also interpreted the constitutional doctrine in novel ways. The Trump Organization says a U.S.-based customer service team will be at the ready 24/7 to help customers switch to Trump Mobile. The plan also comes with a number of benefits to woo potential customers, including: 24/7 roadside assistance via Drive America Telehealth medical services Free International calling (more than 100 countries included) "No contracts, no credit check"
Fox News
17 minutes ago
- Fox News
Jimmy Kimmel attends anti-Trump 'No Kings' protest amid nationwide demonstrations
Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel attended a "No Kings" protest with his parents over the weekend to oppose President Donald Trump's policies. "A huge, inspiring and yes - peaceful - turnout in the South Bay. I met many people who love this country and still believe it to be a force for good. I am grateful to see so many Americans take action to stand up for our friends and neighbors, most of all, my parents. I know how fortunate I am to have been born into a family that taught me to care about others and that the most important words ever spoken are 'Love one another.' It really is as simple as that," Kimmel posted on Instagram. The liberal late-night host posted a photo of a shirt that he wore for the protest as well, which read "Make America Good Again," and told his followers, "See you out there." "No Kings" protests occurred across the country over the weekend to oppose the president in what organizers described as a "day of defiance" against Trump and his allies. The protests occurred as a military parade was held in Washington, D.C., to honor the U.S. Army's 250th birthday. The late-night host has spoken out against Trump's decision to send the National Guard to Los Angeles to help quell riots that occurred in the wake of recent Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) actions in the city. "Los Angelenos gathered to demonstrate and, with very few exceptions, peacefully demonstrate to voice their opposition to this disgusting and unnecessary abuse of power instigated by our mentally ill president, who is dead-set on exacerbating this, who actually wants conflict, who is intentionally inflaming and lying to make it seem like there's a war going on," Kimmel said on Wednesday. Other liberal celebrities to attend the protests included Glenn Close, Mark Ruffalo, Susan Sarandon, and Natasha Rothwell. Ruffalo spoke to MSNBC about his attendance at the New York protests on Saturday and called Trump a "dictator." "We see a president who has made himself a king and dictator, and we don't see an opposition that's powerful enough to stand up against the trampling of our rights and the trampling of the Constitution that's happening every single day, with executive orders, with the refusal to obey court orders, kidnapping of immigrants, people who are here legally, people whose children are being taken from them. We're disgusted and we're scared, and we know the only way to fight this now is for people to come together," Ruffalo said. Close posted about her attendance on Instagram. "It's not about screaming slogans. It's not about spitting hatred. It's the calm, unified PRESENCE of MILLIONS of Americans who refuse to let our beloved, magnificent country be sold out to the wannabe KING/OLIGARCH and his RUTHLESS, cruel, scheming puppeteers," she wrote.
Los Angeles Times
17 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
America's home health workforce is at risk from Trump's immigration crackdown
President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown threatens to shrink the workforce for one of America's fastest growing jobs: Home health and personal care aides. Demand for such care is expected to swell as the US population ages, and the industry has increasingly relied on immigrants to fill home health positions. Foreign-born people comprise roughly one in five US workers, yet they account for more than 40% of home health aides and nearly 30% of personal care employment, according to US government data. Trump's push to strip hundreds of thousands of foreign workers of work authorizations, ramp up deportations and curb immigration has providers and industry experts worried about their ability to hire and retain workers. 'The sector has been struggling to retain the workforce outside of immigration,' said Jeanne Batalova, a senior policy analyst at the nonpartisan Migration Policy Institute. 'The impact will be felt in some cities and states very quickly with people losing their status.' One senior living community in the mid-Atlantic region has already had half a dozen immigrant employees leave their jobs since March. The executive director of the community, who asked not to be identified for fear of backlash, said an estimated 5% to 10% of her facility's staff are believed to be working with temporary work permits — filling jobs in housekeeping, nutrition and other departments. The facility employs more than 300 people. She said the departures, which reflected workers' worries about impending changes to immigration policy, have already caused disruptions and made residents nervous. The Supreme Court's latest decisions to allow the White House to end the legal status of roughly 850,000 people from places like Venezuela and Haiti, paired with other pending litigation, threaten to make things worse. If all of her employees with temporary work permits are forced to leave their jobs, the executive director said they'd have to trim services or stop admitting new residents. Katie Smith Sloan, chief executive officer of LeadingAge, which advocates for nonprofit aging services providers, said some member agencies are already notifying employees that they may be forced to let them go if the administration proceeds with plans to cancel work permits. The Department of Homeland Security announced Thursday that over half a million parolees from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela were being notified that their status was being terminated. The government has encouraged those people to leave the US on their own. 'There is no shortage of American minds and hands to grow our labor force,' White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said in a statement. 'President Trump's agenda to create jobs for American workers represents this administration's commitment to capitalizing on that untapped potential while delivering on our mandate to enforce our immigration laws.' Growing Need The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects home health and personal care aides, which is already the most common occupation in the country, will also be one of the fastest growing professions over the next decade – soaring 21% by 2033. That depends on workers wanting the job. Hospitals, nursing homes and other providers are still scrambling to fill nearly 1.5 million open positions. And nearly two-thirds of home care workers leave their job within the first year of employment, an industry survey found. The jobs are physically demanding and low paid. In 2024, home health and personal care aides made $34,990 annually — roughly half the average pay across all US occupations. Even New York, which has the most home health and personal care aides adjusted for employment of any state by far, is struggling to keep up with demand. 'The shortage is entirely driven by bottomless demand,' said Bill Hammond, senior fellow for health policy at the think tank Empire Center for Public Policy. 'I'm not sure we can sustain it. We've already gotten to the point where there are more home health aides than there are fast-food counter workers and retail-sales clerks combined.' Some states have sought ways to bolster the home health workforce, like paying friends and family members to serve as caregivers. Even so, immigration has played a key role in filling job openings in the space. Trump recently acknowledged that farming and leisure and hospitality are feeling the impact of his immigration crackdown and vowed to address the issue. Immigrant Workforce The number of immigrants — legal and undocumented — working as home health aides jumped by 24% between 2018 and 2023, three times the rate of increase in the overall immigrant workforce, according to the Migration Policy Institute. One of those workers is Parmah Njoh, 41, who makes at-home calls for Goodwin Living in the Washington region. Njoh, who moved to the US from Cameroon in 2019 with a visa and is now a US citizen, is one of the many African employees working at the senior-living and at-home care provider. It's 'about the lives of these elderly people,' said Njoh. 'The importance here is the life of these adult people. Without us, I don't think they're going to do well.' The Census Bureau estimates the number of people 65 and older will grow by roughly 8 million to 71 million by the end of the decade, and surpass 100 million people by 2075. While only a share of that group will require special care, many Americans with disabilities also need support. 'We have a shortage of care workers already, they're aging, and the pay is not attractive to bring people into these jobs,' said Cassandra Zimmer-Wong, an immigration policy analyst at the think tank Niskanen Center. 'That makes for a really dangerous scenario where people want to age at home, they want home health, there's demand, but we don't really have the supply.' Saraiva and Caldwell write for Bloomberg.
