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.
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Associated Press
28 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Man suspected of shooting 2 Minnesota lawmakers is in custody after surrendering to police
BELLE PLAINE, Minn. (AP) — The man suspected of killing a Minnesota lawmaker and wounding another crawled to officers in surrender Sunday after they located him in the woods near his home, bringing an end to a massive, nearly two-day search that put the entire state on edge. Vance Boelter was arrested and charged with two counts of murder and two counts of attempted murder. Jail records show Boelter was scheduled to appear in court Monday afternoon. He is accused of posing as a police officer and fatally shooting former Democratic House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, in their home early Saturday in the northern Minneapolis suburbs. Authorities say he also shot Sen. John Hoffman, a Democrat, and his wife, Yvette. They were injured at their residence about 9 miles (about 15 kilometers) away. 'One man's unthinkable actions have altered the state of Minnesota,' Democratic Gov. Tim Walz said at a news conference after Boelter's arrest. The search for Boelter was the 'largest manhunt in the state's history,' Brooklyn Park Police Chief Mark Bruley said. It began when Brooklyn Park officers went to check on Hortman's home and saw her husband gunned down before the shooter fled. Authorities on Sunday located a vehicle Boelter was using abandoned in rural Sibley County, where he lived, and a police officer reported that he believed he saw Boelter running into the woods, Bruley said. Police set up a large perimeter and called in 20 different tactical teams, divvying up the area and searching for him. During the search, police said they received information confirming someone was in the woods and searched for hours, using a helicopter and officers on foot, until they found Boelter. He surrendered to police, crawling out to officers in the woods before he was handcuffed and taken into custody in a field, authorities said. Jail records show Boelter was booked into the Hennepin County Jail at 1:02 a.m. Central Time Monday and include two mug shots, one from the front and one from the side, of Boelter wearing an orange prison shirt. A targeted attack Drew Evans, superintendent of the state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, said the violence likely would've continued had Brooklyn Park offices not checked on Hortman's home, causing Boelter to flee. The Hoffmans were attacked first at their home in Champin early Saturday. A criminal complaint unsealed after Boelter's arrest indicated their adult daughter called 911 just after 2 a.m. to say a masked person had come to the door and shot her parents. After police in nearby Brooklyn Park learned that a lawmaker had been shot, they sent patrol officers to check on the Hortmans' home. Brooklyn Park police officers arrived just in time to see Boelter shoot Mark Hortman through the open door of the home, the complaint says. It says they exchanged gunfire with Boelter, who fled inside the home before escaping the scene. Melissa Hortman was found dead inside, the complaint said. Authorities said Boelter posed as a police officer, even allegedly altering a vehicle to make it look like a police car. No details on motive Authorities did not give a motive as they announced Boelter's arrest. A list of about 70 names was found in writings recovered from the fake police vehicle that was left at the crime scene, said two law enforcement officials who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss details of the ongoing investigation. The writings and list of names included prominent state and federal lawmakers and community leaders, along with abortion rights advocates and information about health care facilities, according to the officials. A Minnesota official told AP lawmakers who had been outspoken in favor of abortion rights were on the list. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because the investigation was ongoing. Boelter is a former political appointee who served on the same state workforce development board as Hoffman, records show, though it was not clear if or how well they knew each other. Around 6 a.m. Saturday, Boelter texted friends to apologize for his actions, though he didn't say what he had done. 'I'm going to be gone for a while. May be dead shortly, so I just want to let you know I love you guys both and I wish it hadn't gone this way,' he wrote in messages viewed by AP. An escalation in political violence The shootings come as political leaders nationwide have been attacked, harassed and intimidated amid deep political divisions. Lawmakers said they were disturbed by the attacks as Twin Cities residents mourned. 'This cannot be the norm. It cannot be the way that we deal with our political differences,' Walz said Sunday. On Sunday evening, U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar shared a statement from Yvette Hoffman expressing appreciation for the outpouring of public support. 'John is enduring many surgeries right now and is closer every hour to being out of the woods,' Yvette Hoffman said in a text that Klobuchar posted on social media. 'He took 9 bullet hits. I took 8 and we are both incredibly lucky to be alive. We are gutted and devastated by the loss of Melissa and Mark.' Brightly colored flowers and small American flags were placed Sunday on the gray marbled stone of the Minnesota State Capitol along with a photo of the Hortmans. People scrawled messages on small notes including, 'You were our leader through the hardest of times. Rest in Power.' Pam Stein came with flowers and knelt by the memorial. An emotional Stein called Hortman an 'absolute powerhouse' and 'the real unsung hero of Minnesota government.' ___ Karnowski reported from Minneapolis, and Balsamo and Durkin Richer reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Michael Biesecker in Washington; Jim Mustian in New York; Sophia Tareen in Chicago and Makiya Seminera in Raleigh, N.C., contributed to this report.
Yahoo
30 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump tariffs live updates: EU weighs 10% tariff deal as Trump's July deadline looms
Brussels negotiators hope that by agreeing to a 10% US tariff on all European Union exports, they can avoid higher tariffs on cars, medicines, and electronics, according to a report in German newspaper Handelsblatt on Monday. Citing senior EU officials, the paper said the offer to the US would come with conditions and would not be permanent. President Trump and other heads of state are preparing to gather in Canada this week for the annual G-7 summit. Tensions in the Middle East, following Israel's strike on Iran, are expected to dominate discussions, along with another hot topic: trade. Trump told reporters last week that he would send letters to trading partners setting unilateral tariff rates. 'At a certain point, we're just going to send letters out. And I think you understand that, saying this is the deal, you can take it or leave it,' the president said. Soon after introducing steep new tariffs that roiled markets, Trump instituted a pause on his most punishing duties that expires July 9. His latest comment, however, only muddies the waters about what could happen next as the deadline approaches. Earlier last week, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Congress that it is "highly likely" that the tariff pause would be extended for countries that are negotiating with the administration "in good faith." The diverging signals came as the US made key progress with China, as the nations agreed to a framework and implementation plan to ease tariff and trade tensions. Trump and other US officials indicated the deal should resolve issues between the two countries on rare earth mineral exports. Trump said the US would impose a total of 55% tariffs on Chinese goods. Yahoo Finance's Ben Werschkul reports, citing a White House official, that Trump arrived at that figure by adding together an array of preexisting duties and not any new tariffs. Meanwhile last week, a federal appeals court held a decision saying his tariffs can temporarily stay in effect. The US Court of International Trade had blocked their implementation last month, deeming the method used to enact them "unlawful." Read more: What Trump's tariffs mean for the economy and your wallet Here are the latest updates as the policy reverberates around the world. According to reports in the German newspaper Handlesblatt, senior Brussels negotiators are considering whether to accept US tariffs of 10% on all EU exports into the US, in hopes it will prevent higher duties on cars, drugs, and electronics. Per Reuters, EU officials said the offer would come under certain conditions and would not be permanent. Handelsblatt reported that the EU is ready to cut tariffs on US-made vehicles and may ease technical and legal hurdles to make it easier for US manufacturers to sell their cars in Europe. Reuters reports: Read more here. CNN reports: Read more here. As President Trump's tariff deadline looms, what will happen when the countdown ends on Liberation Day 2.0? Yahoo Finance's Washington Correspondent Ben Werschkul looks into Trump's plan of action: Read more here. Despite a trade truce between the US and China last week in London, a key area remains unresolved. Export restrictions tied to national security are still being discussed, and Beijing has not committed to grant export clearance for some specialized rare earth magnets, according to two sources. Reuters reports: Read more here. Reuters reports: Read more here. China reported mixed economic performance for May on Monday, as retail sales jumped while factory output slowed due to higher US tariffs. AP reports: Read more here. Thailand's commerce minister has expressed confidence that he will be able to negotiate tariffs as low as 10% with the US. Reuters reports: Read more here. Reuters reports: Read more here. As part of tariff negotiations, the US has requested that Vietnam reduce the use of Chinese tech devices that are assembled in the country before exporting to America, according to several people familiar with the matter. Reuters reports: Read more here. South Korea has launched a task force to help handle tariff and non-tariff negotiations with the US. The group will manage discussions across industry and the energy sector, a statement from the Industry Ministry for South Korea revealed on Monday. Reuters reports: Read more here. Canada will host world leaders from across the globe at the G7 summit this week in Kananaskis. Among the many goals for Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney: Demonstrate he can handle US President Donald Trump, the Financial Times reports, with one Canadian official characterizing the gathering as "preparing the red carpet for Godzilla." 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Aerospace companies and airlines face 10% tariffs on imported planes and parts as part of President Trump's 'Liberation Day' tariffs, and the Commerce Department is looking into additional Section 232 imported goods, which could lead to higher tariffs for the industry. Read more here. In case you missed it, bank executives gathered at a Morgan Stanley conference this past week, where they shared their views on the path forward for tariffs. And as Yahoo Finance's David Hollerith noted, JPMorgan Chase (JPM) CEO Jamie Dimon sounded a little more optimistic about the effect tariffs may have on the US economy over the next several months. "Maybe in July, August, September, October, you'll start to see 'did it have an effect?'" Dimon said of tariffs. "My guess is it did, hopefully not dramatic. May just make the soft landing a little bit softer as opposed to the ship go down." Dimon also guessed that tariffs will cause inflation to rise and employment to "come down a little bit." Meanwhile, clients at Citigroup's (C) global investment bank are evaluating a baseline level of tariffs of between 10% and 20%, according to Viswas Raghavan, Citigroup's head of banking. Read more here. The summer travel season is underway, and many foreign visitors are steering clear of the US amid ongoing trade tensions. Yahoo Finance's Ines Ferré reports: Read more here. Canada's trade-focused industries are starting to slow down as a result of US President Trump's tariffs. Bloomberg News reports: Read more here. The EU's goods trade surplus with the US expanded in April, despite US tariffs, according to data released on Friday. Reuters reports: Read more here. US chip curbs on China have forced Nvidia to exclude the Chinese market from its revenue and profit forecasts, Nvidia (NVDA) CEO Jenson Huang told CNN on Thursday. CNN reports: Read more here. On a company earnings call Thursday, RH (RH) CEO Gary Friedman shared a frank account of how the furniture retailer navigated a "chaotic and unpredictable" quarter due to tariffs, market volatility, and a weak housing market. "Everywhere got rocked from the reciprocal tariff announcements," Friedman said. "When the market went down, our business went down. You had to pull forward, give back. It's like a noisy, noisy time right now to run your business." Friedman emphasized that President Trump's "Liberation Day" announcement, which took tariffs on China to 54% and then to over 100%, rattled the supply chain, as did the subsequent pause on most tariffs. "What happened when the reciprocal tariffs hit, we stopped shipments," the CEO said. "People stopped producing. ... I mean, it created disruption for several weeks in the supply chain, and when you try to ramp back up quickly in a chaotic time like that, things are just — things are late. Things get backed up." RH expects the tariff disruption will negatively impact Q2 revenues by 6 points but that revenue will recover in the second half of the year. The company continues to shift sourcing out of China and said it projects 52% of its upholstered furniture will be made in the US and 21% will be produced in Italy by the end of the year. Despite the noisy environment, RH reported an unexpected profit in Q1, sending shares 19% higher in premarket trading on Friday. Friedman added that RH's vendor partners absorbed a "meaningful portion" of the tariffs and that the trade wars may allow the company to take share from smaller competitors. "I mean there's a lot of people going bankrupt," he said. "A lot of the ankle-biter businesses, the little online things, ... they can't raise capital. ... A lot of them are blowing up. They're going away." "The businesses that I think don't make it through the rest of this year, they don't have the scale to deal with the tariffs," he continued. "They don't have the leverage. They don't have the strategic flexibility. So you want to position yourself for the other side. The other side's where all the upside is." According to reports in the German newspaper Handlesblatt, senior Brussels negotiators are considering whether to accept US tariffs of 10% on all EU exports into the US, in hopes it will prevent higher duties on cars, drugs, and electronics. Per Reuters, EU officials said the offer would come under certain conditions and would not be permanent. Handelsblatt reported that the EU is ready to cut tariffs on US-made vehicles and may ease technical and legal hurdles to make it easier for US manufacturers to sell their cars in Europe. Reuters reports: Read more here. CNN reports: Read more here. As President Trump's tariff deadline looms, what will happen when the countdown ends on Liberation Day 2.0? Yahoo Finance's Washington Correspondent Ben Werschkul looks into Trump's plan of action: Read more here. Despite a trade truce between the US and China last week in London, a key area remains unresolved. Export restrictions tied to national security are still being discussed, and Beijing has not committed to grant export clearance for some specialized rare earth magnets, according to two sources. Reuters reports: Read more here. Reuters reports: Read more here. China reported mixed economic performance for May on Monday, as retail sales jumped while factory output slowed due to higher US tariffs. AP reports: Read more here. Thailand's commerce minister has expressed confidence that he will be able to negotiate tariffs as low as 10% with the US. Reuters reports: Read more here. Reuters reports: Read more here. As part of tariff negotiations, the US has requested that Vietnam reduce the use of Chinese tech devices that are assembled in the country before exporting to America, according to several people familiar with the matter. Reuters reports: Read more here. South Korea has launched a task force to help handle tariff and non-tariff negotiations with the US. The group will manage discussions across industry and the energy sector, a statement from the Industry Ministry for South Korea revealed on Monday. Reuters reports: Read more here. Canada will host world leaders from across the globe at the G7 summit this week in Kananaskis. Among the many goals for Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney: Demonstrate he can handle US President Donald Trump, the Financial Times reports, with one Canadian official characterizing the gathering as "preparing the red carpet for Godzilla." Read more here (premium) As leaders gather this week in Canada for the G7 summit, Israel's strike on Iran is sure to be a topic of discussion among the gathering. But as CNN reports, world trade and President Donald Trump's tariffs will also be top of mind: Read more here The Trump administration's 50% steel tariffs will soon apply to consumer appliances like refrigerators and dishwasher, CNN reports: Read more here A delegation of US lawmakers and other state officials will attend the Paris Airshow this week to shore up economic partnerships with the US's allies in aerospace and aviation, Reuters reports. The group, which includes about a dozen governors — Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin and Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders among them — is expected to make the case for greater investments in US aerospace companies amid concerns the Trump administration will raise tariffs on aircraft, jet engines, and parts. Aerospace companies and airlines face 10% tariffs on imported planes and parts as part of President Trump's 'Liberation Day' tariffs, and the Commerce Department is looking into additional Section 232 imported goods, which could lead to higher tariffs for the industry. Read more here. In case you missed it, bank executives gathered at a Morgan Stanley conference this past week, where they shared their views on the path forward for tariffs. And as Yahoo Finance's David Hollerith noted, JPMorgan Chase (JPM) CEO Jamie Dimon sounded a little more optimistic about the effect tariffs may have on the US economy over the next several months. "Maybe in July, August, September, October, you'll start to see 'did it have an effect?'" Dimon said of tariffs. "My guess is it did, hopefully not dramatic. May just make the soft landing a little bit softer as opposed to the ship go down." Dimon also guessed that tariffs will cause inflation to rise and employment to "come down a little bit." Meanwhile, clients at Citigroup's (C) global investment bank are evaluating a baseline level of tariffs of between 10% and 20%, according to Viswas Raghavan, Citigroup's head of banking. Read more here. The summer travel season is underway, and many foreign visitors are steering clear of the US amid ongoing trade tensions. Yahoo Finance's Ines Ferré reports: Read more here. Canada's trade-focused industries are starting to slow down as a result of US President Trump's tariffs. Bloomberg News reports: Read more here. The EU's goods trade surplus with the US expanded in April, despite US tariffs, according to data released on Friday. Reuters reports: Read more here. US chip curbs on China have forced Nvidia to exclude the Chinese market from its revenue and profit forecasts, Nvidia (NVDA) CEO Jenson Huang told CNN on Thursday. CNN reports: Read more here. On a company earnings call Thursday, RH (RH) CEO Gary Friedman shared a frank account of how the furniture retailer navigated a "chaotic and unpredictable" quarter due to tariffs, market volatility, and a weak housing market. "Everywhere got rocked from the reciprocal tariff announcements," Friedman said. "When the market went down, our business went down. You had to pull forward, give back. It's like a noisy, noisy time right now to run your business." Friedman emphasized that President Trump's "Liberation Day" announcement, which took tariffs on China to 54% and then to over 100%, rattled the supply chain, as did the subsequent pause on most tariffs. "What happened when the reciprocal tariffs hit, we stopped shipments," the CEO said. "People stopped producing. ... I mean, it created disruption for several weeks in the supply chain, and when you try to ramp back up quickly in a chaotic time like that, things are just — things are late. Things get backed up." RH expects the tariff disruption will negatively impact Q2 revenues by 6 points but that revenue will recover in the second half of the year. The company continues to shift sourcing out of China and said it projects 52% of its upholstered furniture will be made in the US and 21% will be produced in Italy by the end of the year. Despite the noisy environment, RH reported an unexpected profit in Q1, sending shares 19% higher in premarket trading on Friday. Friedman added that RH's vendor partners absorbed a "meaningful portion" of the tariffs and that the trade wars may allow the company to take share from smaller competitors. "I mean there's a lot of people going bankrupt," he said. "A lot of the ankle-biter businesses, the little online things, ... they can't raise capital. ... A lot of them are blowing up. They're going away." "The businesses that I think don't make it through the rest of this year, they don't have the scale to deal with the tariffs," he continued. "They don't have the leverage. They don't have the strategic flexibility. So you want to position yourself for the other side. The other side's where all the upside is."
Chicago Tribune
35 minutes ago
- Chicago Tribune
Daywatch: Two detained on Father's Day at Broadview immigration center
Good morning, Chicago. As climate change scorches many regions responsible for growing the country's produce, Illinois farms will become even more important for local — and national — food security. But though it's the fifth-largest agricultural state, Illinois largely relies on others for the fruits and vegetables that go into salads, sandwiches and smoothies. It begs the question: Why doesn't Illinois — with its nutrient-rich soil and relative abundance of water — grow more fresh produce? 'There's just not enough farmers to fill institutional grocery stores,' said Marty Travis. 'We are supply challenged.' Travis is one of the farmers trying to fix that. For the last two decades, he's been building a local food system from the ground up, serving as a middleman between specialty crop farmers and nearby markets. Read the fourth and final part of our series 'Cash Crops, Hidden Costs.' And in case you missed them, catch up on Parts 1 through 3. Here are the top stories you need to know to start your day, including: what happened at 'No Kings' protests from Chicago to Naperville to Orland Park, how the ex-Speaker's trial testimony was 'a tale of two Mike Madigans' and what to know about the James Beard Awards tonight. Today's eNewspaper edition | Subscribe to more newsletters | Asking Eric | Horoscopes | Puzzles & Games | Today in History Natalia Cardenas, 28, cried on Father's Day. The Cardenas family arrived in Chicago from Colombia three years ago and believed Jose Manuel, 49, was reporting for a routine appointment as part of the asylum process. 'We don't know where he is … whether he's OK,' Cardenas said in tears, in front of an immigration processing center in Broadview after watching her dad go inside. Manuel was detained with a woman, also from Colombia, according to an immigration attorney who was with them during their appointment. 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Wolf & Company — from the owners of Little Bad Wolf, Gretel and The Good Wolf — will open a 10,000-square-foot, two-story space with the first and only patio directly accessible to The 606 elevated trail in Chicago. The James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards are at 6 p.m. tonight at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. This year marks the 35th anniversary of the awards and the 10th anniversary of the ceremony taking place in Chicago. This year's ceremony will be hosted by chefs Nyesha Arrington and Andrew Zimmern. On a recent Saturday, Sketchbook Brewing Co.'s Evanston taproom was filled to standing-room capacity by an enthusiastic crowd that clapped and danced along to performances of music by Christina Aguilera, Avril Lavigne, Lady Gaga and more. The artists who garnered such a warm response are collectively known as True Colors, a local drag troupe featuring individuals with a range of developmental, intellectual and physical disabilities.
