Gretchen Whitmer’s unexpected Oval Office invites a highlights balance to Trump

Cnn
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The Democratic Governor of Michigan, Gretchen Whitmer, visited the White House on Wednesday with a cross -party delegation to discuss a laundry list of topics that affect her state, including a recent ice storm, the financing of an Air National Guard base and tariffs.

She went with a new problem: Donald Trump’s praise.

The president caught Whitmer during the comments in the Oval Office when she was in the back of the room while he praised her briefly.

“We honored it to have Gretchen Whitmer from Michigan, Great State of Michigan, and she was, she did an excellent job, very good person,” said Trump.

Whitmer was “surprised”, she was brought to the Oval Office “Without announcing the topic”, while Trump signed instructions in front of the press, according to a spokesman for the governor.

The encounter of the White House, four years after Trump excluded it and she called “the woman in Michigan”, comes when Whitmer tries to go a fine line between the demands of being a swing state leader and a potential presidential candidate from 2028.

Democrats are exposed to base voters with increasing pressure and anger, which require a stronger leadership and a more aggressive attitude towards the Trump government. Chuck Schumer, Chairman of the Senate Minister, was calling last month to step down after he had contributed to passing a law on republican funds, while a handful of young progressive started the primary challenges against democrats that they say that they do not meet the political moment. Whitmer himself was exposed to strong online criticism by Democrats for position in the Oval Office, while Trump signed Executive Orders.

Whitmer’s spokesman said her presence in the Oval Office was not a confirmation of anything that Trump did during the event.

At the same time, Whitmer’s avoidance of the “resistance label” reflects the political realities of her state that Trump won in 2016 and 2024. Michigan Democrats, who enjoyed a trifecta for two years, must now work with the Republicans who won the State House in November. Whitmer was accompanied by the Republican Republican house spokeswoman Matt Hall of her Republican house to the White House.

Whitmer spokesman added that the governor looked at the decision of the Trump government on Wednesday that a 90-day break for most recently announced tariffs as “a step in the right direction”, although her office is still “worried about tariffs”.

Whitmer was loud about the political Gretrope, which she had had to run since the election of last year, and emphasized that she did not see herself as a resistance leader.

“I shared some of my colleagues from some of the blue states that my situation here in Michigan is very different. I now have a Republican majority of Republican House to work with the Associated Press in January.” I have to make sure that I can deliver and work with people with people, and I therefore do not see myself as the supervisor of the opposition. ”

This balancing act was the most difficult when it comes to tariffs, especially those that affect automobiles and parts. While car manufacturers are against tariffs in their state, many union members are generally not against tariffs. The Democrats have thwarted the tariffs that Trump announced this week in detail before he surprised that most of them stayed for 90 days, but Whitmer belonged to a handful of members of their party, which offered more measured criticism.

“I understand the motivation behind the tariffs, and I can tell you where President Trump and I agree: we have to do more things in America, more cars and ships, more steel and ships,” said Whitmer in Washington, DC on Wednesday morning. “We need fair trade.”

During a speech and a Fireside chat with the journalist Gretchen Carlson, Whitmer said that she was not directly against tariffs, but that they should be used as a tool. She also called for a cross -party approach to “initiate, as President Trump initiates the golden age of American production”.

In her comments, Whitmer also recognized the challenging political environment in which she and other democrats are located. When asked how she would react to Democrats, who did not have taken into account in her calling for non -partisanity, Whitmer said she had the feeling that she had a “duty and hope to try things to do”.

“At that moment it seems that there is no action without a loud criticism from one or the other kingdom,” said Whitmer on Wednesday morning. “I could demonstrate on the lawn of the Capitol’s lawn for four weeks, and some people would say that I would not have gone far enough. Just accept the fact that the critic will always exist.”

CNNS Kit Maher contributed to this report.