Whitmer plot may affect fight for battleground Michigan
Gretchen Whitmer knew she’d have the spotlight Thursday. And she decided not to waste it.
Hours after the FBI revealed a group of anti-government vigilantes had plotted to kidnap her, the Democratic governor of Michigan addressed her state — and the nation — with a message that didn’t mince words about whom she blamed for the threat: President Donald Trump was complicit for “giving comfort to those who spread fear and hatred and division.”
It was a familiar move for a governor who has repeatedly engaged in heated public battles with the president that may only hurt him in a pivotal state against Democrat Joe Biden. While she risked politicizing the moment, the governor said Friday that she didn’t think twice about calling out the president.
“I am raising two daughters who I want to be bold, too, you know, and to speak truth to power,” Whitmer said in an Associated Press interview.
Whitmer’s speech had t he ex pec t ed impa c t . Rather than express concern for her safety or health, Trump said she had “done a terrible job as governor” and “rather than say thank you, she calls me a white supremacist,” reminding voters in the state of the president’s defense of far-right groups.
Some Republicans on Friday worried Trump’s reaction would hurt him in a state he’s trying desperately to win on Nov. 3. And Michigan Republicans critical of Trump expressed dis
belief at state GOP leaders’ failure to call out, or even mildly chide, Trump.
“I’m astounded in the last 24 hours no new Republican has come out and renounced Trump’s rhetoric,” said Jeff Timmer, a onetime Republican strategist who has distanced himself from the party since
Trump’s election. “Nobody has dared stick their head out.”
After issuing a statement Thursday offering “thoughts and prayers” to the governor and her family, GOP Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey attended a demonstration to advocate for lifting Whitmer’s restrictions on state businesses. Whitmer’s remarks were aimed at appealing to Michigan Republicans unhappy with the state of their party. She quoted President Ronald Reagan’s 1981 address to the NAACP in which he condemned Americans “who still hold perverted notions about what America is all about.”
Whitmer said Friday she pulled the quote to highlight that “being a good American leader isn’t a partisan thing. It’s about recognizing that there’s no room for hate and prejudice and violence in America. ... And every one of us should stand against that.”
As a former Senate minority leader and lead negotiator for Democrats under Republican Gov. Rick Snyder, Whitmer “is not going to shy away from a fight,” said John Anzalone, a pollster and senior aide during her 2018 campaign for governor. “That’s a big part of her personality.” Fighting back has been good politics for the governor.
Whitmer’s approval rating has been running well ahead of Trump’s in the state. A majority in Michigan approve of her performance, a measure that has increased steadily with her handling of the pandemic. Meanwhile, Trump’s has been stuck well under 50%, while his campaign has signaled worry about carrying the state a second time, campaign aides have said privately.
Trump won Michigan by less than a percentage point in 2016, and must win it again, along with Wisconsin or Pennsylvania and every other state he carried then, to get the 270 Electoral College votes he needs to win reelection.