State of the Union: Interview With Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D-MI)

Interview

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I know, 3-D.

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Well, it's nice to be in your house. Usually, I'm in my house when we do this.

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Well, I will just say this.

In the first month, I signed a billion-dollar supplemental to do everything from affordable housing, to meeting our kids' needs, to expanding work force opportunities. So, check that off the list. We got that done in January. It's as fast as a governor has moved since 1947.

So we are taking this new majority, and we're moving fast, and we're -- we're going to deliver for the people. We told what we were going to do. Now we're going to do it.

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The majority of what we're doing is exactly what we said we were going to do in the campaign. This is what people voted for.

They want tax relief. I'm trying to get -- increase the Earned Income Tax Credit, so that working families can have a little -- a little breathing room in their budgets with inflation, give retirees -- repeal the retirement tax that my predecessor enacted.

These are things people told us they wanted us to get done. So we're going to live our values. We're going to stay focused on the fundamentals. That's what people voted for. And I think that's where we can find the most common ground.

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I think it's very important that Congress listens to the people that they are supposed to be serving, and that they shore it up.

People expect that. We look at the full faith and credit of the United States very much at risk right now. Congress has a constitutional obligation not to -- to make sure that we don't default. I think these are really crucial as we think about going forward.

I know that the president's focused on that. I would love to see Congress partner with them, because these are things that benefit people all across the country. Republicans and Democrats and people who are agnostic are relying on them to get the job done.

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Listen, six months ago, there were people who were writing political obituaries for a lot of Democratic governors. We won overwhelmingly. We had a great midterm.

I thank the White House for that. I think President Biden was a large part of that. He has delivered for the American people, the IRA, the CHIPS Act. We are onshoring production in advanced manufacturing. He's got a record of delivering for people. At this point, the polls are just, do you like him or you don't like him?

It's not a matchup. When we see a matchup, I think people are going to see this president has delivered, and that's why you see so many of my colleagues and me getting ready to help him win reelection.

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Yes.

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Let me say this.

We use TikTok on one device that has nothing else on it. It is a communication tool. We don't do it because it's fun, although some people think what I put out there can be fun on occasion. My kids disagree.

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But...

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But the point is, we have it on one device that has no access to anything else, because so many people get their information that way.

Whether we like it or not, that is a tool for disseminating important information. And that's how we use it. But we're always evaluating because we want to make sure that we are protecting data in Michigan. And that's why we're always evaluating. But, at this point, the way we use it is secure.

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Yes, I'm concerned about a lot of ways that social media is curated and drags people down rabbit holes in this country.

We need to have some congressional measures taken to ensure that there is some integrity in it. But, also, we got to teach our kids that this is not a real robust offering of information, for you to distill and make your own decisions. This is biased, and it can be incredibly taxing.

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You know, Jake, I just got re-upped for four more years in the job that I have always wanted. I enjoy it.

Even on the hardest days, I feel really lucky to be the governor of the great state of Michigan. That is 100 percent my focus. I'm not making plans for 2028 or any -- anything beyond what I'm going to do in this next four years.

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I don't really know Ron DeSantis, so it's hard for me to say anything real substantive, other than I will say this.

When I took my oath of office, I took an oath to be the governor for all the people of Michigan. I don't wage culture wars. I fight culture wars, because I'm focused on solving problems. I think it's incredibly destructive when people just try to pit others against one another, stoke fear.

I think that's a really destructive way to lead. And so that -- we will watch and see what happens. I -- as I said, I don't -- I don't know -- I don't know him, but I'm...

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But I think that there are people who are out there that stoke fear and anger and misinformation to help themselves politically.

And I'm not saying who I think falls into that category. I'm just saying that's not how I operate. And every governor takes an oath to serve all the people that -- in their state, whether they voted for them or not. And that's what should drive every decision, whether it's the budget you write, to the bills that you sign into law, to the rhetoric that you use, the people you share stages with.

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Thanks, Jake.

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