Democrat Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is taking heat from within her own party for her cordial meeting Wednesday with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office.
Whitmer was present as Trump signed an executive order stripping the security clearances of two former administration officials and launching investigations into their conduct.
Now, other Democrats and Democrat-aligned media are sharply criticizing her for what they regard as a public relations fiasco.
Whitmer had joined Trump and Michigan’s Republican House Speaker Matt Hall at the White House, where the three discussed protecting the Great Lakes from invasive carp and investing in a Detroit-area Air Force base.
Trump, who last year called Whitmer a “terrible governor,” said Wednesday she had done an “excellent job” in Michigan and that she is a “great person.”
Whitmer’s communications team quickly entered intraparty damage-control mode after the appearance.
Her communications director said that she “was surprised that she was brought into the Oval Office during President Trump’s press conference without any notice of the subject matter,” and that “her presence is not an endorsement of the actions taken or statements made at that event.”
The moment received at best mixed reactions from the liberal media.
For example, Sunny Hostin of ABC’s “The View” said that Whitmer was “used and played” and that Trump “tricked her” into the awkward Oval Office photo-op.
CNN commentator Edward Isaac-Dovere called the photos of Whitmer “a huge embarrassment” and said that Trump “used her as a prop” in the office.
Whitmer, ineligible to run for reelection in 2026 due to term limits, has gone to great lengths to ease tensions with Trump.
She signaled early in the new administration that she wanted to work with Trump on some of her priorities, such as the funding of a massive semiconductor plant in the Flint, Michigan area.
On Wednesday, Whitmer also delivered a policy speech in which she spoke of her desire to find “common ground” with Trump.
She also said that she “[understands] the motivation behind the tariffs,” with the caveat that “[y]ou can’t just pull out the tariff hammer to swing at every problem without a clear, defined end-goal.”
When asked for her thoughts on Whitmer’s search for common ground with Trump, Michigan Democrat Attorney General Dana Nessel rejected the entire premise.
“Common ground in what way? Common ground in racism? In sexism? In xenophobia? Common ground in destroying our federal system of government? … I don’t know where to find common ground with President Trump,” Nessel said.
Nessel also said on X that “appeasement is not workable strategy with a fascist.”
