Consider This from NPR - Gretchen Whitmer supports Biden. Some think she should run instead.
Episode Date: July 9, 2024Former President Trump derided Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer as "the woman in Michigan," when the two publicly clashed in 2020 during the coronavirus pandemic. A Detroit rapper once put out a son...g about her called "Big Gretch" praising her handling of the pandemic. Whitmer's star soared during the pandemic with people being attracted to her human, pragmatic style.These days she's a national co-chair of the Biden-Harris campaign while simultaneously being touted a possible replacement for Biden on the ticket. Whitmer herself says that's not happening.As Democrats scramble to figure out a way forward this election year, Whitmer talks about her new memoir "True Gretch", and what the future may hold for both her and her party. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
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We don't get too worked up when we're up a couple points in a poll or when we're down a couple points in the poll.
The thing I know is that you can't be rolling up your sleeves if you're wringing your hands.
That's Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer talking about her role as a national co-chair of the Biden-Harris campaign.
And it's that down-to-earth Midwestern pragmatism that's made her something of a Democratic star since she emerged as a leader during the COVID pandemic. And in the last two weeks since Joe Biden's debate performance, her star has been
rising. She's been touted as a replacement on the Democratic presidential ticket if Biden isn't the
nominee. A potential alternative from a key Midwestern state is Michigan Governor Gretchen
Whitmer. Governor Gretchen Whitmer would absolutely be in this mix.
But Whitmer says it's not happening. She spoke on Good Morning America this week.
He has my full support. I'm a co-chair for the Biden-Harris campaign. I have great confidence
in this president. He's got receipts he's delivered for the American people, and I'm glad
that he's ready to continue this fight. Consider this. as Democrats scramble to figure out a way forward
this election year. We talked to the Michigan governor about her new memoir and what the
future may hold for both her and her party. From NPR, I'm Juana Summers. it's consider this from npr former president trump derided michigan governor gretchen whitmer as
the woman in michigan when the two publicly clashed in 2020 during the coronavirus pandemic
a detroit rapper once put out a song about her called Big Gretch,
praising her handling of the pandemic. And as Whitmer writes in a new book out today,
she's picked up a host of other nicknames over the years, including Gravity Gretchen because
of her reputation as a klutzy kid. But the question perhaps on many people's minds today
is what comes next for Governor Gretchen Whitmer's political future at a moment of uncertainty for her party?
She's now a national co-chair of President Biden's reelection campaign.
The book is True Gretch, What I've Learned About Life, Leadership, and Everything in Between.
And Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer joins us now.
Governor, welcome.
Thank you. It's good to be with you.
You share so many memories through your time in office and your life outside of politics in this
book. And I want to start by asking you about one memory that you share that is from the last
presidential race. This is a rally in Detroit in early March of 2020. And if many of us remember,
that is the early days of the pandemic. And then-candidate Biden was there in Detroit with you and Kamala Harris and Cory Booker,
the two senators who had run for president themselves in 2020.
They were standing alongside you as they endorsed Biden.
And I want you to just take a listen to something that then-candidate Biden said at that rally.
Look, I view myself as a bridge, not as anything else.
There's an entire generation of leaders you saw stand behind
me. They are the future of this country. You heard then-candidate Biden say then that he
wanted to be a transitional leader, a bridge. And right now, I will just note, as you know,
the presumptive nominees for the two major parties are the same candidates as they were in the year
2020. President Biden today is facing concerns about his fitness to serve and his mental acuity.
Governor Whitmer, do you share those concerns?
I don't.
You know, I'm proud to be a co-chair of the Biden-Harris campaign.
I've got complete confidence in our president.
He has the receipts he's delivered, whether it's onshoring supply chains or bringing down
the cost of insulin, protecting a woman's right to make her own decisions about her
body. These are the fundamentals that I know are weighing on voters all across the country. This president has delivered
on these, and he's an incredibly decent, hardworking public servant. And I'm very, very
supportive of his reelection. I do think that we're fortunate right now to have a deep bench of great
Democratic talent, and that's what he was now to have a deep bench of great Democratic
talent. And that's what he was referring to in those comments. And that, of course,
will continue to be true in the years ahead. You mentioned that deep bench. I do have to ask you,
in this conversation about the direction of your party, your name continues to come up as a person
who is a part of that deep bench. I'll note here that President Biden has said he is staying in
the race. But I'd like to ask you directly, if he were to withdraw, would you consider jumping in yourself?
You know, this president is not going to withdraw. He is going to stay on the ballot. And so I'm not
going to go down the path of all sorts of potential scenarios that I don't think are
ever going to play out. I appreciate that people have suggested I've got some skills that might
translate, but you know what, it is a set field. And any vote that is short of an affirmative
vote for Joe Biden supports a potential Trump second term. And we know how devastating that
would be for women's rights, for our economy, for our democracy. And that's why I'm not going
to waver in my support. I want to talk about your state of Michigan. The president will head there
on Friday for the fourth time this year. And I do not have to tell you this, about your state of Michigan. The president will head there on Friday for the fourth time this year.
And I do not have to tell you this, but your state has always been a key battleground.
I think it's fair to say that this is a state that the president must win to stay in the White House.
Do you believe he can?
I do.
And one of the things, and I talk about this in the book, is how important it is to listen, to show up, to engage with people who maybe
others don't spend time with. In my conversations across Michigan, whether it is around reproductive
rights roundtables, or it is simply about how do we restore some decency to this chaotic world with
such hot rhetoric, I know that we are aligned. People want to know that they've got
leaders who care about them, who are going to make their lives easier and help them achieve
their goals, be able to take care of a family. And President Biden has done that. He'll continue
to show up. And my work on the ground, listening and ensuring that the agenda that I strive to
accomplish every single day is about helping people keep more
money in their pocket and get ahead. And so whether it is, like I said, roundtables around
reproductive rights or just good paying jobs and American security, all of these things are front
and center for voters and the work that I'm doing and certainly the work that President Biden does.
I want to talk a little bit more about the dynamics there in your state. Michigan is a
state that many folks have been paying attention to because of the conversations and the feelings
that many people have about the conflict in the Middle East and Israel's war with Hamas.
Are there things that you think the president and the vice president as they campaign need to say
there to keep voters who care so deeply about those issues, particularly the Muslim and Arab American voters in your state,
on their side to show up to support the Biden-Harris ticket in November?
I think it's really important for all of us to always make sure to recognize that everyone is
hurting. If there's a universal truth in this moment, it's that our beautiful Jewish community is in pain,
our beautiful Arab and Muslim and Palestinian communities are in pain.
To recognize that and figure out how can we bring to bear American pressure on the situation
to get hostages returned and to make sure that we rebuild and have a two-state solution. And I think
these are critical agenda items that resonate in all communities. But first and foremost,
it's important to recognize that everyone's hurting. Most people in Michigan and these
communities are one or two degrees away from an innocent person losing their life, whether it was
on October 7th or the days that followed. And
there's a lot of pain, and that's something we can't lose sight of.
You also write in your book about the issue of reproductive rights, and you've talked about
President Biden's record on the issue. I'd like to ask you about the messaging. You said earlier
this year that the president should speak out more about abortion. Do you think that he's been
striking the appropriate tone on that in debates and on the campaign trail? Or is there some ways in which you think he could or should fine-tune
his approach heading toward November? I do think that American voters are smart,
and they understand the issue and why it's so personal and why this is something that should
be vested in and only in the woman and her family and perhaps a trusted doctor. Government should
butt out of these incredibly important economic decisions on top of everything else. The most
powerful, profound economic decision any of us makes in our lifetime is whether and when
to bring a child into the world. For many, it's not a choice at all. It's a desperately wanted
pregnancy that can't get carried to term. The government needs to butt out of it. And President Biden
shares those values. Certainly, refining languages will be something that will continue on as we
continue this conversation, this national debate. But I know where this president is at on the
issues, and that's why I'm going to work so hard to make sure he gets reelected.
Governor, through the course of our conversation and other recent media appearances, I have heard you repeatedly be so steadfast in your support for President Biden and the Biden-Harris ticket.
But I've also heard you at the same time express a great deal of concern about what another Trump presidency could and would mean for the country. So I just want to ask, do you truly believe, especially after these last two weeks,
that President Biden is the person who is best positioned to defeat Donald Trump in November?
Listen, President Biden is the Democratic candidate.
I am a co-chair of the Biden-Harris campaign.
I am proud to be because I know as governor that this president has done more to help
us in Michigan, whether it is fixing the damn roads or it is plowing more resources into
helping make sure that our students get back on track after a pandemic or it is bringing down the
cost of insulin. He has gotten incredible things done and Michiganders are benefiting from it.
So I do think that four more years with this president will help Michiganders are benefiting from it. So I do think that four
more years with this president will help Michiganders get ahead. It'll help Americans
everywhere get ahead. And that's why I am unwavering in my support. Can I just ask? Yeah.
You're unwavering in your support, but is he the best person to defeat Donald Trump? I just want
to make sure I'm clear here. Our choices on the ballot right now are President Biden and former President Trump.
And that is the binary choice in front of us.
I am an enthusiastic supporter of President Biden's, and I'm going to work my tail off to make sure he gets a second term.
Governor, I want to close by asking you about your own future.
You are, of course, term limited.
Your governorship will end in 2026. And there are just, and my dad is also in Michigan.
And so I'm not quite sure what it looks like after I'm done being governor, but I'm going to run through the tape.
I don't want to take my eye off the ball as we've got lots of big, important things that I want to get done between now and the last day as governor of Michigan.
I'll keep you posted.
Sounds good.
That's Governor Gretchen Whitmer, Democrat from Michigan.
Her new book, True Gretch, is out today.
Governor Whitmer, thank you for joining us.
Thank you.
This episode was produced by Mark Rivers and Kira Wackeem.
It was edited by Courtney Dorning and Christopher Intagliata.
Our executive producer is Sammy Yannigan.
And one more thing before we go.
You can now enjoy the Consider This newsletter.
We still help you break down a major story of the day, but you'll also get to know our
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You can sign up at npr.org slash consider this newsletter.
It's Consider This from NPR. I'm Juana Summers.