HARRISON TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) — First came their much-analyzed Oval Office moment. Next, their subject-to-interpretation hug.
The two interactions between President Donald Trump and a sometime antagonist, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, reflect the Democratic governor’s efforts to move past last year’s hard-fought campaign and find common ground with the Republican president — at risk of political backlash.
Whitmer, a potential 2028 presidential candidate, shared a hug with Trump as he arrived in her home state on Tuesday, less than a month after she shielded her face from cameras during an Oval Office appearance alongside Trump.
It’s typical for a governor or another high-ranking state official to greet the president when he steps off Air Force One in their state, a tradition that has historically transcended partisanship.
But the embrace between Trump and Whitmer was notable at a time when Americans are increasingly saying Trump’s priorities are off and Democrats are agitating for their leaders to take a more confrontational approach to the president.
Trump was in Michigan to mark his 100th day in office at an evening rally and an earlier announcement with Whitmer of a new fighter jet mission at a National Guard base outside Detroit. The new jets at the base will protect a major economic driver for the area for years to come and represent a big win for Whitmer. The governor credited her Oval Office meeting with Trump for securing the base’s future.
“My job is to do the right thing for the people of Michigan,” she told The Associated Press after her appearance with Trump on Tuesday. “I’m not thinking about anything beyond that, and I know it’s hard for people to get their head around.”
Asked about her hug with Trump, Whitmer chose to describe the encounter differently.
She said Trump greeted her first when he stepped off the plane, and he “shook hands and he leaned in to tell me, you know, congratulations and that I was a big reason that we were making an announcement today, and I was grateful for that.”
She said working with him on some issues doesn’t preclude her from criticizing him on others, adding that she’s been clear with Trump that his tariffs have been damaging her state.
“I had to be there because this was a big, important thing for the state of Michigan,” she said. “Now, he is going to go off to the rally and say a lot of things I disagree with, that I’ll fight against, and that’s fine, but, you know, my job is to do everything I can for the people of Michigan.”
Earlier this month, Whitmer stood by in the Oval Office as Trump signed executive orders and assailed his political opponents, not long after she had delivered a speech nearby that offered soft criticism of him but emphasized shared priorities. Later, The New York Times published a photo showing her using folders to shield her face from cameras while in the Oval Office.
Whitmer’s office later said in a statement that she was “surprised” that she was brought into the room and that “her presence is not an endorsement of the actions taken or statements made at that event.”
The Trump-Whitmer embrace evoked an infamous greeting more than a decade ago between Chris Christie, then the Republican governor of New Jersey, and Barack Obama, the Democratic president. Weeks before the 2012 election, with Christie and Obama both seeking reelection, the president arrived in New Jersey in the aftermath of the devastating Superstorm Sandy. Obama placed his hand on Christie’s shoulder, but angry Republicans labeled it a “hug,” and suggested it contributed to Republican Mitt Romney’s loss to Obama.
It also reflects the challenge for Democratic governors looking to register their disapproval of Trump and his policies without angering a president bent on retribution against his critics or turning off soft Trump voters whose support they might need in future elections.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has also taken heat from some on the left who see him as excessively accommodating of Trump and his policies, showered the president with praise when he landed in Los Angeles to tour wildfire damage during his first week in office. At the time, Newsom was urgently seeking federal disaster funding and looking to dissuade Trump from following through on his threats to extract concessions from California in exchange for financial assistance.
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Cooper reported from Phoenix.
