Michigan’s Governor Bets on Trump and Her 2028 White House Dreams

As Donald Trump arrived in Michigan last Tuesday, few anticipated the sight of a high-profile Democrat front and center to greet him. And yet there she was Governor Gretchen Whitmer, a woman who had only recently been as anti-Trump as anyone, now shaking hands along the runway. What ensued was a reluctant handshaking attempt from Whitmer, replaced instantly by Trump embracing her. The spasmodically resulting embrace, at best, was more than a gesture, however it foreshadowed a politicized gamble calculated with national consequences.

A year ago, presidential campaign season, Whitmer had been a vocal Trump critic. She gave a passionate speech at the Democratic National Convention, referring to Trump as “that man from Mar-a-Lago” and depicting him as being out of touch with ordinary Americans. Her tone then was tart, bitter, and well removed from her party base message. But politics, as it always does, is a contest of interlopers about hedging bets and shifting loyalties. Her hug this week and her accompaniment on stage of Donald Trump announced it loud and clear – Whitmer is wagering on bipartisanship, even against a president with whom she famously branded racist.

Why? It’s all about Michigan, her governorship, and her greater aspirations.

A Political Balancing Act

Whitmer’s effort to align with Trump, however briefly and boldly, is already causing consternation among Democrats. On the one hand, she has constituents back home in Michigan who demand instant gratification investment, jobs, safety. And then there’s a party that grows more and more intolerant of anything or anyone with Trump ties. In fact, other would-be challengers to the 2028 Democratic nomination, including Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, have just taken an uncompromising approach, advocating resistance in the strongest terms to everything the Republican Party represents with Trump. Pritzker’s message to Democrats in New Hampshire was clear: no compromise, no cooperation, no peace for the opposition.

Against this context, Whitmer’s friendly advances to Trump may be perceived as weakness and worse, betrayal by the left. It’s the kind of political image that can resurface at just the wrong time during a presidential primary, as New Jersey’s Chris Christie learned the hard way. His embrace of Barack Obama in 2012 after Hurricane Sandy, while praised at the time for its bipartisanship, later became a liability in Republican circles. Many saw it as a symbol of disloyalty that helped sink his own presidential hopes.

Whitmer can expect to face similar scrutiny if she runs for the White House in 2028. Photos taken Tuesday grinning alongside Trump, thanking unidentified administration staffers are already floating around, and they could be trotted out again with pointed criticism if she gets traction.

Strategy Over Symbolism

Whitmer’s team can also argue that the governor wasn’t endorsing Trump – she was just doing her job. She lobbied for months to win federal funding for Selfridge Air National Guard Base, a crucial military installation just outside Detroit. As the Department of Defense weighed reducing its presence there, the potential economic impact to the area was on hold. So Whitmer made her pitch – initially behind closed doors in Washington, subsequently in public in Michigan when Trump visited to announce new funding.

Standing before a hangar full of troops, Whitmer did not lavish praise on the president. She was brief and to the point: “I am really damn happy we’re here to celebrate this recapitalization at Selfridge,” she said, thanking the headlines of the day without ever uttering Trump’s name. It was a strategic choice, staying about a hair’s breadth from visibly aligning with politics.

It isn’t the first time Whitmer has walked a bipartisan tightwire so delicately. During her governorship, she has occasionally cut deals with Republican lawmakers when it benefited Michigan. But under Trump’s leadership, it’s an entirely new brand of gravity. And danger.

Eyes on 2028

If there was one thing Tuesday’s events made certain, it is that Whitmer is already looking ahead. A second-term governor with national name recognition, pandemic-era experience as a top Democratic responder, and a record of accomplishment in a swing state – Whitmer checks many boxes as a potential presidential candidate. But winning the base of the Democratic Party in 2028 will demand she respond to difficult questions about what she did in 2024.

Was her Trump visit a political masterstroke that demonstrated maturity and leadership, or was it a betrayal of Democratic principles? That is the question that can determine what voters will think about her in the years ahead.

In a political environment more and more defined by purity tests and ideological purity, Whitmer’s style is almost old-fashioned—pragmatic wins at the cost of partisan points. That will either set her apart for the good, or leave her vulnerable to primary opposition candidates who want to tag her as too willing to make deals with the enemy.

High Risk, Potential Reward

Whitmer’s political risk is as risky as they come. Should her actions at Selfridge bear fruit in tangible economic dividends for Michigan, voters back home just might come to reward her with durable political support. Should she successfully walk the tightrope between cooperating with Trump without betraying her Democratic ideals, she can emerge as a force to be dealt with on the national stage.

But if photos of her appearing with Trump are made campaign ammunition in a contentious Democratic primary, she could find herself in the same boat Chris Christie once was in having to explain an act of bipartisanship that her own party never forgot.

For the moment, Whitmer is playing for the long game. Whether or not it’s worth it will depend not only on what she does in Michigan but on what the rest of America decides to remember about her by 2028.