Gretchen Whitmer ashamed to be seen in Oval Office, covers face with folders

Whitmer had traveled to the White House to discuss federal funding for an Air National Guard base near Detroit and disaster aid for Michigan residents affected by a recent ice storm, according to The New York Times. However, aides unexpectedly ushered her into the Oval Office for an appearance before the press corps as Trump signed a pair of executive orders, leading to an awkward moment as she appeared uncomfortable and attempted to shield herself from view.

“The governor was surprised that she was brought into the Oval Office during President Trump’s press conference without any notice of the subject matter,” a spokesperson for Whitmer said. “Her presence is not an endorsement of the actions taken or statements made at that event.”

During the appearance, Trump signed two executive memoranda ordering the Department of Justice to investigate two former officials from his first administration: Miles Taylor, former deputy chief of staff at the Department of Homeland Security who authored a critical op-ed and book under the pseudonym “Anonymous,” and Chris Krebs, former director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency who publicly rejected Trump’s claims of fraud in the 2020 election.

Before the press event, Whitmer met privately with Trump. Earlier in the day, she delivered a speech in Washington warning about the economic impact of tariffs, as concerns have been raised about their effects on Michigan’s auto industry.

“I understand the motivation behind the tariffs, and here’s where President Trump and I do agree: We do need to make more stuff in America, more cars and chips, more steel and ships. We do need fair trade,” Whitmer said in her speech. “As I’ve said before, I’m not against tariffs outright, but they are a blunt tool. You can’t just bust out the tariff hammer to swing at every problem without a clearly defined end-goal.”

Whitmer’s DC visit comes as her name has been floated as a potential candidate for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination. With the party having no clear frontrunner for its future presidential primary, a number of governors have been speculated to have interest in running, including JB Pritzker of Illinois, Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, Tim Walz of Minnesota, and Gavin Newsom of California.