KALAMAZOO, Mich. — A speech from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D – MI) kickstarted the fifth day of the 2025 Detroit Auto Show.
Speaking to a crowd of guests Wednesday, Whitmer highlighted the successes of the state’s automotive industry, including manufacturers and suppliers investing $40 billion into Michigan, the state’s highest concentration of engineering talent and more than 1,000 independent auto suppliers.
In addition, Whitmer addressed the fact that Michigan’s auto industry is at risk as China and other countries are aiming to take automotive jobs from the state.
“They want to steal this vital industry away from us,” Whitmer said. “But we’re Michiganders, damn it. We’re gonna fight. Right?”
However, there is still work to do, and Whitmer is willing to do that work across the aisle.
“I’ll work with anyone who’s serious about solving problems, and I’ll stand up to anyone who gets in our way,” Whitmer said.
However, some Republicans, like Sen. Aric Nesbitt (R – Porter Township), claim Michigan’s roads are crumbling because of Whitmer’s policies.
Releasing a video in response to Whitmer’s speech Wednesday, Nesbitt stated he looks forward to working with Republican leadership to shore up infrastructural areas where he feels Whitmer fell short.
“Working with the new Republican majority in the House and Speaker Hall (R – Richland Township), we’ll start to clean up the mess made by Gov. Whitmer and Democrats,” Nesbitt said. “Let’s get to work.”
House Majority Floor Leader Bryan Posthumus (R – Rockford) worries Whitmer’s plans to fix the roads include tax increases, which he is not on board with.
He is otherwise interested in working across the aisle on infrastructure issues.
“Republicans have the House, Democrats have the Senate and the Governor’s office,” Posthumus told News Channel 3. “One of the benefits of that is that it forces bipartisanship, and my hope is that we will be able to find some common ground in areas, but what I can say is, to get me on board, it cannot start with a tax increase.”
Peter Wielhouwer, an associate professor of political science at Western Michigan University, told News Channel 3 Michigan’s roads are an issue Republicans and Democrats can agree need to be fixed.
The disconnect between the parties becomes about how to pay for it.
“Republicans would say that some of the increase in the sales tax several years ago was supposed to deal with this, and the Democrats would say, ‘Well, the Republicans were responsible for providing adequate funding for this, and they didn’t do that,'” Wielhouwer said. “So, there’s a lot of accusation going back and forth about how to actually fund the fixing of the roads.”
Whitmer addressed the GOP, stating that cutting funding for public health and public safety is not a viable option to fix the roads.
Detroit’s Auto Show runs through Jan. 20. More information can be found online.