- [Announcer] Michigan public TV's exclusive coverage of the State of the State.

- [Commentator] WKAR is supported by Michigan Primary Care Association, representing 43 community health centers that provide integrated care to more than 715,000 people statewide.

Information at mpca.net.

And by Michigan Academy of Family Physicians, representing over 4,200 family medicine physicians and medical students, dedicated to providing physician-led team-based patient-centered primary care for all ages.

Information about family medicine at mafp.com.

- [Announcer] Here's anchor and senior capitol correspondent, Tim Skubick.

- Good evening, and welcome to Studio C on this cold and bitter winter night in Michigan as we gather again to listen to the Governor's annual State of the State message.

This is number four for Governor Gretchen Whitmer.

For those of you that are students of what goes on politically, you know that this speech is usually given to a packed Michigan House of Representatives with senators, representatives and hangers-on all over the place.

Well, because of COVID last year, that changed.

The governor spoke from the executive office.

But tonight, she's taken her act on the road to a Detroit manufacturing plant to kind of set up what part of the speech is gonna be about economic recovery, and the Governor got good news on that front yesterday, compliments of General Motors.

We're gonna hear about COVID.

We're gonna hear about the Oxford problem down there with the shooting of those students.

And then she'll get to what she thinks you'll be interested in, tax cuts.

Who's not interested in that in an election year?

Let's go to the video now from the Governor's office and then, the Governor.

- Good evening, my fellow Michiganders.

My name is Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist, and I am joining you from the historic Marquette County Courthouse to kick off the 2022 State of the State Address for the first time in Michigan history, from our beautiful Upper Peninsula.

Like so much of the Upper Peninsula, this beautiful courthouse is a symbol of the grit and determination that can be found in the heart of every Michigander.

Here up north, the word for that is sisu.

Sisu was our spirit.

It's how we're building a strong and prosperous state for every Michigander.

Tonight, Governor Whitmer will deliver her State of the State Address and layout our administration's agenda for the future.

Together, we are focused on putting Michiganders first to the kitchen table issues, good paying jobs, lowering cost for families, expanding access to childcare, clean water and high-speed internet, and of course, building infrastructure with SISU in our hearts.

If you believe that we can get these things and so much more done together, I encourage you to listen to the governor's vision.

And with that, I want to introduce the 49th governor of the great state of Michigan, my friend, Gretchen Whitmer.

- Get things done.

- Get things done.

- Get things done.

- Get things done.

- Get things done.

It's something that we like to say a lot.

- It's grounded in a simple idea.

- That the people who represent us should work together to put Michigan.

- To put Michigan.

- To put Michigan first.

- And while it is true that we have made progress together.

- We all know that we have more to do.

- To usher in a new era of prosperity and change for Michigan.

- Emerging from a once in a century pandemic.

- With a once in a generation opportunity on our hands.

- We all want the same things for our families.

- Good paying jobs and great schools.

- Smooth roads.

- And safe bridges.

- Clean water.

- And beautiful parks.

- Safe neighborhoods.

- And affordable health care.

- A place to call home.

- A community we're proud of.

- And a chance to get ahead.

- We are doers.

- We are capable of greatness.

- It's who we are.

- But sometimes we need a little reminder.

There is nothing.

- Nothing.

- Nothing.

- Nothing.

- There's nothing Michigan can't do.

Good evening, Michigan.

Today is our state's 185th birthday.

And to celebrate, we're at Detroit Diesel, built in 1938 to help us win World War II.

A lifetime later, it's home to cutting edge, electric vehicle technology, built by the hardworking men and women of UAW Local 163.

Places like this are where Michigan's future will be forged.

And I'm thrilled to be here to deliver my State of the State Address.

But before we begin, let's take a moment to honor those who are not with us.

Let's remember the four young Michiganders we lost in Oxford, Madisyn, Tate, Hana, Justin, and those living with lifelong injuries and carrying the weight from that horrific day.

The Oxford community is in all of our hearts.

Michiganders, if you wanna help, please go to oxfordcommunityvictimsfund.com.

And let's also remember the over 30,000 Michiganders we've lost to COVID-19.

And thank the first responders, our healthcare professionals, the Michigan National Guard for everything they do to keep us safe.

Michigan's National Guard is the best in the country.

They go above and beyond, at home and oceans away.

Recently, I had the honor of pinning Purple Hearts unto three guard members who were injured during a ballistic missile attack in Iraq.

Michiganders salute their sacrifices.

They represent the best of us.

I also wanna acknowledge my partner in governance, Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist.

He's innovative, optimistic, a champion for Michigan.

I'm so glad to have him by my side.

And finally, I wanna thank my husband, my girls, my family and friends.

I love you.

Clearly, this year's speech is different.

Due to COVID, we're not at the Capitol.

Right now, healthcare professionals are working hard to keep us safe as Omicron surges.

While 2021 wasn't as miraculous as any of us wanted, we have made progress.

We're stronger in large part, thanks to science and life-saving vaccines.

We've come a long way.

And I'm encouraged about the path ahead.

After a polar vortex, a pandemic, a national recession, multiple 500-year flooding events, and a kidnapping and murder plot, I've been asked, how the heck do I keep doing this?

Well, my answer is simple.

I show up for every Michigan family.

I wanna keep delivering on the kitchen table issues.

And on a personal level, I want my girls to see their moms stand her ground, live her values, even through unexpected challenges and constant threats.

Isn't that what we all want?

To make a difference for the people we love most.

And the truth is we want the same things, a good paying job, great schools, clean water, safe communities, thriving small businesses, a chance to get ahead and hope for our future.

Tonight, I will stay focused on the things that unite us.

I'll speak to the progress we've made together, the opportunity we have right now, and why we all believe in Michigan.

The state of our state is strong and getting stronger every day.

First, let's talk about the roads.

The pandemic showed us, it slowed us down a bit.

But since I took office, Michigan has repaired, rebuilt, or rehabilitated over 13,000 lane miles of road and over 900 bridges in every region of our state while supporting nearly 82,000 jobs.

Now that's enough miles to drive from the Michigan-Ohio border, all the way to the Mighty Mac over 40 times.

In 2021, in 2021 alone, we fixed Gratiot, Macomb, I-496 in Lansing, 196 in Allegan, 69 in Genesee, 94 in Kalamazoo, US 41 in Marquette, and we're forging ahead on the Gordie Howe Bridge in Detroit, which will be taller than the Statue of Liberty when it's completed.

Recently, the Army Corps of Engineers answered our call to invest in the Soo Locks, securing funding to finish the job in Sault Ste.

Marie.

That's a big deal for the UP and for our state's economy.

Last year, I reinstated prevailing wage for state construction contracts.

That means we get the best trained workforce and the best value for our tax dollars.

Now, our task on infrastructure from roads to lead pipes, to high speed internet, it's large due to decades of neglect and underfunding.

That's why we're fixing our roads and bridges with the right mix and materials so they stay fixed.

And we're creating good paying skilled trades jobs along the way, the kind you can raise a family on with solid benefits and a secure retirement.

Thanks to many in our congressional delegation and our federal partners, we have billions more headed our way from the bipartisan infrastructure plan that we'll use to turbocharge our efforts.

So when you see those orange barrels, number one, slowdown, there are people working.

And number two, those orange barrels means we are moving dirt and fixing the damn roads.

I know at times our nation's Capitol feels hopelessly gridlocked, but at our state Capitol, Republicans and Democrats have shown we can come together to put Michiganders first.

Together, we delivered over $420 million in relief to small businesses, empowering them to expand operations and retain over 200,000 jobs through COVID.

We expanded access to high quality childcare.

And now, over one in three children in Michigan, 12 and under are eligible for low or no cost childcare.

You can go to michigan.gov/childcare to see if you're eligible too.

For our Michigan state police who protect and serve with the utmost professionalism, we built new posts in Walker and Grand Rapids.

For law enforcement, we funded better training, delivered hazard pay and expanded resources for local police departments.

As a former prosecutor, public safety is a core issue for me.

We'll keep making investments to reduce crime and protect families.

And our criminal justice system reforms have helped hundreds of thousands of Michiganders who served their time, secure jobs and housing with a clean slate.

Together, we cared for those who served our nation by building a new veterans home in Macomb County and another in Grand Rapids.

We eliminated the cost barrier for 170,000 Michiganders for getting skills and better paying jobs through the Michigan Reconnect and Futures for Frontliners.

These programs boost our economy and empower our people.

People like Caroline, a former in-home care provider, and mom of two who got straight A's in her first semester at Mott Community College.

And Jody, a Reconnect recipient, the first of eight siblings to go to college.

She's on the dean's list at Grand Rapids Community College.

These programs have given them opportunity and open new doors for their families.

I want them to know we're all rooting for them.

And together, we made the largest education investment in state history without raising taxes, something we've done three years in a row.

Last year, we closed the funding gap between schools, something that four governors before me tried to do.

We've invested $8,700 into every student in every district to improve their in-class experience.

We invested in on campus mental health and delivered checks directly to educators who go above and beyond for our kids every day.

I know how anxious and tired parents are feeling right now.

As a mom, I get it.

That's why I'm making investments where they matter most, in classrooms, to help our kids get caught up.

And to our teachers, childcare professionals, aids, bus drivers, custodians, para-pros, administration, I see you.

Thank you for working tirelessly to help our kids thrive.

We're going to keep investing in recruitment and retention to increase your ranks.

Soon, I'll introduce a school aid budget that will mark the biggest state education funding increase in more than 20 years without raising taxes.

I wanna be crystal clear, students belong in school.

We know it's where they learn best.

Remote learning is not as fulfilling or conducive to a child's growth.

In person learning is critical to social development and mental health.

And that's why we will do everything we can to keep kids in the classroom.

We've all been through a lot.

It's rational to feel frustrated or exhausted or even cynical.

Fortunately, the cure for cynicism is competence.

These bipartisan accomplishments are a testament to what we can do together.

We must believe that better things are possible 'cause that's the only way they ever get done.

Just yesterday, we saw proof.

Last month, we worked together to sharpen Michigan's economic development tools.

And this week, we landed a $7 billion investment from General Motors that will create and retain 5,000 good paying manufacturing jobs, making electric vehicle batteries in Lansing and Orion Township.

The future of the auto industry is being built in Michigan, in plants like this one by union members.

And we're just getting started.

Historically, the knock on Michigan was that we didn't have the tools to compete with other states.

We moved too slowly and state government was dysfunctional.

Yesterday, the world saw what we can accomplish.

Democrats, Republicans, businesses, utilities, and labor joined forces to equip Michigan with solid economic tools to attract big projects and create thousands of jobs.

We showed the world we have the tools.

We move fast and we work together.

And Michigan is gonna win.

That brings us to what's next.

Tonight, I'm putting forward proposals that will build on the work that we've done together and grow our economy by cutting taxes and lowering costs.

First, taxes.

I believe that whenever possible, we should make taxes more fair for our seniors and working families.

Michiganders should be able to keep more of what they've earned.

In December, I signed a bipartisan bill, cutting the personal property taxes for small business owners.

And last November, we repealed the tampon tax, the sales tax on menstrual products, saving women hundreds of dollars in taxes.

When it comes to delivering for women, I will keep finding ways to lower their costs and I'll veto any legislation that would take away their right to choose.

My proposals tonight will cut taxes for seniors and working families.

For our seniors, let's work together to repeal the retirement tax.

I first called to repeal this tax back in 2019.

It's time to get it done.

If we phase it out over the next few years, we can save half a million households in Michigan an average of a thousand bucks a year.

That's money for prescriptions, rent, car payments, or gifts for grandkids.

Repealing the retirement tax will help real people.

People like Tim from Marquette or Susan and Dick from Jackson.

Tim worked for 30 years as a corrections officer, a difficult, dangerous line of work.

Susan and Dick taught for over 30 years in Branch and Hillsdale counties.

They serve their communities.

They saved.

They did everything right.

And after, they finally retired and budgeted on their fixed incomes, their pensions, 401(k)s and IRAs were taxed.

They all had to go back to work just to pay the bills.

Today, Tim is painting and working odd jobs while Dick is a driver's ed instructor.

Susan worked for over a decade at a hair salon.

After a lifetime of work, they're still worried about affording the essentials.

And when I was in the legislature, I fought the retirement tax because it was wrong.

Let's make it right.

We can keep our word to Dick, Susan, Tim, and every Michigander who worked hard and played by the rules.

I'm ready to work across the aisle to roll back the retirement tax and save 500,000 households in Michigan an average of a thousand bucks a year.

Now, let's talk about cutting taxes for people working full-time, but who still can't get ahead.

It's time to increase the Michigan earned income tax credit.

The EITC is a bipartisan tax break for families offer the federal and state level.

It's part of the refund you get when you file your taxes.

In 2010, Michiganders received almost $3,000 tax refund from the combined EITC.

But a year later, taxes on working families went up to pay for a big tax giveaway for big corporations that they didn't need.

That's not right.

Restoring the EITC lifts more than 22,000 people out of working poverty.

And it sends 730,000 families an average refund of almost 3,000 bucks that they can use to pay the bills.

Nearly a million kids, almost half the kids in Michigan benefit when we raised the EITC, means new backpacks, warmer coats or hot meals.

Let's get that done too.

Now, let's talk about how we lower costs.

We are all bearing the brunt of inflation.

You see it when you buy your groceries or boots for your kids.

We have made meaningful progress to lower costs, and we should build on that work now.

In 2019, I signed bipartisan auto insurance reform, saving drivers hundreds of dollars a year.

Thanks to our reform, insurance companies are sending every driver a $400 refund check per vehicle by May 9th of this year.

And our Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson is saving Michiganders time and money because we can renew our licenses and plates online or stop in the office for an average of only 20 minutes.

We also lowered the cost of higher education.

Thanks to Michigan Reconnect, and Futures for Frontliners.

And we are delivering home heating help on energy bills.

So over 175,000 families can stay warm and safe through the winter.

We've done a lot of good work to lower costs, but I know families are feeling squeezed.

We must do more.

Rolling back the retirement tax and raising the EITC will keep more money in people's pockets and we can ensure less comes out.

Tonight, I have two proposals to lower costs on insulin and cars, and one to expand access to mental health.

First, insulin.

Hundreds of thousands of Michiganders need insulin to survive.

And the average cost of a single vial is almost a hundred bucks.

Most people who use it need two or three vials a month, which is up to $3,600 a year.

Too many Michiganders are forced to forego insulin or to ration it, putting their lives at risk.

For years, drug companies have been jacking up insulin prices.

The average price tripled from 2009 to 2019.

They rip billions on life-saving medicine because without serious competition, they name their own price.

That is unconscionable.

Yesterday, Attorney General Dana Nessel took action.

She launched an investigation under the Michigan Consumer Protection Act into one of the three largest drug companies that makes nearly all the insulin in the US.

Meanwhile, in the Michigan legislature, there have been bipartisan bills introduced to cap the cost of insulin at 50 bucks a month.

We all agree, Insulin costs too much.

And I know we can work together to hold drug companies accountable to lower costs and save lives.

Let's get that done too.

Next, let's talk about making electric vehicles more affordable.

As we saw this week, we're building on our rich auto manufacturing heritage and moving towards a clean energy future.

Tonight, I wanna talk about how we can help Michigan's families be a part of the clean energy transition by lowering the cost of electric vehicles.

Every year, thousands more electric vehicles are sold in Michigan and all of our major automakers have committed to electrifying 100% of their fleets over the next 10 to 15 years.

Electric vehicles cost half as much to fuel and maintain as gas-powered cars.

Switching to electric will save families thousands of dollars a year.

And that's why I'm proposing a combined $2,500 electric vehicle rebate for families, 2000 for the car and 500 for in-home charging equipment.

This will build on the $7,500 federal electric vehicle credit.

We can get this done.

We can lower the cost of electric vehicles by nearly $10,000.

We can make it easier for Michiganders to go electric.

And finally, let's talk about mental health.

Mental health is just as important as physical health.

And I want every person in Michigan to have access to the health care they deserve.

We should invest in our mental health workforce so we can expand access.

Nearly 40% of Michiganders do not get treatment for their mental illness.

We will Address the shortfall by expanding Michigan's loan repayment program for mental health professionals.

And we'll make a historic investment to retain and recruit hundreds more mental health workers.

I will propose another bold investment in mental health in next year's school aid budget, building on the work we did last year to help schools hire more than 560 nurses, counselors, and social workers.

Together, we can grow our mental health workforce and expand access to mental health care.

Tonight, I've laid out my plans to cut taxes for retirees and working families, to lower costs on insulin and electric vehicles, and expand access to mental health.

As always, I'll work with anyone to deliver on these kitchen table issues.

I'll also work to invest the federal resources we have, received with plans I released last year, like the Michigan New Economy, which would grow our middle-class, support small businesses, and invest in our communities.

I also have a message for the folks in DC.

Fund the CHIPS Act so we can fight the chip crisis head on.

We have a once in a generation opportunity on our hands, and I know that together, we can do big things.

Through everything we face over the last few years, I've thought often about the time in my life when I was sandwiched between two generations of my own family.

Taking care of my newborn daughter and my mom who was dying of brain cancer.

I adjusted to a new job.

I fought my mom's insurance company, and I cared for my baby.

I learned I could do more than I had ever imagined.

It can be hard to see in the moment, but tough times make us stronger.

Making a difference for the people we love, it's what motivates all of us.

It's the reason I'm standing here today.

It's why I get up determined and optimistic about our future.

I want a better future for my girls and all our kids.

Even on the hardest day, I am grateful to serve my fellow Michiganders.

That desire to do drive so many of us.

We all have a story when we stepped up and did more than we ever thought possible for the people we love most.

That's our spirit.

It lives in our stories.

We are doers, united against inaction.

We're optimists, united against pessimism.

We're believers, united against cynicism.

We fight for each other, not with each other.

We come together to get things done.

We are capable of greatness.

The question we have to ask ourselves is, "Do we believe in Michigan?"

I know I do.

I believe because of you.

I will work hard everyday to put Michiganders first.

And I will always believe in Michigan because we are strong and getting stronger every day.

Thank you and good night.

(ceremonious music) - We are back now in Studio C for our analysis on what you just heard as Governor Gretchen Whitmer delivered her fourth State of the State message.

Many Republicans in the audience tonight are hoping that's the last one that she'll be doing.

She'll have something to say about that as this year unfolds, but let's get to our panelists now.

We have Bill and Jordyn and Cheyna and Stephen.

You know I always do this so you're probably prepared for us.

Mr. Ballenger, give me a headline from this speech, please.

- Governor is buoyant and optimistic about Michigan's future.

- Jordan.

- Whitmer plays it safe with State of the State priorities.

- Cheyna.

- A lot of togetherness talk, not a lot of specific plans to get it done.

- And Mr. Henderson.

- Whitmer looks to November with promises of tax cuts and other goodies.

- How about this one?

Governor Whitmer checks all the boxes.

(Bill and Stephen laughing) If you got a problem, I got a solution.

Inflation bugging you?

The Lieutenant Governor actually nailed this earlier this morning.

He said there's something in here for everybody.

Jordyn, your take on what you heard.

- I mean, like I said, she played it pretty safe.

There was something for everybody in this speech.

I mean, it's really hard to get angry over the prospect of a pension tax cut.

It's hard to get angry over the idea of an electric vehicle rebate or increased mental health supports, but kind of like what Cheyna pointed out.

I mean, there wasn't a whole lot of specifics to the general public in these priorities.

And as Stephen pointed out, a lot of these priorities hinge on her, sort of continuing to get the ball rolling throughout a potential next term.

- Cheyna, isn't it's what governors do in this speech?

This is their one time during the year where they can ignore us, okay, and speak directly to the people.

This is not a speech, whereas she's gonna lay out all the warts that they have to deal with.

This is a speech for her to say, "Hey," what was it?

"State of the state is strong and it's getting stronger."

That's what governors do.

- Yeah, but given that it's an opportunity to speak right to the people, it should also be an opportunity to get people excited.

She wasn't really doing a whole lot besides listing some things that she's gotten done, which because of COVID, she hasn't met all of the goals that she has set out before, and giving a lot of ideas that she wants to do.

But we're not hearing her really actually even really mentioned Republicans and the problems that she's having with them.

I mean, it was just all incredibly mellow.

What she really shied away from was COVID and how we're going to get through what is the pandemic that is now becoming endemic, and what is the plan for that?

I mean, she hit a lot of things, but she also was really quiet on some big things that I think people may have been searching for.

- [Tim] Stephen.

- Yeah.

I mean, I think if you look at the promises around, the EITC and the pension tax, I think they're kind of an interesting pairing in the sense that those were things that Republicans did many years ago now as a way of quote, unquote, "accelerating the economy, growing the economy."

They talked about the need to do both of those.

And they've kind of been hanging out there as I think kind of low hanging fruit for Democrats for a really long time to come back and say, "You know what?

These guys raised your taxes.

They took money out of your pocket.

One reason to keep us in office is to get that money back."

I think it's a really interesting strategy as you think about her starting this campaign to get re-elected.

People like issues like that.

And lots of people were very angry about that pension tax when it was passed, and they're still angry now.

I think overall, the speech like Cheyna said was kind of a mixed bag of lots of different things.

But I think those two things are really gonna resonate with voters.

- Well, I'm gonna guess that somewhere tomorrow, some Republican is gonna say, "Governor, why didn't you do this since you ran on the issue of eliminating the retirement?

Why did it take you three years to get there?"

Won't somebody say that tomorrow morning?

- They might have.

- It can.

- That's a great point.

Yeah, go ahead, Bill.

Sorry.

(laughs) - Go ahead, Bill.

Yep.

- It takes the legislature to pass the legislation to do something with the pension tax.

Look, let's correct something here.

The EITC was a creation of Jennifer Granholm back in 2006, not the Republicans.

Snyder cut it back.

- [Stephen] Yeah, right.

Getting rid of, not cutting it back, right.

- Yes.

And now, Whitmer is saying, "Let's get it back up there again."

The pension tax, there's always been a split in the Republican Party about whether the pension tax is a good idea or not.

And by the way, that's a misnomer.

It's not a tax.

It was a credit on the tax that Snyder took away.

And now, Whitmer is saying, "Let's give the credit back."

And honestly, I think that was the greatest thing tonight.

Don't blame Whitmer if nothing got done.

Blame the Republicans.

They control the House and Senate.

They can pass the bill and send it to her.

And she promised to sign it when she ran for governor in 2018. and she should do it again.

And she said tonight, she will.

- I think at the end of the day, the Republicans and the Ds will get together on this.

But we already saw from the Senate Republican leader this afternoon, who did do a briefing, Mr. Shirkey, who said, "If she's just calling for the seniors to get this break, we need to broaden that out.

We need to give all pensioners a break.

We need to give all people are under the tent."

And he said, "If she's willing to go there, then we can come on board."

So this is the opening round, if you will.

And at the end of the day, I think they get together on this.

Cheyna, the idea of this earned income tax credit is confusing to the voters.

Can you explain it in 25 words or less?

- Honestly, I don't think I can.

And I think that's probably one of her problems.

Yeah, exactly.

I mean, she spent a lot of time in this speech talking about the earned, EIC, the earned income tax credit.

And I think a lot of people were watching this going, "Huh?"

I mean, that sounds cool, but let me Google what it is.

And then you miss what she said.

And another thing that she was really missing with all of this is explaining to people, "We need to get Republicans on board with this.

This is what I'm in.

This is what I'm interested in.

But what we need is for Republicans to support me, to do all of these great things that I'm interested in."

And she really didn't have that call out for Republicans to work with her.

She kept saying together, but she didn't hold their feet to the fire.

- Stephen, let's pick up on a point that Cheyna made in the previous remarks vis-a-vis her attention to COVID.

I think it got about one paragraph, certainly not a heck of a lot more than that.

Did she have a responsibility to do a deeper dive for the people of Michigan on that one?

- I certainly think so.

After the hearings we saw last week, that really pulled the covers back a little on what happened in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities during the height of the pandemic.

Now, look, you can argue all day over whether this was neglect or intentional, kind of looking away, there's gonna be a lot of give and take.

I think about why these things happen.

But the fact that they did happen is worthy of the governor's comment.

I mean, she's the chief executive and a lot of these decisions were made by people in her administration.

She has been willing before to say that they made the decisions that they were counseled to make and that some of them in retrospect should have been different or could have been different.

I don't think there would have been anything wrong with saying that here as a way of, again, reassuring people that she's focused on this and that she has compassion for people who still have a lot of questions about what happened to their loved ones and why it happened.

I think it was a terribly missed opportunity.

- I think this administration thinks they've had enough of this story, Jordyn, and to give any more publicity or legs to it was probably not going to be on her agenda.

- No, because I feel like if she were to mention it at all, any mention to it would just invite Republican ability to attack her on the subject.

I mean, we saw in the hearings last week, which Stephen alluded to where the auditor general came forward and said that they found additional dots that weren't reported from state long-term care facilities, which the DHHS maintains were facilities that didn't have to report.

It's this back and forth of, "Did they cover it up?"

"No, they didn't."

Even the auditor general himself in these hearings said that we wouldn't really feel right calling it and under count or something to that effect, I'm not remembering his quote crystal clear right now, but I mean, mentioning it at all would just be inviting a score of attacks.

What I feel like though with COVID that she mentioned briefly, should've kind of keyed in more on because now, Republicans definitely will lean in on this is her comment about, "I wanna be crystal clear, students belong in schools," but then not really offering any type of explanation or plan or any sort of deeper dig into how she intends to have schools that aren't going virtual.

I mean, Flint is virtual, I believe, indefinitely.

Detroit is virtual until the end of this month.

There's a couple other districts here and there that their students are gone back to remote learning due to COVID.

I mean, that's a point that Republicans have continued to hammer her on is get students back in school, which granted, large amount of them are.

But there are still districts, including the state's largest where students are not back in school.

And that really does, it's a missed opportunity for her not to sort of stop letting Republicans talk for her on this subject.

- Look at, Bill, this, yeah, go ahead.

- Well, I'm just gonna say you hit the nail on the head at the beginning of the program.

This is a one chance she has to talk to the people of Michigan without us mucking it up with our commentary.

Is she gonna talk about COVID and everything that happened the last two years?

Hell, no.

She is gonna say, "I don't wanna say more about this.

Let's look to the future.

Let's be optimistic."

She doesn't wanna mention that at all.

- Well, you know what, apart from this nursing home thing which the Republicans are making a big deal out of.

In fact, one of the Republican candidates had a video out in response to this and a whole part of it was about that COVID situation.

Mr. Shirkey made the same comments today.

But she could have said something to the terms for all of us who are still worried about this disease and maybe something to say, "You know what, We may have to really adapt to this thing being in our lives for the rest of our lives.

And here's what we should be doing as we point towards the future.

There are some good signs out there.

Hospitalizations are coming down, but this is not the time to let down our guard," which was her message early on in the pandemic.

How many times did she say that?

Wash your hands, social distance.

Don't let down your guard.

You had none of that revisiting going on here at all.

Right, Cheyna?

- No, I mean you had none of it.

And I was very surprised by that.

And honestly, given that a lot of people, and a lot of groups, a lot of her supporters in the past have lately been frustrated with how MIA the governor has been about COVID.

This was really an opportunity for her to at least come out and say, "Hey, I still got this.

I'm still with you.

We have a lot of parents.

I'm one of them with kids under five who are very frustrated and incredibly concerned right now because there's nothing out there really protecting our kids, including not being able to get vaccinated right now."

And so I think there's probably gonna be a lot of parents and honestly, maybe even teacher groups when she says, "I wanna make sure that everybody is in school."

I'm sure a lot of teachers were like, "Okay, but you haven't been helping us out with ensuring that we're going to be safe and that the kids are gonna be safe in school."

So I think a lot of people, when they hear her give a speech and she really doesn't mention COVID or a way forward with COVID, that's not gonna work for them.

- Stephen, let's talk about, did she successfully check off the box that she fixed the you know what roads?

- Well, she talked about the roads that are getting fixed, but I mean, if you're driving around, especially here in Metro Detroit, you're still bumping your car around and there's still the disruption of construction.

I don't know that you can count that as an unequivocal win.

We didn't get the money that she initially wanted for it.

I mean, there's still a lot of money that needs to be spent on roads that as a public, at least were not supportive or the legislature is not supportive of giving to her.

And so we continue to just be behind the curve in terms of catching up on backlog maintenance and of course, rebuilding roads that badly need it.

I think she had no choice because of her affiliation with this issue, which was her choice during the campaign to talk about it and to talk about it in terms of the wins that she has.

But overall, I don't think this is a win for her and it may not be explicitly her fault, but three years in, we still have a lot of the problems we have before.

- In other words, you're not impressed with her 13,000 miles and 900 bridges that she fixed, all right.

Listen, I wanna get back to the tax cut fever which this town, Jordyn absolutely loves.

I mean, you get a bunch of politicians in a room and an electioneer who'll say, "You know what?

We can give money back to the people."

Everybody, "Where do I sign up?"

What's going on?

- I mean, it's a win for everybody.

It's something that politicians can take home and say to their districts, "Look, we're putting money back in your pocket."

It's something the governor can campaign on and say, "Look, I managed to get a legislature that doesn't seem to be able to agree on a whole lot of things to be able to agree on something and not just one thing, but something that is really gonna put real money back into the pockets of Michiganders."

I mean, it is this like metaphorical golden ticket that everybody gets a win on it.

It's the same thing with the GM incentives or the I'm blanking on the actual term for it now, but what we pass back in December that was a billions of dollars to get more businesses to come into the state, which is what we saw with yesterday's announcement.

I mean, it's one of those things that everybody can take back home and pat themselves on the back and say, "We did good here and we did good for you."

- Exactly, exactly.

You're spot on.

And now we have however, entering this tax discussion, Cheyna, that the Republicans have floated, rolling back the state income tax rate.

Hold on, folks.

Here we go again.

We've seen this movie before.

They're talking about making it, bringing it down to 3.9%, which was the quote, "promise" years ago.

Will she cave on this?

Will she make this part of the deal?

I don't think she's gonna have a choice.

- I mean, she probably won't have a choice.

I mean, it's possible that she could try and pass all of these other tax incentives and credits and cuts and things like that, and then maybe try and kind of sweep that one away.

But at the end of the day, I think that's probably something that she's gonna get a lot of push on.

It's an election year.

And it's something that she's gonna wanna come out with a win on.

- Bill, I don't think there'll be any sweeping away on the 3.9.

Do you?

- Well, it's gonna be a battle between what the Republicans in the legislature wanna accomplish with tax relief and what Governor Whitmer wants to accomplish.

And she obviously wants to get the pension tax taken care of.

The Republicans should take that to the bank and they should get something in return.

And I think everybody will be happy.

And I think this is a good idea for everybody, and they're talking about the same thing, the question is how to put it together.

- Well, they have to be very careful because none of the $20 billion that they have in leftover COVID dollars can be used to reduce taxes, but it can be done indirectly.

So I think at the end of the day, the tax roll back is there.

It's a nice pop for everybody and everybody can go home.

On the $20 billion, which she didn't talk about, that would have been an interesting comment as to what her words to the legislature were, "Guys and ladies, let's spend this money and get it out into the hands of the people.

Let's stop dabbling on this issue."

Was it there or wasn't?

- I mean, I think there was, a tone here was more cooperative.

I'm sorry, Jordyn.

Go ahead.

- [Tim] Jordyn, go ahead.

- Oh, I was just gonna say, No, I mean, the Democrats are already, you have house minority leader, Donna Lasinski, putting out statements saying, "Come on, let's get this ball rolling."

There's multiple appropriations bills that are sitting, lying in, wait, dealing with COVID, dealing with small business.

I know one just passed through the House today.

It obviously has to go through the other chamber, but there there's billions still sitting unappropriated and we're slow walking this.

And a lot of people are getting more and more frustrated because we have the money.

Why don't we have the momentum?

- Let me just point out that the public, let me just quickly, the public TV stations did offer time to the Republican Party, excuse me, to the Republicans in the legislative leadership to respond to this speech tonight, and they graciously declined the offer.

So I will make that point.

But Senator Shirkey did speak to this earlier today.

And basically, his take is, "We wanna be very careful.

This is a boatload of money.

We wanna get it right.

We don't wanna waste it."

But by the same token, even the President of the United States without mentioning Michigan by name, said there were a number of states, Stephen, still sitting on this money.

He was not a happy camper over that because this is supposed to be quote, "stimulating the economy" so his numbers can go back up, right?

- Right.

I mean, I think there's a different national imperative than the message that the governor was trying to spread tonight.

I think about what she was saying tonight.

She was saying, "Look, when we work together, we get things done and I'm gonna put money in your pockets before the end of the year."

She could wrap that message up with talk about the EITC and the pension tax.

She didn't have to talk about the thing that they were disagreeing about.

I mean, she talked enough about the ways in which they have been able to come together to do things that were important to her and to the state.

I think it would have been a departure from that message to go and to talk about this money that the Republicans, no question are holding up.

It's the same, I think, philosophy behind not talking about COVID.

Think back to when the governor was talking about COVID all the time and talking about the mandates and the precautions and all those things, her numbers were going down.

People didn't like, a lot of people didn't like the things that she was saying.

And since she stopped doing that, her numbers have rebounded a little bit.

So I'm not sure that this speech was the place to get into these things that are frustrating for her or for Michiganders.

This was was a little bit of, "Hey, we're going into the election with a bunch of potential wins.

Let's get them."

- [Tim] Yeah.

But Bill, she never said it.

- [Jordyn] Yeah, yeah, yeah.

- Yep.

Go ahead.

- Look, I've heard a lot of State of the States over the last half century.

I have never heard the word bipartisan used as much as it was tonight.

I mean, she said bipartisan all whole slew at times.

And actually, if you look at her image and the fact that the Republicans, really many of them hate her and haven't gotten along with her, she's basically saying, "I'm extending an olive branch.

Let's work together.

Let's be bipartisan."

She's racing towards the middle.

She's running for reelection.

She wants to convince independence, "I am a reasonable Democrat.

I'm not partisan.

I wanna work with the Republicans."

Let's see if the Republicans and Gretchen Whitmer could get together and get anything done.

That is the big thing coming out of tonight's speech to me.

- Should she have put some meat on those bones by mentioning by name those Republicans that you.

- No.

- No?

Wait a minute.

You don't wanna do a shout out to Mr. Shirkey, "Play ball with me."

"Mr. Speaker, play ball with."

You don't wanna do that?

- No.

Don't do it.

Don't make like semi-threats.

- No, no, no, not a threat.

- No, no.

It's an extension of the olive branch.

Everybody loves to have their name mentioned.

- Yeah, the olive branch, whatever.

No, no, no.

She made it very clear what she is really interested in accomplishing and that is, "I'm racing to the middle.

I've got to get these independent voters who tilt Republican and will see me as somebody who wants to work with Republicans."

That's all she needs to do.

And she doesn't need to get into specifics on all these issues that everybody is concerned about.

Are you kidding?

A governor should never do that in a State of the State and hardly any of them ever have.

And she didn't tonight.

And she was smart not to do so.

- This, Cheyna, could have been a little more of a political speech tonight, which she chose not to do.

Is that your assessment?

- Yeah.

I mean, this was probably the most moderate speech that we've, I don't know, that we've heard in a while probably.

I mean, it was, like we've been saying, it was incredibly down the middle and I think there was absolutely a lot of political calculus there.

I don't know that it was a political calculus That's going to work.

I understand the idea that she's trying to get those Independence.

She's trying to get the Republican leaning.

People say that she's a moderate.

That being said, that's not gonna excite the actual Democrats that she needs in order to win.

I'm very curious if this sort of like, "I am the center line.

I am very moderate.

I am here for everyone."

I don't know if that's gonna work for her come November.

- Stephen, what's your take on that?

- Yeah.

I mean, I think it's a gamble of some sort, right?

Her concern is the same concern all Democrats have when they run statewide, it's turnout.

How can you get your people excited enough to go to the polls and vote?

And then you got to capture a fair amount of the Independence.

I think talking about tax cuts at this point when everybody's pocketbook is hurting or restoring tax credits, I think that was a super smart strategy, right?

Those are the kinds of things she does wanna talk about, and those are the kinds of things that will get people excited.

I am not sure about these other things though.

I mean, talking about COVID has not worked for her.

I mean, it's worked from a policy standpoint and it got the disease under control, but it was somewhat of a political disaster.

And going back to that, for instance, tonight would have invited more of that anger and criticism.

She circled around it.

And I think that was probably the right call.

- Bill, it seemed to be this was the old vice-presidential line, "As you pick a VP candidate, do no harm."

She did no harm to herself in this speech tonight, right?

- I agree with that completely.

Yes, you're right.

- Do you?

Yes, Jordyn.

She did no harm to herself.

- You ask whether that she did any harm to herself.

No, I don't think that she did any harm to herself.

And I have to honestly agree with Bill the more that I've heard him talk about obviously, no gubernatorial candidate, no governor running for reelection is going to come out with a State of the State and say, "Here's all of the things I didn't accomplish or couldn't accomplish, or here's all the hot button issues that I, was either down to the cross on or that nothing really happened with."

She played it safe.

She played two strong points and she played the points like we said earlier that everybody can take home and call a win on.

And at the end of the day, that's really all politicians and the average voter are looking for, something for everybody.

- Very good, panelists.

Thank you for your insightful comments as always.

The checks are in the mail, all right.

(laughs) Hopefully, the mail will get to you, all right.

We'll have more of commentary on the speech and other developments in our town this week with through "Off the Record," over most of these same stations.

And until we see you there, good night.

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Information at mpca.net.

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