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Some weeks back, Tim Alberta, national correspendent for Politico newly relocated to Michigan, wrote a lengthy, laudatory profile of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, based on rather extraordinary access, given the circumstances -- he got close enough to listen to her make constituent calls, and a photographer took pictures of her washing her hands at her personal kitchen sink.
Now comes a similarly comprehensive profile in the Free Press, which reads a little strange, if only because Kathy Gray and Todd Spangler are writing for a readership who already know Whitmer, and don't really need to be introduced.
(Then consider that this was likely written primarily for Gannett's national network, and it makes more sense.)
There's not much that a well-informed Michigan resident doesn't already know, although we're introduced to the extended family in the first paragraphs:
When Liz Gereghty gets a call from her sister, it’s not the name Gretchen or Big Sis that pops up on the caller ID on her cellphone.
Instead, Gereghty has changed her contact profile to show that it’s “The Woman from Michigan” calling. It’s a tribute to her sister — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer – and the task and challenges she’s encountered during a global pandemic that has hit Michigan particularly hard.
And we learn again that the state senate majority leader called her "batshit crazy," get standard quotes from the opposition, etc., and this:
Larry Sabato, director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia and editor of Sabato’s Crystal Ball, a political handicapping site, said it’s easy enough to see Whitmer’s rise in how Republican operatives are suddenly attacking her; in some cases repeating false claims like those suggesting that her Stay Home, Stay Safe executive order stops people from buying child car seats.
“You don’t get attacked like she’s been attacked unless the other party sees you as a big threat,” Sabato said. “She’s had a meteoric rise. She’s a new governor, but she comes across beautifully on TV. For people who are not clued into the ins and outs of Michigan politics, she presents a good image for the state.”
Anyway, whether she's the country's vice president in another year or still working in Michigan, it's probably worth your time to go through. No access to watch her hand-washing, but there are new quotes from a Zoom interview.
