Politics
Whitmer Shows How Democrats Are Playing With Fire in Cozying Up to Trump
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan stood glumly in the Oval Office, hoping no one would take her picture.
She had not expected to be there, standing in front of the cameras, as President Trump signed executive orders punishing those who opposed his 2020 election lies. Ms. Whitmer, a prominent Democrat seen as a possible 2028 presidential candidate, had come to the White House to discuss funding for an Air National Guard base near Detroit and aid for thousands of Michiganders who had just been hit by an ice storm.
Then Mr. Trump’s aides surprised her on Wednesday by ushering her into the Oval Office not for her scheduled one-on-one meeting with the president, but for a politically loaded appearance before the press corps. She found herself an unwilling participant in his unending reality show, with photos of her rocketing around group chats of Democratic strategists who wondered what on earth she was doing.
The episode was the result of a remarkable attempt at reconciliation between Ms. Whitmer and Mr. Trump, who dismissed her in 2020 as “that woman from Michigan” during a clash over his administration’s pandemic response.
The day after the inauguration, Ms. Whitmer penned a handwritten letter — which has not been previously reported — congratulating Mr. Trump, saying she looked forward to working together and praising his support for the auto industry in his first address, according to a person who relayed the text of the letter. Ms. Whitmer included her cellphone number and invited Mr. Trump to call her if she could be of any help to him.
The outreach worked for her, but it came at a cost.
Her whipsaw experience with Mr. Trump illustrates the political risks that Democratic governors face as a small group of them try to cultivate relationships with a president reviled by their party but in control of vast amounts of federal funding for states.
These governors — exemplified by Ms. Whitmer but also including Gavin Newsom of California, Phil Murphy of New Jersey and Kathy Hochul of New York — have met with the president in the Oval Office, fielded his phone calls and toned down their language toward him.
Many Democrats see Mr. Trump as a transactional politician who is susceptible to flattery and are acutely aware of how he has sought to punish liberal states and groups. He has aimed to cut off billions of dollars to universities in states with Democratic governors and threatened funding for local public education and public health, leaving state leaders scrambling to find alternative sources of cash or cut spending in other areas.
But Democratic governors also have their own political ambitions to consider. Many in the party see their state leaders as the best hope to win back the White House in 2028, and the liberal base increasingly wants elected officials to aggressively fight Mr. Trump’s actions.
That is why a second group of Democratic governors, led by JB Pritzker of Illinois, Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania and Tim Walz of Minnesota, has been more publicly antagonistic toward Mr. Trump. Their tougher stance may reflect how they have one eye on their own re-election bids in 2026 and another on the 2028 Democratic presidential primary contest.
“Democrats from the center to the left believe Trump is an autocrat who represents an existential threat to democracy and our rights,” said Neera Tanden, the chief executive of the Center for American Progress, a top liberal think tank. “They expect their leaders to meet the moment by fighting his dictatorial attacks, not placate, negotiate or assuage because doing so makes him stronger and bully others more.”
In an interview on Friday, Ms. Whitmer said she had no regrets.
“Public service is about putting the people of Michigan before my own interest,” she said. “My job was to try to get help for people who were suffering as a result of the ice storm, to land more investment at Selfridge air base, to protect the Great Lakes and to fight for the auto industry. And that’s what I was doing.”
She added, “I’m always going to show up for the people of Michigan, and that’s probably why I got elected by double digits.”
‘I Listen a Lot’ to Trump
Former President Joseph R. Biden Jr. dealt with Republican governors much differently, barely speaking with them except about disaster relief.
But with Mr. Trump in office, Democratic governors have found more opportunities.
Several beyond Ms. Whitmer, including Ms. Hochul, Mr. Murphy and Mr. Newsom, have had one-on-one meetings with Mr. Trump in the Oval Office, with one of Ms. Hochul’s sessions lasting two hours.
The president also calls Democratic governors, and picks up calls from them, with some frequency. He has given several of them his cellphone number.
Mr. Murphy has a longstanding relationship with Mr. Trump, forged during the pandemic and bolstered by the president’s frequent trips to his golf club in New Jersey. After the president was shot at a campaign rally in Butler, Pa., in July, Mr. Murphy and his wife, Tammy, visited him in Bedminster, N.J.
With Mr. Trump back in office, Mr. Murphy has sought to find common ground with him in opposing congestion pricing in New York City and fixing sinkholes on Interstate 80 in New Jersey.
When Mr. Murphy and his wife were at the White House in February for a National Governors Association dinner, the New Jersey governor invited Mr. Trump to an upcoming ribbon-cutting for the new Portal North Bridge over the Hackensack River. Ms. Murphy also invited Mr. Trump to come to an Ultimate Fighting Championship event in June in Newark.
Mr. Trump expressed interest — but the governor’s outreach has not spared him the Trump administration’s ire. The top federal prosecutor in New Jersey, a Trump ally, said on Friday that she planned to investigate Mr. Murphy over immigration policy.
In December, before Mr. Trump was inaugurated, Mr. Newsom talked himself up as a leading figure in the Democratic opposition to Mr. Trump. But his posture changed after fires ravaged greater Los Angeles in January, leaving the California governor in need of nearly $40 billion in federal aid.
When Mr. Trump and his wife, Melania, arrived to review damage from the blazes, Mr. Newsom met them at the airport and kissed Mrs. Trump on the cheek. Shortly after, he traveled to Washington for a 90-minute meeting in the Oval Office. Mr. Newsom has also hosted Trump allies including Charlie Kirk and Stephen K. Bannon on his new podcast.
Ms. Hochul has had two Oval Office meetings with Mr. Trump and is in regular contact with him. She said in an interview that he had called her occasionally to check up on New York projects that interested him. Last week, on the day he announced far-reaching tariffs, she recalled, Mr. Trump phoned her to ask questions about Penn Station and Amtrak.
Asked to describe their lengthy conversations, Ms. Hochul replied, “I listen a lot.”
She went on: “I’m always willing to engage and talk and listen and find out areas where I can do what I have to do, which is, No. 1, to protect New York State. When you challenge our values or our policies, then we have a fight. But I can also be adversarial without being acrimonious, and work toward common areas.”
Steven Cheung, the White House communications director, said in a statement: “It’s no surprise every elected official in America — Republican or Democrat — wants a productive working relationship with President Trump. Because President Trump is the president of all Americans, he continues to work with anyone that is willing to help advance policies that benefit the American people.”
Tensions and an ‘Emergency Cocktail Hour’
Plenty of other Democratic governors have kept their distance from Mr. Trump.
Aides to Gov. Maura Healey of Massachusetts, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico, Mr. Pritzker, Mr. Shapiro and Mr. Walz, among others, said each politician had yet to have a one-on-one meeting or phone call with Mr. Trump since he returned to power.
Mr. Shapiro, Mr. Pritzker and Mr. Walz, who are seen as some of the party’s most ambitious leaders, have been among the more forceful voices pushing back against Mr. Trump.
And despite Mr. Trump’s more conciliatory approach with some Democratic governors, he has still lashed out at others, especially when it serves his political agenda.
In February, he hosted a bipartisan group of governors at the White House as part of a weekend of events coordinated by the National Governors Association. During the meeting, Mr. Trump attacked Gov. Janet Mills of Maine, a Democrat, over her state’s policies on transgender athletes’ participation in sports.
After the dust-up, Ms. Healey convened what three people with knowledge of the planning called “an emergency cocktail hour” to discuss how to respond. Ms. Healey urged fellow governors to skip a dinner at the White House that night in protest.
“It was appalling and shocking what happened to Governor Mills and the way she was treated during that business meeting,” Ms. Healey said in an interview on Friday. “I think there was a feeling coming out of it shared by a lot of us that was just really wrong and we needed to come together and process some of that.”
But many Democrats attended anyway — and after the dinner, Mr. Trump led a bipartisan group of governors and their spouses on a nearly hourlong, impromptu tour of the White House. The president took them through the residence, showing off the Lincoln Bedroom and the Yellow Oval Room while regaling the group with historical facts, and finished the jaunt in the Oval Office.
Politics
Anti-ICE agitator charged with allegedly biting officers during Delaney Hall clashes
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
An anti-U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agitator was hit with federal charges after gnarly photos showed bloody bite marks he allegedly made into federal agents’ arms during violent clashes outside Delaney Hall detention center in Newark, New Jersey.
Brendan John Geier, a 26-year-old man from Madison, New Jersey, was part of a group of agitators blocking the road near Delaney Hall on Thursday night when ICE deportation officers instructed the group to move away, the U.S. Department of Justice said.
The group allegedly ignored the commands and instead violently engaged with the officers, according to the DOJ. Geier then “engaged in a struggle with deportation officers, kicking officers and ultimately biting an officer’s forearm, and another’s knuckle. Both victims received treatment at a local hospital,” prosecutors said. He was charged with assaulting federal officers and causing bodily injury and appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Cari Fais on Friday, the DOJ said.
“We will not tolerate the vicious attacks on ICE officers we’ve seen in New Jersey the last few days. These riots are clearly not ‘peaceful protests’ as you can see from the photos of these horrific wounds. Assault a federal officer, you’ll be held accountable,” Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche wrote in a Friday afternoon post on X.
NEW JERSEY AGITATORS BITE, KICK AND PUNCH ICE AGENTS AS DELANEY HALL CLASHES CONTINUE; 9 MORE ARRESTED: DHS
Blanche posted to X photos of bloodied ICE agents displaying their wounds.
Immigration agents display bloody wounds they allegedly incurred when New Jersey man Brendan John Geier bit them. May 28, 2026. (U.S. Department of Justice)
“Peaceful protest doesn’t translate to violently attacking federal law enforcement officers,” Blanche said in a statement. “Federal officers are protecting United States’ property and facilities. With virtually no local law enforcement support from New Jersey, rioters are regrouping and attacking. We will not tolerate the vicious attacks we have seen in Newark the last few days, and we will make arrests and hold people accountable for criminal conduct.”
“As alleged in the Justice Department’s complaint, this violent rioter savagely bit an ICE law enforcement officer outside of Delaney Hall. The Trump Administration will always stand with our law enforcement officers,” Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin also added in the statement. “Anyone who assaults a law enforcement officer will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
ANTI-ICE AGITATORS THROW WOODEN PALLETS, MATTRESSES AT FEDERAL AGENTS DURING CHAOTIC NJ DETENTION CENTER CLASH
Federal immigration officers clashed with protesters outside Delaney Hall in Newark, N.J., on Thursday. (Mostafa Bassim/Anadolu)
“As alleged, this defendant responded to lawful orders from federal officers by kicking one and biting two others who were performing their official duties,” U.S. Attorney Robert Frazer for the District of New Jersey also said in the statement. “Assaulting law enforcement officers is unacceptable. Period. Federal officers must be able to carry out their responsibilities without being subjected to violence, intimidation, or obstruction. This Office will continue to prosecute those who, as alleged here, assault officers and interfere with the lawful execution of their duties.”
“To be clear, peaceful protest does not mean biting, kicking, or punching law enforcement officers,” Acting Special Agent in Charge Spiros Karabinas of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Newark added in the statement.
“The repeated assaults on federal officers at Delaney Hall are criminal acts — not protected speech. Homeland Security Investigations is unwavering in its commitment to hold those who attack law enforcement fully accountable under the law,” Karabinas concluded.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
Demonstrations at Delaney Hall were in their sixth night by Thursday. (Mostafa Bassim/Anadolu)
Ongoing demonstrations outside Delaney Hall are entering their second week.
Fox News Digital contacted the DOJ for additional information.
On Saturday morning, anti-ICE agitators and counterprotesters were both seen outside Delaney Hall. A crowd was growing, and many officers were seen patrolling on bikes, with a visible divide between pro-ICE protesters and anti-ICE agitators.
New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill, who spent Memorial Day at Delaney Hall supporting the anti-ICE crowds, announced Friday that she was instructing New Jersey State Police to assume responsibility for public safety outside the detention center. Earlier in the week, Mullin had placed the blame on Sherrill for not allowing local law enforcement to cooperate with federal immigration authorities. DHS said local police were largely absent as federal agents were met with violent demonstrators.
Fox News’ Kimberly Ruiz contributed to this report.
Politics
Commentary: A second offering to Spencer Pratt, and 5 points about the L.A. mayor’s race
Well, I gave him a chance, offering my services.
I was willing to give the young novice a primer on what a mayor can and can’t do, and let him know City Hall is a reality show like no other he’s been on. But Spencer Pratt didn’t call me in response to my column last week.
I did, however, hear from a slew of his most ardent supporters.
Steven C. had this to say: “You’re a left-wing idiot, and … it’s time for you to retire. You’re a joke!!! You always have been!!! God bless Spencer Pratt and the 45th and 47th President of the United States Donald Trump!!!!!”
You may be onto something, Steven!!! I’ve been thinking about retiring!!!! But then a former reality TV star like Pratt comes along, launches unholy attacks on the huddled and unhoused masses, and tells Vanity Fair he had a chat with God, who told him He wants Pratt to be mayor of L.A!!!!! With people like this running for office, how can I retire?!!!!!
R.W. wrote to say: “You say Spencer has never done anything in his life…What credentials do you have? From what I’ve read about you, you are a lousy commie journalist who has never accomplished anything in your life!!”
Just recently, R.W., I replaced a broken toilet tank flush valve and I learned two Willie Nelson songs on the guitar. That’s not nothing.
Peter did not mince words: “Your piece on Pratt is a hit piece filled with bull— . You should go f— yourself before someone takes you out, which is the appropriate response to a s—bag like yourself. So please f— off and drop dead, which is exactly what you deserve.”
Peter, I did drop dead once. Cardiac arrest. While on the other side, I saw God, who told me to snap out of it because He was going to tell Spencer Pratt to run for mayor. Who knew God had a defibrillator?
All of these, by the way, were actual emails, and there were many more just like them. But it’s only fair to note that despite the fulminating knucklehead wing of Pratt’s posse, he’s tapped into a justifiable sense of frustration with City Hall, given homelessness, the Palisades inferno and budget issues that squeeze all manner of basic city services.
That’s why Mayor Karen Bass is paddling furiously, trying to keep her political career afloat. In the latest UC Berkeley-L.A. Times poll, Bass is at 26%, Nithya Raman at 25% and Pratt at 22%. That’s so tight, it appears that no one will get the 50% needed to win outright, and if we get a top-two runoff, it’s not clear who will go to the dance.
So as we close out the primary, with the election on Tuesday, five talking points come to mind.
Which candidate knows the city best?
Los Angeles has 114 distinct neighborhoods spread across 470 square miles (that’s 10 times the size of San Francisco), with an estimated 220 languages spoken. Diversity is a defining characteristic, and roughly half the population is Latino, which makes it a shame there’s no Latino candidate for mayor, especially given the raids and roundups by President Trump.
A mayor doesn’t have to speak six languages and know every corner of the city, but residents want to be seen and heard, and feel like they’re understood and represented.
Raman is well-versed on homelessness policy, and she’s spot-on about the need for greater urgency in problem-solving, but as my colleague Noah Goldberg reported, constituents in her district complain that they haven’t seen enough of her.
As I said, Pratt has wisely targeted municipal failure. But in the realm of outsider candidates with Republican credentials, Rick Caruso, who ran against Bass last time, was comfortable whether he was in the Valley, South L.A. or anywhere in between. And he easily connected with people. Would Pratt be a tourist in his own city?
By virtue of her job the last four years, Bass — who raised a blended Black and Latino family — knows the city best, although her unfavorability rating is a big problem.
What about the other candidates?
In the aforementioned poll, minister and housing activist Rae Huang had 9% and former educational technology businessman Adam Miller had 5%. Virtual unknowns, neither had a legit chance of winning, but they could be spoilers for one of the top three candidates.
I spoke to both, and if you’re undecided, you should read up on them before voting. On Huang’s website, the first words are “Homes are for people, not profit.” Miller wants to bring his success in the business world to City Hall, and when you consider his policy agenda along with his nonprofit work with veterans and homelessness, he’s a better candidate than Pratt.
But he wasn’t on a reality TV show.
Democrats ruined L.A. and California, right?
If only I had a nickel for every time a reader suggested that.
By 101 measures, Los Angeles is one of the great cities of the world and California has built the world’s fourth-largest economy while leading on climate change, so apocalyptic diagnoses are a bit off the mark.
Also, local elections are nonpartisan. You don’t run for mayor as a D or an R.
And yet it’s true that Democrats and their policies and sensibilities rule the day, and they have a lot to answer for in Los Angeles and in California.
But would the same critics suggest that in conservative cities like Fresno and Bakersfield, which have their own homelessness and other problems, Republicans are to blame?
When it comes to housing, poverty, healthcare and streets occupied by people who are addicted or mentally ill, the failures go back decades, touch all levels of government, and cross party lines.
Have I given up on Los Angeles?
When I pointed out that Pratt seemed unaware of these complexities, and of the structural limits of mayoral power, readers suggested he was rising to the challenge while I was giving up on L.A.
Not at all. I care about L.A. enough to hold its leaders to a higher accountability, and to scrutinize posers and pretenders who think they can do a better job.
My advice for the next mayor.
Fix what’s broken, celebrate what works and take responsibility for what doesn’t.
Now let me try one more time:
Spencer, give me a call.
You can’t tell us you had a conversation with God about running for mayor and not share more details.
Did God scold you for referring to the mayor as Karen “Basura,” which means trash in Spanish?
Did He say we should pull out of the ‘28 Olympics, or have any advice on how to fill potholes and fix sidewalks?
If you’re having regular conversations about City Hall with the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, we’re dying to know:
On homelessness, what would Jesus do?
steve.lopez@latimes.com
Politics
FBI arrests protester who threatened to kill ICE officer’s family at NJ detention center protest, Blanche says
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
Acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche on Friday said that a man who made death threats against a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer and his family at a protest in New Jersey Thursday night had been arrested.
The arrest came just hours after Blanche promised the protester, who was captured on video, would be found and arrested.
“That’s a federal crime,” Blanche said on Fox News’ “The Will Cain Show” on Thursday. “Not only threatening the ICE officer — but think about how disgusting this individual is by threatening his wife and his children with death.
In the video, the protester can be heard taunting the officer: “I will kill your whole f—ing family. Your whole f—ing family is dead. Your children and wife all dead. I have your face mother—er! All dead!”
ANTI-ICE AGITATOR SCREAMS ‘I’LL KILL YOUR WHOLE F- FAMILY’ DAY AFTER DEM GOV PRAISES ‘PEACEFUL PROTESTING’
Federal immigration officers clashed with protesters outside Delaney Hall in Newark, N.J., on Thursday. (Mostafa Bassim/Anadolu)
Blanche said the officer was just doing his job and “standing there.”
On Friday evening, Blanche wrote on X: Told you. @FBI just arrested the man who threatened to kill ICE officers and their families. FAFO.”
He has not yet been identified.
ANTI-ICE PROTESTERS CLASH WITH AGENTS OUTSIDE NEW JERSEY DETENTION CENTER AS GOV. SHERRILL DENIED ENTRY
The clash occurred Thursday evening outside of Newark’s Delaney Hall detention center where protesters were accused of biting, kicking and punching agents.
The protests were in their sixth night by Thursday. (Mostafa Bassim/Anadolu)
Agents responded by deploying pepper spray and beating back agitators as the protest continued into its sixth night.
Nine rioters were arrested during the clashes Thursday, the Department of Homeland Security told Fox News Digital.
ANTI-ICE AGITATORS THROW WOODEN PALLETS, MATTRESSES AT FEDERAL AGENTS DURING CHAOTIC NJ DETENTION CENTER CLASH
Approximately 100 protesters mobbed the area surrounding the detention center, chanting “F— ICE” and brandishing black umbrellas, gas masks and other gear to protect themselves from pepper spray and various anti-riot measures.
On Wednesday evening, DHS reported that approximately 100 anti-ICE protesters gathered around the Delaney Hall ICE facility. While rioters assaulted and threw objects at law enforcement, DHS said “local police refused to help our officers.” Six rioters were arrested Wednesday night for allegedly assaulting law enforcement officers.
ICE agents use chemical irritants during clashes with protestors outside the federal immigration center at Delaney Hall in Newark, N.J., on Thursday. (Adam Gray/Getty Images)
“We called local police, we called state police multiple times. Listen, I know the law enforcement there would love to respond, but because of Governor Sherrill’s behavior what the governor is doing, she’s not allowing public officers and state officers to respond,” Mullin said during a Thursday morning appearance on Fox & Friends.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
Demonstrations over conditions for detainees began Friday, May 22, after detainees penned an open letter claiming they were being denied access to medical care, being insufficiently fed and detained without due process.
DHS has denied those claims.
Fox News’ Charles Creitz and Robert McGreevy contributed to this report.
-
Pennsylvania3 minutes agoMan accused of using excavator to destroy home with family inside
-
Rhode Island6 minutes agoRhode Island high school yearbook printed with the word ‘school’ misspelled on its cover: ‘Shocking to see’
-
South-Carolina11 minutes agoSouth Carolina Democrats celebrate redistricting win as governor hopefuls clash
-
South Dakota18 minutes agoSouth Dakota’s annual History Conference returns to Fort Pierre
-
Tennessee21 minutes agoABC broadcast goes out during Tennessee softball vs Texas Tech in WCWS
-
Texas26 minutes agoLive Updates: Lady Vols Softball vs. Texas Tech in the Women’s College World Series
-
Utah33 minutes agoMan guilty of crash that killed Utah CEO and his daughter gets maximum sentence – East Idaho News
-
Vermont36 minutes agoFallen solar panels in Vermont prompt environmental concerns – Valley News