Comment Ascribed To Whitmer In Viral Data Center Video Disputed

(Source: MIRS.news, Published 06/12/2026) Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and the CEO of database software company Oracle issued separate statements that a viral comment on social media attributed to the Governor at the June 1 groundbreaking of a Saline data center was not uttered, and that it appears the audio was “manipulated.”

The comment, viewed more than 2 million times on X alone, has been an online topic of conversation all week, but went unreported by traditional media due to the questionable nature of the video and the garbled audio attached to it.

“Governor Whitmer did not make that statement, and it's not a statement that she would support,” the Governor's office reported.

“I had a positive and constructive conversation with Governor Whitmer about the significant opportunity this project creates in Michigan,” said Oracle CEO Clay Magouyrk. “This video circulating online does not accurately reflect the substance or tone of that conversation, and the audio appears to have been manipulated.”

The clip shows Whitmer talking with Magouyrk from some distance away. Some listening to the video make out the Governor saying, “We're used to people saying fuck no, and doing it anyway.”

Whitmer's seemingly cavalier attitude about the siting of the enormous data center generated online outrage from a seemingly growing body of the populace agitated by the perception that well-connected, big-tech bigwigs are pushing energy-draining, water-sucking data centers into communities to the determent of local residents.

Stop Saline Data Center posted the video taken by independent videographer Cilla Creswell five days ago, even though the event was 11 days ago. It's since been shared on social media dozens of times. An attempt to reach Creswell was not successful. Stop Saline Data Centers posted on its Instagram account, “What do you hear? To us, it appears she's saying, ‘We’re used to people saying no, and doing it anyway.” (Let us know what you think)."

The audio comes with issues. First, Magouyrk responded to Whitmer by complimenting her about living through Michigan winters, an odd retort if Whitmer actually said the phrase in question.

Second, for the Governor to utter an f-bomb to a corporate executive she hardly knows at a public event with the press roaming around would be uncharacteristically careless for the well-seasoned politician.

Third, where was this video between June 1 and June 7? Why is it showing up now?

Finally, the state in general and the governor, in particular, had no role in the siting of the data center, raising questions as to why she'd say such words to a corporate official who would likely know the process the company followed to get the project.

MIRS has learned that a technical analysis of the video is being conducted and that legal action was considered at a certain point.

“We’ve heard from Michiganders that it is extremely important for our state to have a strong framework in place to protect Michiganders and communities where data centers want to locate,” reads a statement from the Governor's Office. "Michigan requires companies to pay their own way, prohibits them from passing costs onto ratepayers, protects our water, and holds them accountable for creating good-paying jobs. We are encouraged by conversations in the Legislature to ensure Michigan continues to have the strongest protections in the country.”