Gov: I've Been Working My Tail Off on the Budget

(Source: MIRS.news, Published 10/03/2025) After Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and lawmakers put the finishing touches on the new state budget in the wee small hours of this morning, the Governor was up early taking a virtual/zoom victory lap on all the major TV stations in the state. During her lap on TV 6 Lansing, she was asked if she had to hold her nose during any of the protracted budget give and take.

It turns out she was "holding my nose about the rhetoric surrounding the budget and the critics out there and trying to turn a deaf ear and staying focused on what matters," she said.

When reminded that some of those critics accused her of being AWOL during her couple of weeks out of the country in early September, she retorted, "Then they weren't paying attention. They didn't see me sneaking in and out of the Capitol and having meetings, after meetings, after meetings . . . I've been working my tail off on the budget."

Apart from that, she indicated that she was most proud of the bipartisan cooperation on the budget set against a federal government shutdown.

“You look at how hot  the political rhetoric is, it was not easy (but) we were able to pull together, hammer through our differences and come up with a budget,” Whitmer said. "It's a damn good budget, and I'm proud of that."

On some of the budget decisions, she respectively disagrees with Rep. Tim Kelly (R-Saginaw) who called the free school meal program "a waste of money . . . particularly in wealthy neighborhoods . . . these people can afford this lunch. It's become a convenience for people."

Whitmer said, "I disagree," calling it an important offering to keep kids "bellies" full so they can learn more.

On a package designed to “Fix the Damn Roads,” her signature issue since her first 2018 campaign, Whitmer described the $1.85 billion expenditure as "a huge investment, long overdue. It's the biggest we've seen in a long time" that will save road building industry jobs and keep the state from cascading over the financial cliff from which she fears the state may not have recovered from.

The industry is already making noises that more money is needed and she concurs.

"We need about $4 billion, so yeah, we are always going to need more."

On House Speaker Matt Hall (R-Richland Township)'s mission to get post-COVID state workers back into their downtown Lansing offices, the Governor reported that the reform is not as “Matt Hall contemplated.”

The plan is to get each state building to 80% occupancy, or the building is sold off as surplus.

"Each department will have different policies . . . as we tighten up the state footprint that every desk is filled five days a week (and) making sure that people are showing up in a way that . . . doesn't really fundamentally impact services to people."  She contends not every worker needs a desk.

Finally, she was asked if she caught any of the Tigers vs. Cleveland ball games?

"I did not see a swing, but I was damn glad for the results."

Now the question is, "Will the typical citizen feel the same way about her new budget?"

On that front, the jury is still out.