Michigan’s Whitmer says she would not step in as last-minute replacement for Biden

by WorldTribune Staff, July 3, 2024 Contract With Our Readers

Michigan Democrat Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has reportedly said she has no intention of becoming the party’s 2024 nominee for president should Joe Biden pull out of the race.

Politico reported on Monday that Whitmer contacted a senior Biden campaign official to make clear that she would not be running if Biden withdraws.

“In the aftermath of the president’s disastrous debate performance last Thursday, no would-be replacement has been the recipient of more wish-casting among despairing Democrats than the second-term Michigan governor,” Jonathan Martin wrote for Politico.

Martin added: “Whitmer, recognizing as much, disavowed the Draft Gretch chatter. She used the call to reiterate her commitment and willingness to help the president but also voiced her concern about how much more difficult the campaign would be now for Biden, I’m told by a person familiar with the call.”

In a statement Monday after the Politico report went online, Whitmer said: “I am proud to support Joe Biden as our nominee and I am behind him 100 percent in the fight to defeat Donald Trump. Not only do I believe Joe can win Michigan, I know he can because he’s got the receipts.”

Martiin also noted that “someone close to a potential 2028 Whitmer rival for the Democratic presidential nomination” had contacted him and said Whitmer “had phoned O’Malley Dillon with more of an unambiguous SOS: to relay that Michigan, in the wake of the debate, was no longer winnable for Biden.”

Hours later, Whitmer’s X account posted a succinct denial:

The buzz around Whitmer is not likely to end anytime soon.

She publishes a memoir, “True Gretch”, on July 9. That means a publicity tour at just the right moment if Democrats continue to jump ship on Biden, political analysts say.

The book, subtitled “What I’ve Learned About Life, Leadership, and Everything in Between”, focuses on her “get shit done” motto, presenting another dramatic contrast to the Biden campaign’s themes of protecting democracy and highlighting the dangers of a second Trump presidency.

Prior to Biden’s debate disaster, analysts were saying the Whitmer book appears to have been written as an early shot at the 2028 nomination. She is term limited and would leave office at the end of 2026, giving her a long run-in to the nomination process. But it would also could be fuel for a 2024 snap campaign.

Your Choice

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