Whitmer celebrates Selfridge gains in Macomb address

SHELBY TOWNSHIP/HARRISON TOWNSHIP — Nearly a week removed from the announcement of new fighter jets destined for Selfridge Air National Guard Base, neither state nor county executives have recorked the champagne.

Around noon on May 5, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer gave an address to Macomb County business leaders at The Palazzo Grande banquet hall during a luncheon for the Macomb County Chamber and Connect Macomb. The governor’s remarks to the Macomb audience would ultimately revolve around bipartisan cooperation to solve mutual problems, and no example fit the subject and audience better than the idea of factory-fresh F-15EX fighter jets replacing an aging and retiring fleet of A-10s at Selfridge.

“This is a really important moment in our state and our country,” Whitmer said. “We know that there’s a lot of uncertainty for a lot of different reasons, but for us to be able to say we know what the future of Selfridge is a big (deal).”

Whitmer described the fighter mission as not only a lifeline for the base but for the numerous defense manufacturing jobs located around the county and state, claiming the continued mission would support 30,000 jobs, 5,000 military families and $180 million in annual economic impact.

In a room of people that included the 127th Wing’s Brig. Gen. Matthew Brancato, Macomb County Executive Mark Hackel may have been the most excited about the Selfridge news. Hackel, who wore a custom Selfridge baseball jersey and recalled getting “choked up” watching the April 29 announcement, was not shy about praising Whitmer’s role in the effort, particularly in light of criticism she has received for working and appearing with President Donald Trump several times.

“This did not go without some criticism, that she may have gotten on one extreme within the party, or the president getting criticism on extremes within his party,” Hackel said. “Yet the two realized the importance of this, and that announcement that was made was an incredible asset to Macomb County and Macomb County’s future.”

Whitmer, who is term-limited as governor, addressed her intraparty critics from the lectern with a defense of bipartisanship.

“I was in the minority all 14 years I was in the Michigan Legislature,” Whitmer said. “As governor, I’ve signed over 1,500 bills that are bipartisan — and 1,000 of them came out of a completely Republican-controlled legislature. It’s the same approach that led me to the White House a few weeks back. I am committed to working with the Trump administration on any priority we can find common ground on. I am not going to pretend that that’s always going to be possible — I know that’s the case — but Michiganders elected both of us twice, just two years apart, and I know from looking at this room that you all expect us to get things done.”

Speaking to reporters after the speech, Whitmer said her primary goals when meeting Trump were to secure jets for Selfridge and federal aid or funding for northern Michigan communities ravaged by a late-March ice storm. She had not yet received word from Washington on the aid from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Bipartisan collaboration was the theme through the rest of the governor’s speech, which moved from the Selfridge runways to Macomb County’s roadways. As part of her pledge to “fix the damn roads,” Whitmer highlighted the completion of the Innovate Mound project and the ongoing Restore the Reuther work. Now in its final phase, sections of Interstate 696 will be closed between Lahser Road, Dequindre Road and the interchange with Interstate 75 from 2025-2027.

Whitmer mentioned the need to find new revenue sources and make cuts in order to fund roads in the future, and called upon the audience to help find a solution to this issue.

“We can’t put all of this on the backs of hardworking Michiganders. Businesses also benefit from strong, reliable roads and we all need to be part of the solution,” Whitmer said. “It’s a simple equation: Fewer potholes means fewer delays, means safer roads, means more predictability and certainty in a world that feels very uncertain in many ways. So, when it comes to fixing our roads and bringing Michigan manufacturing back, every voice in this room matters.”

Whitmer ended her remarks by telling businesses that the state had their backs in creating an easier, less-uncertain economic environment and asked them to help “build a future of this state that we can all be proud of, we can all drive in and we can all brag about.”