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Jonah Goldberg /

Whitmer Highlights Democrats’ Disarray

The party has a few options for improving its image. Hiding might be the best one.
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Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer looks on as President Donald Trump signs an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House on April 9, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images)

Kudos to Michigan Gov.  Gretchen Whitmer. She managed to generate the most negatively iconic photo of a Democrat since Michael Dukakis wore a helmet atop a tank.

Whitmer, long considered a promising presidential prospect by Democratic insiders, was at the White House to discuss state business. But when Trump’s aides whisked her into the Oval Office it was not for the planned one-on-one meeting with the president, but for a photo-op during which Trump signed (outrageous) executive orders targeting two perceived political enemies for criminal investigation.

Jonah Goldberg is editor-in-chief and co-founder of The Dispatch, based in Washington, D.C. Prior to that, enormous lizards roamed the Earth. More immediately prior to that, Jonah spent two decades at National Review, where he was a senior editor, among other things. He is also a bestselling author, longtime columnist for the Los Angeles Times, commentator for CNN, and a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. When he is not writing the G-File or hosting The Remnant podcast, he finds real joy in family time, attending to his dogs and cat, and blaming Steve Hayes for various things.

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