Whitmer responds to threatening comments from Senate GOP leader

LANSING, Mich. — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer brushed off comments Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2021, made by Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey that degraded and appeared to threaten her.

In the video recorded last week, Shirkey also used degrading and violent language toward the governor, telling leaders of the Hillsdale County Republican Party that "[Republicans] spanked her hard on the budget. Spanked her hard on appointments.”

The video, posted on YouTube by the Hillsdale County Republican Party, appeared to be filmed without Shirkey's consent. The video was first reported by the Detroit Metro Times. The Hillsdale County Republican Party, which is the party of Shirkey's home county, later censured the Senate Majority Leader for not upholding their values of 2nd Amendment rights and other values, according to the group's spokesperson.

On Wednesday, Whitmer responded to the comments, calling the Senate leader's rhetoric "exhausting" but adding that she was not focused on the comments.

"I think that we deserve better, frankly, but I’m not going to spend my energy there because I’ve got a lot of important things that I’m working on that the people of our state need us to be all-successful on," she said.

Shirkey, the state's top Republican, also told members of the Hillsdale County Republican Party “I did contemplate once or twice - I did contemplate inviting her to a fistfight on the Capitol lawn.”

Shirkey met with militia groups just a month before some were arrested for an alleged plot to kidnap and kill Whitmer. Shirkey could also be seen onstage at a militia event with one of the men who was later arrested as part of the kidnapping plot, just two weeks after armed protesters entered the Michigan Statehouse in April 2020 chanting "let us in" while lawmakers were inside the chambers.

When asked Wednesday if she was concerned about the violent rhetoric toward her by one of her own colleagues, in light of Shirkey's ties to the groups accused of plotting to kidnap her, Whitmer said she wanted more information.

"I'm hopeful that he answers questions about that, right? Who did he actually meet with? I still don't think that I've seen that information shared with anybody," Whitmer said. "I think those are real questions and that's for the media to pursue. I'm going to stay focused on doing what I need to do to get our state through this tough time."

In an apology Tuesday night, Shirkey did not clarify which part of the 72-minute video he was apologizing for and did not mention his comments about Whitmer.

"I said some things in a videoed conversation that are not fitting for the role I am privileged to serve. I own that. I have many flaws. Being passionate coupled with an occasional lapse in restraint of tongue are at least two of them. I regret the words I chose, and I apologize for my insensitive comments."

Shirkey later appeared to backtrack on his comments in a moment recorded on an open mic on the Senate floor Wednesday morning.

This is not the first time Shirkey has faced criticism for his language towards the governor. In 2019, he called Whitmer "bat" and "crazy" combined with an expletive while speaking to Republican students. He later apologized.