NPR Morning Host Inskeep Nudges Whitmer to Spread Fear of DHS Election Meddling

Tim Graham
January 21st, 2026 4:47 PM

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NPR Morning Edition host Steve Inskeep is bringing his long-standing Obama-polishing interview style to the early contenders for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is the latest beneficiary, after Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. The primary subject was, inevitably, Donald Trump as a threat to democracy. 

The online headline was er, helpful to the usual Democrat paranoia:

Gretchen Whitmer says it's not 'paranoia' to fear Trump using homeland security personnel in elections

Inskeep proclaimed at the top of the nearly eight-minute segment "she said her swing state is preparing for any efforts to disrupt elections this fall."

GRETCHEN WHITMER: We know that there will be efforts to compromise the election or to dissuade people from showing up, to scare people away, to threaten people. We cannot let that stand. I'm concerned about it. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't.

INSKEEP: Some people spin out theories, and they will say, well, Homeland Security people are everywhere, and they might be used in some way.

WHITMER: I don't think it's paranoia to have that concern.

The Morning Edition anchor also pushed this DHS/ICE angle on X: 

Inskeep's questions were often just "you go, girl" prompts to whack Trump: 

INSKEEP: Just before our interview, Trump's administration had promised not to prosecute immigration agents while also investigating Democrats, including a Michigan senator. [To Whitmer] What does that all add up to?

WHITMER: I think an abuse of power. I think that's pretty clear. That's the through line there, and I think it's a very serious and scary moment in this country.

The toughest NPR questions nudged Whitmer to explain why the Democrats aren't currently in a terrific position in the polls.

INSKEEP: Democrats have the advantage of facing an unpopular president and his party, but Democrats are unpopular themselves. There are a lot of people who voted for Trump, not because they love him, but because they wanted drastic change. Do Democrats have anything to say to people who want drastic change in the way the country has been run?

WHITMER: I think drastic change might be an oversimplification. I think that people want leaders who understand them and care about them. You know, I've met a lot of Michiganders who voted both for me and Donald Trump twice. I don't understand everything that makes that voter tick. But when I talk to them, they tell me, I think you're the one that understands what I'm going through. You're the one that's talking about the issues that matter to me.

INSKEEP: Democrats did really badly with men in 2024. And then, in your State of the State speech in early 2025, about a year ago, you warned about a generation of men falling behind their fathers and their grandfathers. What were you saying, and is anything better now?

Whitmer explained they couldn't get men to participate in some economic programs to the same degree as women, such as first-time home-buying help. There's nothing about transgender controversies, one mover of male voters:

INSKEEP: There's a whole conversation about the demoralization of men, about men feeling left out, not seeing a way forward. Is society doing something to men?

WHITMER: You know, I don't know all of the different pressures. I've been studying it. I'm listening to probably a lot of the same podcasts that you are to understand...

INSKEEP: (Laughter).

WHITMER: ...What can we do? How do we bridge this gap?

Inskeep concluded the on-air story by asking Whitmer if Michelle Obama was right that America isn't ready for a female president. Unsurprisingly, for a potential 2028 candidate, she gently disagreed on that. A longer interview was posted on YouTube (with the same paranoid push): 

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