Nearly a year into her first term as Michigan’s 49th governor, Gretchen Whitmer remains as enthusiastic as ever. Armed with boundless energy and not allergic to work, Democrat Whitmer has forged ahead despite dealing with a less-than-cooperative Republican-controlled Legislature.

Having campaigned on road funding and committing to not depleting education resources in the process, Whitmer has stood her ground. But although a short-term budget deal was recently reached, no-long term solutions are on the horizon.

“Roads are the No. 1 issue to people and, come this spring (with the winter thaw wreaking havoc on roads), people will be furious the Legislature did not introduce their own plan to deal with it,” she said as we talked about her first year in office.

“We need to rebuild our roads. We are just triaging potholes right now,” the governor said.

She admits the budget battle has slowed her down, but she’s regrouping and stepping up efforts to create more business opportunities.

Read more at https://www.freep.com/story/money/business/columnists/carol-cain/2019/12/07/grethen-whitmer-governor-israel/4354923002/.