Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a potential 2028 White House candidate, stood awkwardly in the Oval Office as President Donald Trump signed executive orders and assailed his political opponents on Wednesday, not long after she delivered a speech nearby that offered soft criticism of him but emphasized shared priorities. At the top of his remarks, Trump praised the second-term Democratic governor as a “very good person” who has done an “excellent job" — a sharp departure from his tone in his first presidency toward Whitmer, once one of his fiercest opponents. Whitmer's office later said in a statement that she was “surprised” that she was brought into the Oval Office and that "her presence is not an endorsement of the actions taken or statements made at that event.”