LANSING, Mich. (WWJ) -- New Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer used her first State of the State address to emphasize two crises she sees in Michigan.
Speaking during a joint session of the Republican-led Legislature, Whitmer says infrastructure and education are at the forefront of the state's issues that she vows to fix.
Citing that third-graders in Michigan rank in the bottom 10 in literacy across the country, Whitmer says it is important to fix the state's educational system and prepare young Michiganders to enhance the workforce.
"Our students are not broken. Our teachers are not broken. It's our system that's broken," Whitmer said.
“No one will invest in a state that doesn’t invest in itself. That’s the hard truth. And let’s be very clear: incremental fund shifts, like we’ve seen in recent years, they just won’t fix the problem. They only slow our decline, and I’ve got to tell you – I didn’t run for governor to manage the decline of the state I love.”
In addition to educational reform, Whitmer says she plans to "fix the damn roads," part of her rallying cry during her campaign.
Whitmer spoke of an emergency shutdown of I-75 in Oakland County last month, spurred by massive potholes in a nearly 10-mile stretch of the highway that not only "flattened and destroyed tires," but caused major backups and delays in traffic.
But the potential consequences can be much more serious than just a flat tire.”
Nothing, of course, can be accomplished without working together, Whitmer said.
"As I’ve said before, Michigan’s problems are not partisan problems," Whitmer said. "Potholes are not political and there’s no such things as Republican or Democratic schoolkids or drinking water.”
Whitmer, who took over for term-limited Republican Gov. Rick Snyder in January, says she is "eager to engage with any and all people of good faith about ideas and priorities."
"We can build bridges and ensure that Michigan is the home for opportunity for generations to come," she said.
WWJ Lansing Bureau Chief Tim Skubick says Whitmer's address may have been a little light on details, but she left herself some wiggle room.
"Her explanation was simply this: the specifics will come in her budget, which does not come until March," Skubick said live on WWJ. "But you have to ask the question if you're a viewer, having watched her on the campaign trail make all these promises about what she was going to do and now in her State of the State with an opportunity to tell the people what that doing is, she didn't do it."