This can not be confirmed but that likely huge sigh of relief heard in our town a week ago Monday, emanated from the executive residence where the First Gentleman must have been counting his lucky stars.
In this state’s long history there have been only two First Gentlemen. Proceeding Dr. Marc Mallory was Gov. Granholm’s spouse Dan Mulhern.
The two guys could not be more different than if you planned it that way.
First Hub Dan was a charter member of the Granholm Kitchen Cabinet of super close personal advisors. He’s the one, on a family sojourn for a Thanksgiving Day dinner in Chicago, who convinced his bride to take the perilous leap and run for governor even though she knew she was not ready.
And after she was elected, much to the chagrin of some of the players in town, Dan was in on every major and (some say) minor move the governor made.
Can you see Dr. Mallory being that hands on?
Surely you jest and don’t call him Shirley.
When asked during his first Michigan Public TV interview at the residence six years ago, he and she made it very clear that he wanted no part of what she was doing and she was thanking her lucky starts he had zero motivation to play in her lane either.
“He’s a dentist,” she joked when she was asked if she read her first State of the State message to him before she delivered it to the state.
Now to be fair and to be sure, the good doctor is the governor’s most loyal supporter; his love for her includes embracing what she wants to do as he assumes his invisible position off stage working on his rock collection or playing his guitar.
So in his heart was he nudging her to run for vice president?
The betting money is, heck no.
So when the media finally tracked the governor down in the midst of the out-of-control national speculation that she would run with Kamala Harris, the governor’s spouse’s sigh of relief came when she batted it away.
“Are you prepared to take the vice presidency if it is offered?” as the reporter shoved the microphone her way.
“No,” she confessed. In the 42-second exchange, the governor notes that she faces this question over and over again “and I know you are doing your job (but) I’m not going anywhere...I’m not leaving Michigan. I’m proud to be the governor of Michigan.”
So much for that. Well not exactly boys and girls.
After her “thanks but no thanks” statement, the conversation turned to all the what if’s down the road.
What if V.P. Harris does not win? Would the Michigan governor run for the White House in 2028?
What if the V.P. wins? Would the governor sit around and wait for 8 years until 2032?
Come on now. Enough already with such wild, and at this point, irrelevant speculation.
One election at a time. Right Dr. M.?
