While in Alpena on Tuesday to kick off the inaugural Uncrewed Triple Challenge, she talked about the importance of people working together to bolster the economy, push technology forward, and make the state a hub for innovation and growth.

At a special ceremony Tuesday morning at the bandshell at Bay View Park in Alpena, Whitmer shared her excitement about the autonomous boats and planes being used during an exercise where teams used drones to transport cargo from Alpena to Camp Grayling.

Whitmer announced the event will be an annual event in Alpena and may open the door for Northeast Michigan to become an innovator in drone technology, and even lead to the manufacturing of that technology in the area.

She said that with the presence of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Alpena Combat Readiness Training Center, and the technical program offered at the Alpena Community College, Alpena is positioned well to be a leader in technology development and production.

News Photo by Steve Schulwitz Gov. Gretchen Whitmer prepares to fire a large cannon that signified the beginning of the Uncrewed Triple Challenge on Tuesday at Bay View Park in Alpena on Tuesday.

“This industry will be looking for talent, and it will be looking at the possibility of making long-term investments, so that is why we wanted to kick this off in Alpena and grow the event every year,” Whitmer said. “Michigan is definitely doing something that no other state is doing, and to host it in a place in Alpena, which has all of these natural strengths already in place, I think it bodes well for us to have a long-term positive economic impact on the area.”

Also, during her address in Alpena, she talked about President Donald Trump’s investment in the Selfridge Air National Guard base and the rising drone technology, and how they can work simultaneously and clear the way for future growth in Michigan. She stressed that politics need to be pushed aside to get things done and help Michigan prosper.

“All of these things work together to make sure that Michigan is on the cutting edge and we continue to lead,” she said. “It takes consistent bipartisan advocacy from partners at the local, state, and federal levels to get it done.”

Whitmer has shown the ability to work with Trump over the last couple of months. Last month, she visited the White House to advocate for a new fighter mission at Selfridge, to seek help in protecting the Great Lakes from the invasion of asian carp, and to provide an update and seek funding for northern Michigan after it was severely impacted by an ice storm in late March.

Her ability to work across party lines resulted in Trump committing F-15EX fighter jets to the base, which will replace the aging and retiring fleet of A-10s that have called Selfridge home for years.

The president proclaimed that he supports a massive infrastructure project to keep the Asian carp from reaching the Great Lakes and issued a memorandum to protect the lakes.

The governor is still working with the federal government to acquire emergency disaster relief to help the local governments, businesses, and residents that were hurt economically by the ice storm.

Earlier this week, Whitmer announced she submitted a formal request for a major disaster declaration to help northern Michigan. The governor’s request, compiled with on-the-ground support from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), will allow federal aid to start flowing directly to families, businesses, and communities if approved by President Trump.

“We need a major disaster declaration from the federal government to help families, small businesses, and communities recover and rebuild,” said Whitmer in a press release Friday. “After the storm, I’m proud of the way that Michiganders came together, like we always do. I’m grateful to the first responders, the line workers, and the countless kind-hearted neighbors who went the extra mile to help those in need. Now, we need to get resources out the door and into people’s pockets as fast as possible. I already brought this up in my meeting with the President, and I hope he approves our request.”

A joint Preliminary Damage Assessment with local, state, and federal officials was conducted between April 22 and May 6 to assess and validate the most severely affected areas. Based on the findings, state officials determined that the damage met the threshold to request federal assistance.

Whitmer’s request will be reviewed by FEMA, which will advise President Trump on whether a disaster declaration is warranted.

This is the second time in a little more than a month that the governor has visited Alpena. Whitmer toured the damage from the storm during a local stop on April 3 and met with employees and management at Meijer and also local leaders who were still in the early process of overcoming the power outages and assessing the damage from the storm.