Kicking off the “Live From Mackinac” stage, the Chamber’s and Michigan’s pollster, Richard Czuba of Glengariff Group, discussed the biggest topics already coming out of the 2026 election races with Samanda Shriber of Michigan Information and Research Service (MIRS). One of the pressing issues Czuba emphasized was the need for bipartisanship instead of “just pointing fingers at each other.”

“[The Glengariff Group] did a poll for the Chamber that asked the question, ‘Would you prefer a political leader who negotiates with the other side of the aisle and reaches deals, or would you prefer a political leader who sticks to their party’s positions and represents them aggressively?” Czuba explained, “70 to 19 want compromise.”

State Budget Director Jen Flood chatted with Shriber on what factors are shaping this upcoming fiscal year’s budget, noting the “chaos in Washington, D.C., causing uncertainty” in areas like tariffs, trade, and tax policy. Despite this, Flood assured that the state’s “economic tools are functioning well.”

“In terms of the state budget, we’re well-positioned. We’ve got a record balance in the rainy-day fund”, Flood said. “We don’t have the long-term resources to fill voids and the gaps that some of the federal policy could create, and so I think we’ve got to stay focused on what we’re doing and what’s working and continue to sharpen our economic tools.”

Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks and Sen. Kevin Hertel (D-St. Clair Shores) provided updates from Michigan’s Democratic senators during the time with Shriber, which included submitting their own party’s “steady and stable” budget proposals as well as working across the aisle following a Democrat-majority trifecta.

“It’s incredibly important that we have a plan and that we are presenting a steady, stable budget in a consistent way that includes the timing of moving that budget,” Brinks said. “We can’t predict the future, obviously, but we need to do as much as we can to make sure that we are there for our Michiganders.”

“I served six years in the minority and so sometimes you have to find ways to get around the noise … you have to put those issues aside in order to do the work of the people,” Hertel said. “So, we can do both things: we can deal with the issues where we have differences and there’s contention, but also focus on the issues that we need to find solutions to.”

Rep. Jason Hoskins (D-Southfield) and Sen. Mark Huizenga (R-Walker) joined Michigan Public Radio Network’s Rick Pluta to chat about potential tax cuts and revenue adds, including Medicaid and “Pot for Potholes,” as well as discuss how Michigan can become a better state for business by providing set-ready zones ahead of time.

“There’s a concern or there’s an idea that government doesn’t work efficiently [or] government isn’t providing certain services. So why would I want to pay more for services that may or may not be being provided well for us?” Hoskins asked. “I think it is up to us to really deter, really go out and say that we do need this revenue simply because these services are things that many people in the state depend on.”

“I would actually focus more on creating site readiness facilities that places that people can come in [and] have a landing zone that says we’ve got our gas, our electric, our energy, all these things ready to go here,” Huizenga said. “Just a corn field is not ready for development, so creating an infrastructure to give them a place to come in and land that says Michigan’s open for business is probably a good policy.”

Sens. Kevin Hertel (D-St. Clair Shores) and Mike Webber (R-Rochester Hills) used their time on the “Live From Mackinac” desk to talk about the most recent developments to improve Michigan’s defense industry. Along with the latest bipartisan victory to secure an F-15EX fighter jet mission at Selfridge Air National Guard Base, the senators also talked with Pluta about the other technology opportunities that will further bolster the state’s position in this critical industry.

“We live in a place today where partisanship is at an all-time high. Sometimes we just have to be on Team Michigan and focus on one solid goal to get things done,” said Hertel of the newly announced plan to build new jets at Selfridge. “The fact that this happened shows that things can get done in a bipartisan way.”

Webber shared that the defense industry in Michigan is a “$31 billion industry” that holds thousands of jobs – particularly in [Southeast Michigan] but also on the West side with the upcoming drone technology companies coming online. If you build it, they will come . . We’re trying to, as a caucus, build and keep what we have.”

Rep. Joe Aragona (R-Clinton Township) chatted with Pluta about a few of the details regarding Michigan House Republicans’ regulatory reform strategy, which may help reduce “extraneous” burdens on things like housing development and some local taxing structures. He also talked about his founding role in Michigan’s legislative Cryptocurrency Caucus and how he thinks Michigan can become an early sector leader.

“I think this is more going to be an asset,” Aragona said. “I don’t think this is going to go down the road of replacing our currency or any type of currency. I think it’s simply going to be, you know, a different way of using our actual currencies.”

Sen. Jim Runestad (R-White Lake) used his time on the “Live From Mackinac” desk to talk with Jermone Vaugh of WDET 101.9 FM about a variety of concerns from Michigan’s Senate Republicans, which include “solid investments in the roads and utilizing our current funding mechanism and leveraging that good behavior should get rewarded.” He also encouraged the parties to celebrate the victories and best practices that have worked.

“We have areas that we have been knocking out of the park; let’s emulate that using best practices, and when they’re doing it right,” Runestad said. “Sometimes with state funding, we act like a fire department – we’re always out there trying to put fires out. I think we need to get ahead of the fires and then just do fire prevention, and by laying this program I have been speaking of and reaching out on.”

DTE Energy’s Trevor Lauer and Quentin L. Messer Jr. of Michigan Economic Development Corporation and Michigan Strategic Fund joined Vaughn to talk about Michigan’s economic development and having enough power usage to fuel things like data centers.

“With some of the big loads that want to come to Michigan, having power ready is one of the most important factors we have,” Lauer said. “Having baseload power to support these customers is going to be extremely important – and we see these large loads starting to migrate to states where they have large baseload power plants operating.”

“The reason why data centers are so important… is because it’s vitally important that we remain in the game in order to make sure we have the most advanced technologies available to us in Michigan,” Messer said. “I think the atmosphere [and] the environment are right for Michigan. I think the question is making sure that our willingness, our openness, aligns with where companies are going to deploy resources.”

Sens. John Damoose (R-Harbor Springs) and Mallory McMorrow (D-Royal Oak) talked with Vaughn about their joint 10-year economic development strategy, which focuses on consistency and focusing on things that make sense in our unique state. The two senators, who also serve on the Senate Appropriations committee, believe this plan will help address our unique advantages and perspectives as a state and getting residents involved in the process too.

“Both sides of the aisle seem to have different concerns about economic development,” Damoose said. “I’ve heard a lot of things that really concern me on the Republican side calling these things ‘corporate welfare’ … but the fact of the matter is, we’re going to have to spend some money to get these companies back to Michigan.”

“What has happened is we’ve allowed ourselves as a state to be lapped by many other states who have stopped the rat race of going after every single project,” McMorrow said. “What we’re proposing in a comprehensive ten-year plan is exactly that: ‘What do we want to be when we grow up?’”

Closing out the first day of “Live From Mackinac,” Reps. Joe Tate (D-Detroit) and Curt VanderWall sat with Vaughn to discuss Michigan’s Auto Caucus and other pressing issues within Michigan’s imperative industry, including the ever-changing tariff policy changes and how to continue making Michigan the best place for the automotive and mobility sector.

“We have to really see where this whole thing washes out and what those tariffs will do. For us to spend a lot of time legislatively right now, when it’s an unknown, we could do more harm than we could do good,” VanderWall said. “Ultimately, the number one goal is to make sure we keep the auto industry strong in the state of Michigan, the employees working so that we can grow, and that economically will continue to make Michigan one of the best.”

“From the state’s perspective, we’ve been able to do a lot of things to support the business climate and set up private industry for success,” Tate said. “I think the future is you know as much as possible, how are we attracting talent to the state, and what are those tools that we’re using outside of traditional economic development?”