State of the State Highlights: It’s What Snyder Didn’t Say

Gov. Snyder avoided digging into issues such as immigration, the Flint Water Crisis, and the Nassar scandal.

Jake Neher/WDET

Gov. Rick Snyder gave his final State of the State address this week.

The speech focused on what you might expect from a governor who is one year away from leaving office — the things he hopes will define his legacy. Specifically, Snyder spent a lot of time touting Michigan’s economic comeback.

It was light on major policy proposals and Snyder notably avoided wading into controversial national issues. These things are not uncharacteristic for Snyder in this sort of setting, but given the political rancor of the past year, some were still disappointed Snyder avoided digging into topics such as immigration, the Flint Water Crisis, and the Larry Nassar scandal

Click here to hear Gov. Snyder’s final State of the State address and to read a summary of the speech

Despite the lack of headline-inducing proclamations in the speech, WDET’s Jake Neher and Michigan Public Radio’s Cheyna Roth say there’s still plenty of reasons to pay attention to what the governor had to say — and what he didn’t say.

Click on the audio player above to hear the conversation.

Authors

  • Cheyna has interned with Michigan Radio and freelanced for WKAR public radio in Lansing. She's also done some online freelancing and worked on documentary films.
  • Jake Neher is senior producer for Detroit Today and host of MichMash for 101.9 WDET. He previously reported on the Michigan Legislature for the Michigan Public Radio Network.