Trump considering visit to Michigan next week

Craig Mauger and Melissa Nann Burke, The Detroit News on Jan 9, 2026

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DETROIT — Planning is underway for a potential visit by President Donald Trump to Michigan on Tuesday, according to four sources familiar with the behind-the-scenes preparations.

The sources requested to speak on the condition of anonymity because the plans weren't finalized as of Friday afternoon and because they weren't authorized to discuss the matter publicly.

The president's possible visit would coincide with the opening week of the Detroit Auto Show at the Huntington Place convention center on Detroit's riverfront.

In 2022, then-President Joe Biden visited the auto show, where he test drove an all-electric Cadillac SUV.

It wasn't immediately clear where Trump was considering appearing on Tuesday, but two sources said an appearance before the Detroit Economic Club was being weighed by the White House. The economic club has a regularly scheduled lunchtime meeting Tuesday at MotorCity Casino Hotel.

Spokespeople for the White House didn't immediately respond Friday to an email seeking comment on the plans.

Trump has frequently focused his Michigan stops on the auto industry. As a candidate in 2024, Trump suggested no state would benefit more from his plans to implement tariffs on products made outside the United States than Michigan.

"We're going to make so much money," Trump told the crowd in Saginaw County on Oct. 3, 2024. "We're going to bring back so much business, and I think this state will be the biggest beneficiary, because your car business, your auto manufacturing will be bigger than it ever was, and you will have more jobs than ever before."

The Republican president last visited Michigan on April 29, when he celebrated the first 100 days of his second term with an event at Macomb Community College.

Trump also spoke at Selfridge Air National Guard Base in Harrison Township, where he announced that the Pentagon would be sending a new fighter jet mission to the base.

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