McMorrow Disputes Noem's ‘Northern Border Crisis', Says State Budget Deal Is On Tap If GOP Steps Up

Michigan Advance

June 23, 2025

Michigan State Sen. Mallory McMorrow pushed back hard on claims by U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem that the U.S. is facing a “northern border crisis,” saying the Trump administration should be looking harder at homegrown extremism with the recent killing of a Minnesota lawmaker.

“I have not talked to a single person in this state who thinks we have an issue with Canada,” McMorrow told Michigan Advance in Ferndale, where she kicked off her McMorrow on Tap Brewery Tour on Friday night.

McMorrow, a Royal Oak Democrat vying to win the nomination of her party in August 2026 for U.S. Senate, took the weekend to visit several breweries across the state.

While data from the federal government indicates that illegal crossings at the US-Canada border make up less than 1% of the almost 3 million encounters reported nationwide, Noem still claimed there was a “northern border crisis” during an event Friday in Detroit.

McMorrow said that assertion would likely only result in scaring immigrant and border communities, while at the same time essentially ignoring the rising threat of domestic extremism, referencing the recent assassination of Minnesota House Speaker Emerita Melissa Horton, who was shot dead in her home, along with her husband, by a gunman who authorities have said appears to have been politically motivated.

“It’s been five days and it’s barely made the news,” McMorrow said. “There’s this growing sense that government is something happening at people, not with them. That disconnect is fueling the extremism we’re seeing.”

Despite that, McMorrow said she and her team have ramped up in-person events to try and restore public trust and lower the political temperature.

“If we can just meet people, grab a beer, and get to know each other, they’ll see I’m not some troll they saw in a viral video—I’m a mom. I live in your neighborhood,” McMorrow told the Advance just prior to addressing supporters at The Ferndale Project brewery.

McMorrow was the first Democrat to announce her intention to run for U.S. Senate after Sen. Gary Peters (D-Bloomfield Township) said he would not seek reelection.

She has since been joined by former Wayne County Health Director Abdul El-Sayed, U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Birmingham), and former Michigan House Speaker Joe Tate. On the Republican side, former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers (R-White Lake) is, so far, the lone GOP candidate.

McMorrow said that while the atmosphere of fear and misinformation has contributed to widespread frustration over that political divide, that’s not what she primarily hears about on the campaign trail.

“There are way too many people across the state who say, ‘I have done everything right and I’m still getting screwed. I still can’t afford to buy a house. I can’t afford to save for retirement. I would love to start a family, but I can’t afford it.’ And even for people who may have voted for Trump, they’re saying loudly now, this has done nothing to lower my costs,” McMorrow said.

McMorrow also expressed frustration with House Republicans over the stalled state budget process.

With a July 1 deadline looming to pass a new state budget, she accused House Speaker Matt Hall (R-Richland Township) of making sweeping promises—including eliminating the state income tax and increasing per-pupil school funding to $12,000 —without proposing a viable budget.

“He’s painted himself into a corner,” McMorrow said. “You can promise the world, but at the end of the day, we have to pass a budget. People are counting on us.”

She added that Republican committee chairs have been hesitant to even begin negotiations with their Democratic counterparts. “That should’ve been happening months ago,” she said.

Still, McMorrow was cautiously optimistic that mounting pressure could push forward bipartisan cooperation.

“It feels like there is some softening,” she said. “At the end of the day, we have a job to do.”

The Michigan Advance, a hard-hitting, nonprofit news site, covers politics and policy across the state of Michigan through in-depth stories, blog posts, and social media updates, as well as top-notch progressive commentary. The Advance is part of States Newsroom, a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit supported by grants and a coalition of donors and readers.