Gretchen Whitmer mouths expletive on 'hot mic,' compares DNC to 'Shark Week' before convention speech

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Gov. Gretchen Whitmer says science will drive a Biden administration's response to coronavirus

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer addresses the Democratic National Convention.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer was caught on a “hot mic” Monday mouthing an expletive and referencing Discovery Channel’s annual special “Shark Week” seconds before her speech was broadcast live on the first day of the Democratic National Convention.

"It's not just Shark Week ... it's Shark Week mother f---er,” Whitmer says, mouthing the expletive, making it barely audible. She draws laughter from those in the room before adding, “I have learned about the hot mic.”

The moment was captured on a livestream as the first-time governor of the key battleground state stood at a podium at labor union UAW Local 652 headquarters in Lansing. It happened while she was waiting to deliver her live speech at the nearly completely virtual DNC, and the remark was not broadcast live on television during the Milwaukee, Wisc.-based convention, WKBW reported.

GRETCHEN WHITMER CRITICIZES TRUMP'S CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE DURING CONVENTION SPEECH

Though the context was unclear, Discovery Channel’s “Shark Week” ended over the weekend.

Once her speech began, Whitmer took aim at the Trump administration's response to the coronavirus pandemic, accusing the president of fighting his "fellow Americans" instead of the virus.

"Over the past few months, we learned what’s essential: rising to the challenge, not denying it. We’ve learned who is essential, too. Not just the wealthiest among us. Not a president who fights his fellow Americans rather than fight the virus that’s killing us and our economy," she said. "It’s the people who put their own health at risk to care for the rest of us. They are the MVPs."

Once on presidential nominee Joe Biden's vice presidential shortlist, Whitmer endorsed free COVID-19 testing; universal access to a safe vaccine; and the resources for kids and educators to "get safely back to school."

"Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will lead by example. Science, not politics or ego, will drive their decisions. They know: the health of our people goes hand-in-hand with the strength of our economy," she said.

The governor also drew a contrast between Trump and the Obama administration's response to the near-collapse of the auto industry in Michigan, claiming that "a million jobs were at stake" when then-President Barack Obama and Vice President Biden "saved the auto industry."

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Whitmer’s pre-speech quip was clipped by politics newsletter The Recount and shared on Twitter. In an apparent reference to the moment, Michigan Lieutenant Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II tweeted Whitmer Tuesday, asking “What week is it?” She responded with a GIF of a shark swimming in the ocean during the special.