AMNA NAWAZ: Since Roe v. Wade was overturned by the Supreme Court, Democratic leaders have worked to protect reproductive rights in their states.

In Michigan, voters enshrined abortion rights in the state's constitution in 2022.

And the state's governor, Gretchen Whitmer, has pushed for several reproductive rights measures.

Just today, she signed new laws protecting IVF and decriminalizing surrogacy contracts in the state.

Governor Whitmer joins us now.

Governor, welcome back to the "NewsHour."

Thanks for joining us.

GOV.

GRETCHEN WHITMER (D-MI): Good to be with you.

AMNA NAWAZ: So, today's bill takes one really big step when it comes to surrogacy.

It lifts a ban on compensated surrogacy that's been in place in Michigan since 1988.

But there are IVF protections you also signed into law.

Why were those necessary?

Are IVF treatments currently at risk or under threat in Michigan?

GOV.

GRETCHEN WHITMER: Well, we know that abortion rights, reproductive rights, are in threat all across the country.

As we have the prospect of a potential second Trump term, we thought it was very important for us to be very clear IVF is something that we value, that we protect here in Michigan.

And we wanted Michigan to finally get on the right side of the law when it came to letting people create families through surrogacy.

We were the only state out of -- in the whole nation that criminalized this way of creating a family.

So in Michigan, we want Michigan women and their families to be able to decide when and if they bear a child and what way they go about creating their family.

All those rights are important.

AMNA NAWAZ: I think a lot of folks will remember the February Alabama court ruling that really put IVF back in the national spotlight.

But it's worth reminding folks, too, it was Republican lawmakers who stepped in very quickly to take steps to protect IVF in Alabama.

And since then, a number of Republican leaders, former President Trump among them, have come out and said that they support IVF.

By taking this action today, are you saying that you don't believe them?

GOV.

GRETCHEN WHITMER: Well, listen, let me just tell you what happened here in Michigan.

We put this measure before the Michigan legislature, and only two Republicans voted for it.

I think that's a really important message, right, when you have got the standard-bearer for the Republican Party who has changed his position abortion many times, who appointed the three Supreme Court justices that gave us the Dobbs decision in an overruled row.

We cannot trust where they are at on any of these reproductive freedoms, whether it's creating a family through surrogacy or IVF, or it is the right to make your own decisions about your body and whether and when they bear a child, or even the access to contraception.

And one thing I would add too, Amna, is that we know that this extension could be applied to things like embryonic stem cell research.

That means cures, the race for cures for things like Alzheimer's or juvenile diabetes could be impacted by this morass of what Republican policy looks like.

And so the fact of the matter is, we have got to secure these rights, and we wanted to be very clear here in Michigan we protect these rights.

AMNA NAWAZ: You clearly and other Democratic leaders also believe this is a key issue in mobilizing Democrats, also independents.

You have said previously that maybe President Biden should speak about reproductive rights and should say the word abortion more frequently than he does.

He's displayed some discomfort with that, changing the language even in the State of the Union to avoid saying that word.

If this is such a key issue for Democrats, does his reluctance to say that word hurt him politically?

GOV.

GRETCHEN WHITMER: Listen, President Biden is on the right side of this issue.

He has undertaken every effort to protect a woman's ability to make her choices.

They have worked very hard through DHHS or even their policies in other branches of government to ensure that this right is protected.

And he has vowed to make sure that, if he is given a second term, he will utilize every appointment to ensure that a woman's ability to make her own decisions and a reproductive freedom is secure and safe.

And so I have got every confidence in President Biden, and I think every one of us should be very skeptical about a possible Trump second term about what it could mean for our rights and the foundations of our democracy.

AMNA NAWAZ: We have seen that actions like the one you have taken today have helped to mobilize Democrats and independents in the past.

Do you think that mobilization, especially in a state like Michigan, is enough to overcome some of the weaknesses we have seen President Biden displayed so far, especially with those more than 100,000 people in the primaries voting uncommitted?

GOV.

GRETCHEN WHITMER: Well, Michigan is a state where we are always going to have close elections.

It's not going to be a surprise to any of us here in Michigan that this race will be close, probably close all the way up until Election Day.

But I will tell you, during my reelection, there were a lot of polls and people writing my political obituary, and I won by almost 11 points.

I think it's because I stayed focused on the fundamentals that matter to the people of Michigan.

President Biden has done the same, whether it is putting resources into ensuring that we are rebuilding our infrastructure, to onshoring supply chains, to making sure that people are respected and protected under the law.

This president has delivered on those fundamentals.

And we're going to be talking about that story all the way through Election Day.

But, in Michigan, elections are always close.

AMNA NAWAZ: As you know, those more than 100,000 people, though, were voting as a protest to oppose President Biden's stance in Israel, their conduct in the war in Gaza.

They were doing it to send a message.

I guess, as one of the co-chairs of the Biden/Harris reelection campaign,where would you point those protesters to say they heard you, they see you?

GOV.

GRETCHEN WHITMER: I can tell you this.

Recognizing that we're all human beings, the humanity in all these innocent people who are losing their lives or who are at risk of losing their lives is real pain.

And that's something that I understand, that I'm going to continue to work with a variety of communities in my state to keep people safe here at home, but also try to build bridges and make sure that we focus on really all the different things that are at stake in this upcoming election.

AMNA NAWAZ: As you know, Governor, you're seen as a rising leader in your Democratic Party.

There was a recent New York Times column by Michelle Goldberg I want to ask you about, because she wrote this.

She said -- quote -- "There are many reasons that people regularly fantasize about Whitmer replacing Biden on this year's ticket and, assuming that doesn't happen, see her as a likely presidential prospect in 2028.

She insists she's not interested, but few seem to believe her" -- end quote.

I want to ask you, how much of that speculation do you think is fueled by what we know is low enthusiasm and dissatisfaction for the Democratic candidate in President Biden right now?

And how does that change before November?

GOV.

GRETCHEN WHITMER: You know, I don't know.

I didn't read the article.

I can tell you, in talking with people across Michigan, these are good, hardworking people, just like across the country, people who just want to know that their government is as good as they are, if not better, and is working as hard, if not more than they are.

And everyone wants a fair shot.

And I think that's really what the Biden administration has always been about.

That's what President Biden has always been about.

And that's why, as a co-chair, I'm proud of the work that he has been able to do.

And I'm proud to stand by his side as he goes for reelection.

This is a -- these are unique times.

This is another high-stakes election.

Everyone's exhausted.

And yet we have all got to -- we have all got to roll up our sleeves and get involved, because this is going to have ramifications not just for us today, but for generations of Americans to come.

AMNA NAWAZ: That's Democratic Governor of Michigan Gretchen Whitmer joining us tonight.

Governor, thank you.

Good to speak with you.

GOV.

GRETCHEN WHITMER: Thank you.