FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
News from Progress Michigan
April 13, 2026
Contact: Levi Teitel, levi@progressmichigan.org
Secretary Rollins Lies in Michigan While Rep. Barrett Stands By in Silence
U.S. Forest Service Office Closures Will Harm Michigan
MICHIGAN – Today U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins visited Michigan alongside U.S. Rep. Tom Barrett. Despite the White House budget for fiscal year 2027 making dramatic cuts to U.S. Department of Agriculture programs, while also announcing that the U.S. Forest Service will close all of its research facilities in Michigan, Secretary Rollins misleadingly claimed, “there is no one in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan who is getting reassigned to the East Coast.”
In response to this news, Justin Mendoza, executive director of Progress Michigan, issued the following statement:
“Michigan is one of the most beautiful places on the planet because of our pristine wilderness and the federal government has a key role to play in making this place special. Yet the current administration is on a path to make rural areas completely unlivable. By defunding USDA programs, and now closing U.S. Forest Service offices, this is the Project 2025 agenda in action.
“From dealing with the threat of wildfires and invasive species, the Forest Service plays a key role in ensuring that our natural resources are protected. Secretary Rollins is flat-out lying about the impact that her department is having. We need folks on the ground who are familiar with local issues and have proper experience, and these moves are simply taking jobs out of Michigan.
“While Secretary Rollins lied about what the Trump administration is doing in rural Michigan, Tom Barrett stood there in silence behind her like a coward. Michiganders deserve better leaders who will stand up to the Trump administration’s lies rather than just act as a rubber stamp on their chaotic agenda that is making our lives more unaffordable.”
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