New GOP Ad Addresses Cost Of Living With A Special Nod To Mike Rowe
Republican Michigan Senate candidate Mike Rogers is launching a new campaign video series designed to highlight everyday work and economic pressures facing voters, with a message centered on affordability — an issue widely expected to dominate the 2026 midterm elections.
The series, titled “Let’s Get to Work!”, debuted Monday with its first episode filmed at a family-run dairy farm in western Michigan’s Lower Peninsula. Rogers’ campaign says the concept draws inspiration from the popular Discovery Channel show Dirty Jobs, in which host Mike Rowe performed hands-on labor alongside workers in various industries.
In the opening episode, Rogers visits Green Pastures Farms in Coopersville, Michigan, where he meets Jesse and Betsy Meerman, whose family has operated the farm since the 1880s. The conversation quickly turns to one of the challenges they say threatens the long-term survival of family farms: the federal estate tax, often referred to as the “death tax.”
“It’s not easy to send the farm over to the next generation,” Jesse Meerman says in the video. “So, really, what Uncle Sam has done is said, ‘My condolences on the death of your father… Pay me $5 million cash now.’”
Rogers responds by arguing that agriculture should be protected from the tax burden.
“I happen to believe we shouldn’t have that anyway, specifically on agriculture,” Rogers says in the video. “We want that to be perpetuated in families.”
He also highlights provisions in the GOP-backed Working Families Tax Cut Act — formally called the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) — which was signed into law by President Donald Trump on July 4, 2025. The legislation raised the exemption threshold for the federal estate tax, a change Rogers says will help family farms pass down property to future generations.
I’m kicking off the first stop of my Let’s Get To Work tour at Green Pastures Farm in Coopersville — hearing directly from the family who has been here for generations.
These folks work hard every day to feed our communities and keep our economy strong. It’s time Washington had… pic.twitter.com/Ez0Ebni2aB
— Mike Rogers (@MikeRogersForMI) March 9, 2026
In a statement to the Daily Caller News Foundation, Rogers sharply criticized Democratic leadership on economic issues.
“Michigan has had two Democrat senators who’ve done nothing but fail our state,” Rogers said. “Democrats have made life so much more unaffordable, from skyrocketing Michiganders’ prices with record-high inflation to making it too expensive for families to get into homes.”
He added that voters want leaders focused on economic relief.
“It’s time for a change. That’s why we’re on the road, listening to and learning about the challenges facing Michigan families and workers all across the state. Michigan deserves real leaders who will keep more money in their pockets, starting with the Working Families Tax Cuts.”
According to a White House fact sheet, the new law could boost take-home pay for a typical Michigan family with two children by roughly $7,000 to $9,900 annually.
The Michigan Senate race is shaping up to be one of the most competitive contests of the 2026 election cycle. With Democratic Senator Gary Peters retiring, the seat is open for the first time in years. The nonpartisan Cook Political Report currently rates the race as a “toss-up,” making it a key opportunity for Republicans hoping to flip a seat in the chamber.
Rogers, who served seven terms in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2001 to 2015, has already secured an endorsement from President Trump and faces little meaningful opposition in the Republican primary.
Meanwhile, Democrats are locked in a competitive three-way primary contest between Representative Haley Stevens, Michigan State Senator Mallory McMorrow, and public health official Abdul El-Sayed, who has been endorsed by Senator Bernie Sanders.
The campaign’s first video also features lighter moments as Rogers helps with chores around the farm, including feeding livestock and collecting eggs.
At one point, the Meerman family’s young son instructs Rogers while handing him a jug of fresh milk.
“Shake it up,” the boy says.
“Shake it up,” Rogers repeats as he shakes the container. “It’s kind of like a martini — only different.”