Sen. Gary Peters announced his retirement early this year and will leave the U.S. Senate when his term ends in January. After a hotly contested Democratic primary and an uncontested Republican primary, the race is on to choose his successor in November.

Peters has represented the state of Michigan since 2015 in the World’s Greatest Deliberative Body. Did he deliver for us?

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer praised the two-term Democratic senator as “a steadfast champion for Michigan” who sought to “strengthen our auto industry.” What was his record on fiscal policy, and was that good for the Michigan economy?

Throughout his U.S. Senate career, Peters supported large federal spending projects in Michigan. The forms of spending took many forms: semiconductor subsidies, auto manufacturing incentives, research funding and infrastructure grants. If a proposal involved spending federal dollars in Michigan, Peters usually supported it.

Peters voted for nearly every major expansion of federal spending during his Senate career. He contributed directly to the CARES Act, the American Rescue Plan Act, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the Inflation Reduction Act, and others.

Many of those laws included major subsidies and corporate welfare for companies in Michigan. Peters set aside $2 billion for “legacy” semiconductors (like the ones used in automobiles) and helped draft the CHIPS and Science Act. Peters called the allocation “a huge win for Michigan workers, Michigan manufacturing and Michigan’s economy.”

Peters has delivered on some issues that are important to Michiganders. One was his work on government efficiency and transparency. Peters authored the Financial Management Risk Reduction Act, which was intended to reduce fraud by improving the audits the government conducts of grant recipients. As chairman of the  Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs, Peters was influential in the Ending Improper Payments to Deceased People Act, which allows the Department of the Treasury to access death records to help prevent and recover improper payments. Peters worked to combat bureaucratic waste in multiple departments.

He has also been one of the most outspoken Democratic advocates of reducing the national debt. In July 2025, Peters took to the Senate floor to explain that increased debt requires larger interest payments, which divert taxpayer dollars away from health care, infrastructure and other priorities. He criticized complex tax exceptions, arguing that they increase deficits.

But Peters’ record on spending did not always match his stated intent. During his time in the Senate, federal tax revenues increased from roughly $3 trillion in 2014 to $5.2 trillion in 2025. All of that revenue was wiped out over the same period, as federal spending rose from about $3.5 trillion to $7.0 trillion. The national debt increased from $18 trillion to $37 trillion. The federal government now pays more in interest on the debt than it does on defense. 

Peters was one of 100 senators and does not bear sole responsibility for those increases. But he consistently supported many of the major spending packages that contributed to the federal government's ballooning budget. For the 2025 session, the National Taxpayers Union, a nonpartisan group, ranked Peters 94th out of 100 on all bills related to taxes, spending, debt, and major regulations. 

Did all of that federal spending produce lasting benefits for Michigan that justified the cost? Federal deficits and debt are at record levels, and Michigan continues to underperform in education, business competitiveness, population growth, and most other vital metrics. The debt-fueled surge in outlays that Peters supported came with costs for Michigan residents and all Americans. Peters talked about fiscal responsibility, but he delivered ruinous spending.

Michigan doesn’t need pork barrel projects or business handouts to thrive. The Great Lakes State needs fiscal responsibility, accountable leaders, and reasonable regulations. Here’s hoping Peters’ Senate successor may keep these truths in mind.

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