By The Daily Caller (U.S.) | Created at 2026-09-18 18:16:51 | Updated at 2026-09-25 02:34:36
6 days ago
The Detroit News endorsed GOP Senate candidate Mike Rogers on Wednesday, in a move that was perceived as stunning in some corners of social media, even though the paper has endorsed numerous Republicans since it first went to press in 1873.
But if you peek behind the curtain and discover the powerful institutions that back the newspaper’s owner, the paper’s recent string of Republican endorsements makes perfect sense.
The Detroit News editorial board called Rogers “the prototype of a United States Senator,” citing his background as a military veteran and FBI special agent, and his time in Congress serving the national security state as the exceptionally powerful U.S. House Intelligence Chair. (RELATED: GOP Swing-State Senate Candidate Picks Up Surprising Cross-Aisle Endorsement)
“He is mature, trustworthy and more than prepared. Rogers’ experience, clear-thinking, and temperament, are bound to quickly vault him into the Senate’s leadership ranks,” the paper wrote.
As for Rogers’ opponent, left-wing Democrat Abdul El-Sayed, the paper hammered him for his thin resume, deleted social media posts about 9/11, his ideological alignment with the Democratic Socialists of America and his “animosity toward Jews.”
Although the endorsement was trumpeted on social media as a stunning development in the race, The Detroit News previously endorsed Rogers in his 2024 campaign against Elissa Slotkin, which he lost.
Furthermore, The Detroit News is owned by USA TODAY Co., a publicly traded company backed by large institutional investors that align with Rogers’ political ideology.
The New Media Investment Group, a large private equity firm run by president and CEO Michael Reed, acquired Gannett, the owner of USA Today, in a 2019 merger. The combined company kept the Gannett name but later rebranded as USA TODAY Co. New Media shareholders owned about 50.5 percent of the new entity, compared to former Gannett shareholders owning about 49.5 percent.
USA TODAY Co. acquired The Detroit News from MediaNews Group in a deal completed Jan. 31, 2026. It now sits in the same corporate family as its longtime rival, the Detroit Free Press.
USA TODAY Co.’s top institutional investors include Two Seas Capital LP, which holds roughly 9.58 percent of the company; Apollo Management Holdings, which holds 8.26 percent; Alta Fundamental Advisers LLC, which holds 7.32 percent; BlackRock, Inc., which holds approximately 7.16 percent; billionaire Leon G. Cooperman of Omega Advisors, who holds roughly 4.27 percent; Vanguard Group Inc., which owns around 4.12 percent; and Goldman Sachs Group Inc., which owns around 3.40 percent.
Rogers is certainly no stranger to private equity, making this latest endorsement from The Detroit News seem more like a mundane Wall Street stamp of approval than anything else.
Over his congressional career, the securities and investment sector was one of Rogers’ top donor industries. In the 2000s, he supported allowing workers to divert part of their Social Security taxes into private investment accounts — an idea that would have directed large sums to Wall Street firms. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Mike Rogers Takes Affordability Message To New Level With Nod To Beloved TV Show)
Rogers has taken large contributions from prominent private-equity executives during this election cycle, including Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman, Apollo CEO Marc Rowan, Elliott Management’s Paul Singer, and investor John W. Childs.
