Leftist media and Democrat politicians are attacking the idea of presumptive Democrat presidential nominee Kamala Harris choosing Pennsylvania Democratic governor Josh Shapiro, who is Jewish, as her running mate because of his pro-Israel statements and criticism of pro-Hamas protesters.
New York Times columnist Michelle Goldberg claimed, “Until about five minutes ago, everyone worried that the Democratic convention was going to be thrown into chaos over Gaza. A lot of those tensions have died down, in part because voters angry at Biden’s Israel policy are more comfortable with Harris, who is reported to be more sympathetic to the Palestinians. Choosing Shapiro, who is ardently pro-Israel and outspoken in his condemnation of the recent campus protests, would rip those wounds open again.”
“With a newly united party behind her, there are only so many ways Harris can screw it up, but one seems all too plausible: She could select Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro as her running mate,” The New Republic wrote. “Shapiro also stands out among the current field of potential running mates as being egregiously bad on Palestine. It’s not just that he, like many Democrats, is an outspoken supporter of Israel—though he certainly is, having championed Israel’s war against Hamas consistently …”
“Choosing Governor Josh Shapiro for Vice President would be a mistake,” Nina Turner, the national co-chair of Bernie Sanders’s 2020 presidential campaign, snapped. “Governor Shapiro compared pro-peace protesters to the KKK. That’s simply unacceptable & would stifle the momentum VP Harris has. Hopefully she is looking to build a broad coalition to beat Trump.
In April, Josh Shapiro spoke with CNN’s Jake Tapper, who asked about the pro-Hamas protests, “Where do you draw the line when it comes to what you consider to be out of control?”
“The active gathering in the way that some of these students have at some of these universities violates university policy and may violate the rules of that particular city or that particular state,” Shapiro replied. “That can’t be allowed in the name of free speech. And I think several of these universities the leaders across the country just simply losing control of the situation. They have a responsibility to keep students safe. Students shouldn’t be blocked from going to campus just because they’re Jewish, or learning in a classroom as opposed to being forced online because they’re Jewish. It is simply unacceptable.”
“And you know what? We have to query whether or not we would tolerate this, if this were people dressed up in KKK outfits or KKK regalia, making comments about people who are African American in our communities, certainly not condoning that, Jake, by any stretch,” Shapiro continued. “But I think we have to be careful about setting any kind of double standard here on our campuses. We’ve got to call it up for. We’ve got to call it up for what it is. And these university leaders have to make sure there is order on their campuses.”
No such criticism has come for another rumored candidate, Illinois Democratic governor J.B. Pritzker, who is also Jewish and made supportive statements regarding Israel. Pritzker, unlike Shapiro, has largely refrained from slamming pro-Hamas protesters.
“There is always something to protest about,” Pritzker said in early May about the possibility of pro-Hamas protests at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. “The university campuses have been a protest ground for an awful lot of young people. I think it’ll be a different crowd that’s protesting when we get to a convention.”
In April, when pro-Hamas protesters shut down routes in Chicago to its major airport, Pritzker stated, “I think they can have their voices heard and let people move along their day.”
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