Shapiro’s response to Israel-Hamas war comes under spotlight

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s (D) position on the Israel-Hamas war is coming under particularly high levels of scrutiny amid the Democratic divide over the war as Vice President Harris considers adding him to her ticket.

Shapiro has emerged as the leading vice presidential contender given his executive experience in the critical swing state, which carries 19 electoral college votes. Additionally, Shapiro’s allies point to his record of appealing to voters outside of the Democratic fold. 

However, some progressives say the governor’s response to pro-Palestinian protests over the war could end up alienating the left flank of the party despite Harris’s recently successful effort to unify Democrats. 

Meanwhile, allies and defenders of Shapiro note that the governor’s position on the war is similar to most other top choices under consideration, with the one quality that differentiates him from the rest of them being his observant Jewish identity. 

“We have a real opportunity to win the election and the idea that they’re now trying to divide us because Josh is the only Jewish person who could be the VP continues the unfortunate division that we’ve seen within the party since Oct. 7,” said Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.), who is also Jewish and not backing a specific vice president contender. 

Shapiro had been seen as a rising star in the party for years, developing a reputation as a moderate with great appeal to swing voters while advocating key liberal priorities like protecting abortion rights and raising the minimum wage. 

Strategists supportive of Shapiro said the governor’s widespread popularity, including an approval rating well above water, would be an asset to the ticket. 

Harris is aware of the risk of looking too progressive as Republicans try to pin her as left of Biden, and Shapiro’s moderate reputation could help her compared to some other running mate choices.  

“While I think progressives are looking at Shapiro as too conservative, [Minnesota Gov. Tim] Walz might be a little too progressive for independents,” said a former Senate adviser to Harris. 

Meanwhile, former President Trump is jumping into the discourse, telling Fox News that if Harris picks Shapiro, “she’s going to lose the Palestinian vote.”  

But former Pennsylvania Democratic Party Chair T.J. Rooney noted that some progressive pushback to Shapiro’s policies is not necessarily a bad thing for the vice presidential contender.  

“Sometimes the fights that people pick are fights they’re not going to win in the court of public opinion,” Rooney said. “As far as Josh’s standing as a moderate, political person who can add value in places like southwestern Pennsylvania … being yelled at by people on the extreme left isn’t going to hurt him. It almost strengthens his credibility in some important circles in the Democratic Party and beyond.”  

But progressive and pro-Palestinian segments of the party have come out in opposition to Shapiro being the running mate, citing a few issues, but mostly his stance on Israel. 

Following the Oct. 7 attacks on Israel and the subsequent pro-Palestinian protests in the U.S., Shapiro became one of the most prominent political voices to speak out against the rise in antisemitism.  

Shapiro weighed in following the December House hearing in which three university presidents, including one from the University of Pennsylvania, were questioned about campus antisemitism policies and what is considered harassment. He slammed the Penn president’s testimony, in which she did not say if calling for genocide against Jewish students violated university policy. 

In April, he said antisemitism and vandalism have “no place” in Pennsylvania after a swastika was spray-painted on a synagogue. 

His criticism of the Penn president raised pressure for her to resign following pro-Palestinian protests on campus. He also recently updated the code of conduct for state employees to not engage in “scandalous” behavior, which some interpreted as preventing them from participating in these kinds of protests, though a spokesperson for the governor said employees could still participate in First Amendment activities. 

“It seems like he went out of his way when you compare him to governors like [Illinois Gov. JB] Pritzker and Walz, who are in this conversation,” said one progressive strategist, referring to Shapiro’s fellow vice presidential contenders, the former of whom is also Jewish.  

“It raises notice of people in the Palestine movement and progressives generally of why is this Democratic governor [joining] people like Elise Stefanik in criticizing the Penn president? Why is the Democratic governor repeating some lines that you really associate more with Republicans on this?” the strategist added.  

On Friday, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that when he was a 20-year-old student at the University of Rochester, Shapiro wrote in an opinion piece for the school newspaper that he believed peace “will never come” to the Middle East. Shapiro’s spokesperson Manuel Bonder noted that the governor’s views on the issue have since “evolved into the position he holds today.” 

But some have argued that Shapiro’s views and policies on the conflict are about the same as most of the other choices.  

Shapiro has been sharply critical of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, calling him “one of the worst leaders of all time” and an obstacle to a two-state solution. He told The Washington Post the country “can’t ignore the death and destruction” in Gaza. 

Meanwhile, Walz, whom some progressives have rallied around, has shown openness to the protesters’ message but went after instances that have made Jewish students on campus feel unsafe. 

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (D), also under consideration, has generally expressed support for Israel but avoided weighing in on the conflict amid the veepstakes talk. 

Another possible choice, Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly (D), attended and applauded during Netanyahu’s address to Congress late last month despite many Democrats skipping it in protest to his policies. 

In a statement to The Hill, Bonder noted Shapiro’s “close personal relationship with Muslim-American, Arab-American, Palestinian Christian, and Jewish community leaders.” 

Given the relatively minor differences in the vice presidential contenders’ positions, some have argued that Shapiro’s Jewish identity is the reason for the heat he has gotten.

“Josh’s position on Israel is almost identical to everybody else but he is being held to a different standard. So you have to ask yourself why?” Moskowitz said. “We just couldn’t imagine other Democrats within the party questioning a VP pick just because they were Black, were gay, Latino. We couldn’t imagine that.” 

Democratic strategist Jon Reinish said he believes the attention to the critiques of Shapiro are more widespread than the sentiment itself, noting that an online petition pushing against him only garnered 850 signatures so far, compared to the 3 million votes he won in 2022. 

“I think it shows you social media and the current environment in social media amplifies the fringe voices, but if you look at reality, it’s getting more attention than actual support,” he said. 

Reinish said “mischaracterizations” about Shapiro’s positions will continue if he is chosen, but that can be addressed with a direct conversation about their stance. 

And some progressives say that when put up against Trump and his vice presidential pick Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), a Shapiro pick would likely not lead to progressives staying home.  

“Can I really credibly say it’s going to cost Harris the election or something? Honestly the answer is no,” the progressive strategist said, noting the intense enthusiasm Harris’s campaign has already garnered. 

Sam Crystal, the chief of staff of the Jewish Democratic Council of America, said polls have shown most Americans are in line with Shapiro’s position, making it not as much a vulnerability as critics would portray. 

“He’s an incredible communicator and I think that when people sit down and really listen to where he stands on the issue and how he leads with moral clarity, they’re going to see why he would be the right choice if selected,” Crystal said. 

Shapiro was leaning into his Jewish identity as governor prior to the Oct. 7, with his first campaign ad during the 2022 cycle featuring Shabbat dinner with his family. But Shapiro’s allies stress that his appeal goes beyond his faith and ethnicity, pointing to his domestic record as governor.  

And to voters, it will ultimately be Harris’s stance on a variety of issues that will be the priority.  

“It’s about what Kamala Harris thinks, not what Josh Shapiro thinks if he’s chosen to be her running mate,” Rooney said. “On the scale of takebacks compared to JD Vance, it doesn’t register.”  

 Mychael Schnell and Alex Gangitano contributed.