Why Josh Shapiro would help Kamala Harris win over the most voters [View all]

[Mosby]

[JEWISH GROUP]

“I stand before you, a proud American of Jewish faith,” Josh Shapiro told the crowd at his gubernatorial inauguration in 2023. He had just taken the oath of office over a Torah recovered from the Tree of Life synagogue, where 11 Jews were murdered during Shabbat services by a white nationalist.

Shapiro’s centering of both his Jewish identity and the violent reality of antisemitism was a powerful symbolic victory of life over death, of unity over bigotry and of Jews being able to participate in public service unconditionally.

It is the kind of symbolism that would greatly benefit the Kamala Harris campaign as it competes in must-win Pennsylvania. Yet Shapiro, who beat a Christian nationalist in a landslide in 2022, is facing backlash from pro-Palestinian activists who are picking apart his statements on campus antisemitism and complaining about his support for Israel. In choosing Shapiro, a politician with bipartisan popularity and a stellar record as governor, Harris would ensure her ticket targets real voters, rather than tailoring its messaging to the whims of internet leftists who make the perfect the enemy of the good.

https://forward.com/opinion/639870/josh-shapiro-kamala-harris-vice-president/