Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro has lashed out at Donald Trump, proving he has what it takes to be Kamala Harris’ running mate.
The Democratic governor made his case against Trump, saying the former president is “weird,” “dangerous” and has some “scary things” in his 2024 platform, and claimed the former president is “scared” of the vice president.
But Shapiro also sought to show he was ready to take on Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) during a Harris campaign rally outside Philadelphia.
Pennsylvania is hugely important in this election cycle and is one of a handful of swing states that could determine the outcome in November.
Trump won Pennsylvania by just 0.7 percent in 2016 before the state flipped Democratic in 2020 to favor Biden over the incumbent president by 1.2 percent.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro made his first major campaign remarks for Vice President Kamala Harris on Monday after it was revealed he was on the short list for her running mate.
According to the Cook Political Report, the Keystone State is one of three swing states for 2024. The other two are Rust Belt states Michigan and Wisconsin.
A Bloomberg report on Monday reveals that Shapiro, as well as Arizona Gov. Mark Kelly and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, are the top three contenders Harris is considering adding to her list.
Joined by Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer during a stop in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, on Monday afternoon, Shapiro launched profanity-laced attacks against Trump and Vance, with whom he would debate if selected to join Harris’ ticket.
“I have a message for Donald Trump: Stop talking nonsense about America,” Shapiro told an audience of about 1,000 Democratic voters. “This is the greatest country in the world, let’s start acting like it.”
“Have you ever seen this guy? When he’s on stage, he walks around like he’s nothing, he can’t walk right, he walks up to the flag and hugs it,” the Pennsylvania governor said, referring to a passage that the former president sometimes repeats during his appearances.
“I love the flag, but it’s kind of weird what it’s doing,” Shapiro added.
“But as long as he’s hugging the flag, you know what he’s doing? He’s taking away our freedom. That’s what it’s all about.”
She also claimed Trump is afraid to debate Harris after the former president said he would not commit to anything until she was officially the party’s nominee, which will happen next month at the Democratic National Convention.
Shapiro tried a few digs at Donald Trump, including claiming he “can’t really walk right” and that he sometimes “goes out of his way” to hug the American flag on stage.
The governor said Harris is “not just ready, she’s very ready.”
“You know who else knows she’s ready? Donald Trump knows she’s ready,” Shapiro added.
—And you know why I know that? —he continued—. Because he’s afraid to debate her now. And it’s not just because she’s a good debater… He’s afraid to debate her because she can’t defend her record.
Whitmer says Harris will choose her running mate in the next six or seven days.
In her remarks at the Wissahickon High School gymnasium on Monday, the Michigan governor appeared to join Shapiro in auditioning for the vice presidential post.
“Another governor who believes in our three-pronged strategy: getting things done right,” Whitmer said of her Pennsylvania counterpart.
The crowd then began chanting the phrase.
