Although he ultimately wasn't Vice President Kamala Harris' running mate pick, Gov. Josh Shapiro (D-PA) still made an appearance at the rally in Philadelphia that Harris and Gov. Tim Walz (D-MN), who was the pick, held on Tuesday night.
What we saw looked an awful lot like Shapiro debasing himself. Even MSNBC's Rachel Maddow noted that he was "shouting himself hoarse!"
Harris' non-VP pick went with the same line of attack that Walz first coined, which is to use the "weird" label against former and potentially future President Donald Trump's running mate, Sen. JD Vance (R-OH).
As the crowd chanted "he's a weirdo" about Vance, Shapiro took his cues from those gathered to make that a major point of his speech and to also reference Walz taking the role that was very much expected to go to Shapiro at one point.
"So, so, if I hear you right, and I think I do, you're chanting 'he's a weirdo!'" The crowd erupted in applause to confirm as much. Shapiro went on to say this "means if you're chanting 'he's a weirdo,' then you've heard of my good friend and our next vice president, Tim Walz, because Tim Walz and his beautiful, Midwestern, plain-spoken way, he summed up JD Vance the best!" He's 'a weirdo!'"
Crowd chants "he's a weirdo," referring to JD Vance.
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) August 6, 2024
Josh Shapiro: "He's a weirdo!" pic.twitter.com/LcLtORUXnZ
Shapiro could have been a better pick, considering he's the popular enough governor of a key battleground state. Currently, Trump is up by +1.8 in Pennsylvania, per RealClearPolling averages. He's also more moderate, on certain issues. But, Shapiro also reminded us that he also falls inline with the radical left, and that includes subjecting school children to sexually explicit adult content.
"Trump and his sycophants, let me tell you something, they love to talk a good game about freedom, right? They love to cloak themselves in the blanket of freedom all the time! They love to talk a good game! But here me on this, it's not freedom to tell our children what books they're allowed to read, that's not freedom!"
That's quite the topic to discuss when talking about "freedom," especially when it amounts to subjecting vulnerable minors to explicit and even pornographic materials. Such a moment from the rally has been trending over X.
Josh Shapiro is very upset at "Trump and his sycophants" for not showing gay pornography to children in schools. pic.twitter.com/mvo0C9eAkY
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) August 6, 2024
It's also worth addressing the elephant in the room, which is the matter of Shapiro's faith. Although reports indicate that Shapiro didn't have the best of interviews with Harris, and that he was struggling with the decision of whether or not to leave the governorship, it can't be ignored that Shapiro being Jewish was seen as a problem for the antisemitic part of the far-left base that's anti-Israel and pro-Hamas. The governor had even been toning down his pro-Israel views in recent days.
During the rally, Shapiro told the crowd "I am proud of my faith," which he should be. It's also worth wondering why he went through such great lengths to downplay support for Israel, though, especially since he also declared that "I lean on my faith!"
We'll see if we hear anything else from Shapiro about his Jewish faith and what role it may or may not have played in him not getting the pick,
SHAPIRO: "I am proud of my faith!" pic.twitter.com/1guU9uDE61
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) August 6, 2024
As Shapiro increased his energy and enthusiasm for the Harris-Walz ticket the further he got into his remarks, he did so at the expense of his voice.
"Are you ready to build an America where no matter what you look like, where you come from, who you love or who you pray to, that this will be a place for you? And are you ready to look the next President of the United States in the eye and say 'hello Madam President,'" Shapiro asked.
The crowd gathered there certainly sounded like they were ready, though we'll see what happens in November.
GOV JOSH SHAPIRO (voice BADLY cracking):
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) August 6, 2024
"Are you ready to look the next President of the United States in the eye and say 'hello Madam President?'" pic.twitter.com/73TK8Zjj25
Rachel Maddow notices that Josh Shapiro was "shouting himself hoarse!"
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) August 6, 2024
Yikes! https://t.co/rqVq1QB4vZ pic.twitter.com/XabbJlGMAQ
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