Harris campaign rejects claims that Shapiro’s faith, support of Israel were factors in VP pick

WASHINGTON — Is it weird that Kamala Harris chose Tim Walz to be her running mate instead of Josh Shapiro?

As soon as the vice president announced today that the Minnesota governor would be her running mate, critics of the choice began suggesting that she sidelined Pennsylvania’s governor because he is Jewish.

“Did Harris reject Shapiro just because progressives don’t like that he was Jewish?” tweeted Alan Dershowitz, the lawyer and gadfly who has said he is a Democrat but has frequently defended Donald Trump.

Maury Litwack, an Orthodox Union executive who focuses on education policy, tweeted, “Democrats: You can be excited about the Walz pick but also be sad that an outright antisemitic campaign was waged against Shapiro. Some soul searching is needed.”

Harris’s campaign pushes back against claims that she caved to the progressive anti-Shapiro campaign that gathered steam over the past week. In a statement to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, an aide to Harris rejects the accusation that Shapiro’s faith or stances on Israel was a consideration.

“Assertions that Vice President Harris did not select Gov. Shapiro based on his religion or views on Israel are absolutely ridiculous and offensive,” the aide says.

“Vice President Harris has an unwavering commitment to Israel’s security, as she reaffirmed last night following the meeting in the Situation Room,” where she and President Joe Biden joined a briefing about Iranian plans to attack Israel, the aide says. “She will always combat antisemitism whenever and wherever she sees it.”