In the News
B’nai B’rith International CEO Daniel S. Mariaschin expressed his deep concern that support for Israel is somehow a reason to disqualify someone from holding public office, sharing his thoughts with N12 News in Israel on Vice President Kamala Harris possibly choosing Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro as her running mate.
Read Mariaschin’s comments to N12 News in Hebrew here, and below in English.
The Democratic Party candidate for president of the United States, Kamala Harris, is expected to announce in the next day her election as the vice president designated on her behalf. Yesterday (Sunday), Harris interviewed three candidates for the position, and in the U.S. it was reported that they have the highest chance of being elected: Governor of Pennsylvania Josh Shapiro, Senator from Arizona Mark Kelly and Minnesota Governor Tim Wells. The three front-runners come from the center of the Democratic Party, but they offer the vice president different advantages regarding her race against former President Trump.
Josh Shapiro
Shapiro, 51, has served as the governor of swing state Pennsylvania since 2023, and before that served as Pennsylvania’s attorney general for six years. Shapiro is Jewish, and if he is elected vice president he will become the most senior Jew in the American administration ever.
Shapiro’s candidacy was strongly opposed in the Democratic Party, mainly around his support for Israel. Activists in the party founded the organization “No to Genocide Josh” and recruited thousands of supporters. “Our goal is simple: to send a message to Vice President Harris and the Democratic Party that the choice of Shapiro to be vice president would be wrong, he does not represent the values of the Democratic base. He compared the protesters at the universities to Ku Klux Klan (KKK) supporters. He endangers the momentum and unity of the party The Democratic Party,” the organization told N12.
On the other hand, many in the U.S. came out against the opposition to Shapiro’s candidacy, claiming that it was anti-Semitic, especially since the other candidates for vice president also expressed support for Israel.’ He should be criticized for his policies, but when only the Jewish candidate receives personal attacks regarding Israel – it should be made clear how dangerous this is,” Amy Spitalnik, CEO of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, told N12.
“It is disturbing to me that there are those who see an expression of support for Israel, the most important friend of the United States in the Middle East, as grounds for disqualifying someone from holding public office,” added Dan Mariaschin, chairman of B’nai B’rith, and stressed that this is an anomalous position in the American public sphere. Jewish congressman Adam Schiff also called the opposition to Shapiro “anti-Semitic” and said that the opponents apply “double standards.”
Throughout his political career, Shapiro has consistently expressed pro-Israel positions. After October 7, he said, “Hamas must return the abductees immediately – and this must happen before peace is achieved.” He harshly criticized some of the demonstrations against Israel, said that the demonstrators “need to learn some history,” and called a demonstration outside a Jewish-Israeli restaurant in Philadelphia “blatant anti-Semitism.” As prosecutor general, he expressed support for taking legal action against networks that boycotted Israel.
Shapiro lived a Jewish lifestyle – he kept kosher at the governor’s mansion in Pennsylvania, celebrated the Seder and as a child went to Jewish schools. In his swearing-in as governor, Shapiro chose to take the oath with a Bible that was recovered from the deadly attack on the “Etz Chaim” synagogue in October 2018 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, which claimed the lives of 11 Jews. In his youth, Shapiro volunteered at an IDF base and a kibbutz in Israel for several months.
Shapiro is very popular in Pennsylvania, a state that could decide the election. He expressed strong support for women’s abortion rights, the legalization of marijuana, and private school vouchers. Shapiro is a harsh critic of Trump, and in the past also criticized Netanyahu and called him a “terrible leader.”
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