Gov. Shapiro’s condemnation of Liz Magill raised his national profile (again)

If any single politician’s voice led to the University of Pennsylvania president’s resignation Saturday, it was Gov. Josh Shapiro’s.

From the moment he sharply condemned president Liz Magill’s congressional testimony — in which she hedged on whether calling for genocide of Jewish people violated the school’s code of conduct — Democrats across the state joined Republican colleagues in a bipartisan outcry that ultimately ended her tenure.

In four trips to Philadelphia within five days, Shapiro visited a falafel restaurant that had been the target of protests, spent the first night of Hanukkah with Jewish Penn students, spoke at an interfaith rally, and introduced President Joe Biden to a room full of heavyweight political donors, calling the president a man of ”moral clarity,” and a “mensch.”

“You are showing that hate has no place here in the commonwealth of Pennsylvania,” Shapiro, Pennsylvania’s third Jewish governor, said to a crowd of about 1,000 at a Sunday rally against antisemitism. “And hear me on this: Hate in whatever form, whether antisemitism, Islamophobia, racism, homophobia, it has no place in Pennsylvania. We will not tolerate it.”

Shapiro, who is widely rumored to have national political ambitions, became a central figure last week as Penn was in the spotlight amid tensions at universities nationwide over hate speech, antisemitism, and the Israel-Hamas war. The governor walked the line between criticizing the leadership of Penn, the largest employer in the city, and talking to students and community members about fighting antisemitism, proselytizing the state as a safe haven for all faiths — even as pro-Palestinian protesters criticized his view on the war.

“It’s notable that he has been as outspoken as he has been about these issues as a Jewish politician,” said Democratic political strategist J.J. Balaban. Fewer than 4% of Pennsylvanians are Jewish, Balaban noted, and others in his position might have kept a lower profile.

“But Josh’s faith has always been central to his identity, and he obviously feels strongly about speaking up at this moment of heightened anxiety in the Jewish community.”

Shapiro never called for Magill to resign over saying, when asked in a congressional hearing last week whether calls for genocide of Jewish people violates the school’s code of conduct, that “it is a context-dependent situation.” But his full-throated criticism put pressure on the Ivy League university and was the highest profile example in the state of Democrats joining what had previously been a campaign of mostly Republicans criticizing elite institutions.

As governor, Shapiro has a non-voting seat on Penn’s board of trustees, but he made his views known, both publicly and through a representative to the board. He’d been speaking with Magill and the former chair of board of trustees, Scott Bok, for months behind the scenes, he said, offering solutions to antisemitic episodes on campus.

“[Magill and the Penn board] have seemingly failed every step of the way to take concrete action to make sure every student feels safe on campus,” Shapiro said last week outside Goldie, the falafel shop that has an Israeli-born co-owner, his first time publicly challenging Penn’s top brass. “Frankly, I thought her comments were absolutely shameful. It should not be hard to condemn genocide.”

Shortly after Shapiro weighed in, a spokesperson for Biden denounced all three college presidents who addressed the congressional panel — those from MIT and Harvard made similar comments — as did other Democrats across Pennsylvania.

But not all Democrats have weighed in. Shapiro has been much more vocal than Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, who has not commented on the pressure mounting in her state against the presidents of MIT and Harvard.

Former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell, who is also Jewish, said Shapiro has “willingness to take risks and do what’s right.” But, he added, it was risky for Shapiro to speak out on the issue of antisemitism as a Jewish man.

“There are people who are reading [Shapiro’s comments] and saying, ‘he’s just saying that because he’s Jewish,’” Rendell added. “I’ve known Josh for a long time, and he’s not just saying it because he’s Jewish.”

While the moment demonstrated a coming together of sorts for Democrats and Republicans, there was also noted daylight between the parties. Most Republican elected leaders called on Magill to resign while many Democrats simply condemned her testimony.

GOP Senate candidate Dave McCormick seized on that distinction and blasted Sen. Bob Casey, the Democrat he’s seeking to unseat.

“He didn’t take a stand. But now he rubber-stamps the move,” McCormick said.

Shapiro, meanwhile, got praise from some of his critics, such as GOP consultant Charlie Gerow.

“I’m not a huge proponent of Josh Shapiro, but I give him credit for doing the right thing,” Gerow said. “I’m just still amazed that others didn’t come out as forcefully.”

”It certainly didn’t hurt [Shapiro] politically, either,” Gerow added after a long pause.

By condemning Magill’s testimony, Shapiro likely received some favor from an influential segment of Penn’s donor class, who had started the campaign for her ouster.

Some of those donors were at a fundraiser Tuesday for Biden, where the president predicted of Shapiro’s future: “I think whatever you want, you’re gonna get.”

Shapiro has also faced backlash on his stance on the Israel-Hamas war. Hundreds of protesters calling for a cease-fire made a stop outside the governor’s mansion in Harrisburg on Sunday.

They chanted: “Josh Shapiro you can’t hide, you signed off on genocide.” A top Republican in the state Senate condemned the protest targeting Shapiro’s home. (Shapiro and his family were in Philadelphia at the time.)

Pro-Palestinian protesters have targeted other Democrats who have voiced support for Israel — including Biden and U.S. Sen. John Fetterman — in recent months, urging them to back a cease-fire. The differing views on the war have fueled tensions within the Democratic Party ahead of an important presidential election year.

Shapiro, who has long been a vocal supporter of Israel, has carefully walked a line criticizing only antisemitism — not pro-Palestine sentiments — and has vowed to fight against Islamophobia and all forms of hate.

Asked about the need for humanitarian aid, Shapiro said while he thinks Israel “certainly needs to mitigate the loss of innocent civilian lives, they have a responsibility to root out terror and to end Hamas’ ability to control that region.”

Some groups calling for an end to Israeli attacks on Gaza say Shapiro has not done enough to show he is the governor of all Pennsylvanians.

“The governor says that he is against Islamophobia and we want to believe that, but his words are creating danger and harm,” said Ahmet Selim Tekelioglu, executive director of the Pennsylvania chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

Tekelioglu, who was particularly upset with Shapiro’s criticism of protesters outside Goldie, added: “Gov. Shapiro had a good standing among Muslim communities, despite some disagreements. He spent time campaigning in Muslim-American communities. All of those relationships he built have been, unfortunately, tarnished over the last two months.”

Even before Shapiro stepped to the podium Sunday at Rodeph Shalom synagogue on North Broad Street, he got a standing ovation.

Shapiro’s role in the former Penn president’s resignation won’t be remembered in detail into the next few years, but voters — and donors — will remember him for taking a stand, Democratic strategist Mike Mikus predicted. On a smaller scale, he compared Shapiro’s rising star to that of former President Barack Obama when he spoke at the Democratic National Convention in 2004.

“Nobody remembered the vast majority of the speech or what he talked about,” Mikus said. “What they remembered was that he gave a speech that really appealed to them… And any time an elected official is able to raise their profile and demonstrate conviction and courage, it always helps in the long run.”

Penn will remain a national focal point as Congress launches its investigation into universities and the school installs new leadership — and that presents an opportunity for Shapiro to continue speaking out.

But as the governor’s national political clout rises, one Democratic state operative pumped the brakes a little.

The strategist, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, noted that Shapiro’s highest profile moments tend to be “really easy wins,” such as decrying antisemitism or fixing a broken highway. And he’s lost other recent fights, like a push for private-school vouchers and his pick for state party chair.

For Shapiro, some of the statements and visits have been very personal, given his faith. He hosted survivors of the Oct. 7 attack at the governor’s residence in Harrisburg and met with them again at the synagogue in Philadelphia on Sunday.

Asked on about the impact the week had had on him, Shapiro said he’d felt “multiple layers of responsibility,” as a dad figuring out how to talk to his kids, to his own Jewish upbringing, and “not just to American Jews here in Pennsylvania, but all Pennsylvanians to make sure that they feel safe.”