Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, currently the leading contender to become Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate, is actively distancing himself from his past claims that he served alongside the Israel Defense Force. Rumors of the governor’s brief stint with the IDF stem from a resurfaced 1993 op-ed written by a 20-year-old Shapiro, in which he also argued that Palestinians are “too battle-minded to be able to establish a peaceful homeland of their own.”
In the op-ed entitled “Peace Not Possible,” Shapiro, working as a student staffer for the University of Rochester’s Campus Times, voiced his reservations about the Palestine Liberation Organization’s agreement with Israel at the Oslo Accords.
“Palestinians will not coexist peacefully,” wrote Shapiro, who is Jewish. “They do not have the capabilities to establish their own homeland and make it successful even with the aid of Israel and the United States. They are too battle-minded to be able to establish a peaceful homeland of their own.”
“Despite my skepticism as a Jew and a past volunteer in the Israeli army, I strongly hope and pray that this ‘peace plan’ will be successful,” Shapiro concluded. His short bio at the end of the article adds that he “spent five months studying in Israel and volunteered in the Israeli army.”
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After the Philadelphia Inquirer published a report on Shapiro’s past statements, the governor quickly disavowed the claims and denied that he had ever worked directly for the IDF.
“While he was in high school, Josh Shapiro was required to do a service project, which he and several classmates completed through a program that took them to a kibbutz in Israel where he worked on a farm and at a fishery,” said spokesman Manuel Bonder on behalf of the governor’s office. “The program also included volunteering on service projects on an Israeli army base. At no time was he engaged in any military activities.”
Bonder also emphasized how “Governor Shapiro has built close, meaningful, informative relationships with many Muslim-American, Arab-American, Palestinian Christian and Jewish community leaders all across Pennsylvania,” indicating that his stance on the issue has changed since he was in college.
In a press conference on Friday, Shapiro further addressed his comments about Palestine, saying simply that he “was 20.”
“I have said for years, years before Oct. 7, that I favor a two-state solution—Israelis and Palestinians living peacefully side-by-side, being able to determine their own futures and their own destiny,” he said.
Asked Gov. Shapiro about the Philly Inquirer/@anna_orso report on a 1993 college op-ed where he expressed skepticisim about a two-state solution
"Something I wrote about when I was 20? … I was 20"
"I have said for years, long before Oct. 7, that I favor a two state solution" pic.twitter.com/CXZAlrUEkW
— aaron navarro (@aaronlarnavarro) August 2, 2024
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Following the controversy over Shapiro’s writings, his Wikipedia page was scrubbed of references to any alleged service with the IDF, instead reflecting the new information provided by the governor’s office.
They just scrubbed Josh Shapiro volunteering for the IDF from his Wikipedia page.
Damage control has been turned up to the max. pic.twitter.com/UjJq8eftVE
— Breaking Points Commentary (@BreakingPointsN) August 3, 2024
Shapiro is expected to attend a campaign rally for Vice President Harris in his home state on Tuesday, during which she has hinted that she will announce her running mate.
Connor Walcott is a staff writer for Valuetainment.com. He has never served with the Israel Defense Force. Follow Connor on X and look for him on VT’s “The Unusual Suspects.”
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