Shapiro says Harris vetting team asked if he had been an Israeli agent

Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania writes in his new memoir that during vetting to be former Vice President Kamala Harris’s running mate in 2024, aides asked whether he had ever been an agent of the Israeli government, a question he says he found deeply offensive. The memoir, Where We Keep the Light, was obtained by The New York Times.

Mr. Shapiro, who is Jewish, recounts the exchange in which he wrote, “Had I been a double agent for Israel?” He said he responded that the question was offensive and was told, “Well, we have to ask.” He wrote that he understood the questioner was “just doing her job,” but that being asked such questions “said a lot about some of the people around the VP.” He wrote that he was pressed on other questions about Israel and wondered whether he was being singled out as “the only Jewish guy in the running.” He also described the sessions as “completely professional and businesslike,” but said he had “a knot in my stomach through all of it.” Ms.

Harris’s own memoir, 107 Days, alludes to “the attacks he’d confronted on Gaza” and to a concern that Mr. Shapiro “would be unable to settle for a role as number two.” Mr. Shapiro acknowledged they saw the role differently, writing of “door A and door B” and his desire to make the case for his position.

Manuel Bonder, a spokesman for Mr. Shapiro, said the governor “wrote a very personal book” about his life and service. The book is set to be released on Jan. 27. A representative for Ms.

Key Topics

Politics, Josh Shapiro, Kamala Harris, Vice-presidential Vetting, Israel, Shapiro Memoir