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Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro recalled to “The Breakfast Club” in a new interview how he tried to deliver then-President Joe Biden bad news about the election before Biden dropped out of the race.
Nearly a year after the 2024 election, which was seen as a reckoning for Democrats, the party is still trying to make sense of where they have gone wrong in recent years.
Shapiro, who presents himself as a moderate for the party who goes out of his way to engage with conservatives, spoke candidly about his sober warnings to Biden when Biden was still the de facto 2024 Democratic nominee.
“I went directly to the president and spoke to him about what I saw were, you know, his challenges in Pennsylvania. I was really honest with him,” Shapiro said. “We got together at a coffee shop in Harrisburg. I think this has been reported. I mean, I’ll just share with you. He said, ‘How’s it going?’ I was very clear: ‘It’s not going well.’”
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Gov. Josh Shapiro recalled telling then-President Biden the election was not looking good in his state. (Gilbert Carrasquillo/GC Images)
He then recalled what he had told Biden at the time.
“’Polls are showing it’s not going well,” he said. “I don’t think you’re handling the cost question. Back to what we talked about before with rising costs. It was a big theme in the campaign. Big issue in Pennsylvania. I didn’t think they were handling that well. I expressed that I thought people thought he wasn’t up to the job.”
Shapiro argued that his personal style and approach shaped the way he handled this conversation.
“Look, maybe it’s old school, but I believe that if you got something to say, you say it directly to that person’s face, and he’s the president of the United States. I respected him, still respect him, and I respect him enough to say it directly to his face,” he said.
When asked how this sobering assessment was received at the time, Shapiro replied, “I think he heard it. He told me that their poll numbers were different, and he seemed committed to continuing forward. And, listen, that’s his call.”
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Many Democrats have reflected on their statements and interactions during the Biden campaign and the Harris campaign that followed. (Mark Makela/Getty Images)
He also recalled arguing to Biden that part of his issue was that Biden’s team wasn’t straightforward with its own boss.
“Breakfast Club” host Charlamagne tha God argued that such stories need to be told by any future Democratic Party contenders for the presidency, arguing that “anybody that wants to lead this party in the future has to throw that old regime under the bus.”
Shapiro, however, disagreed.
“I don’t believe that you get ahead in life by throwing people under the bus,” he said. “I don’t believe that I got to kick somebody in order to get ahead. I think you’ve got to show your work. I think you’ve got to show a vision. I think you’ve got to tell people what you’re all about.”
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Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (AP Photo/Joe Lamberti)
Shapiro was vetted as a possible running mate for Kamala Harris, but she ultimately chose Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz. Shapiro was prescient about Democrats’ issues in his state because Trump went on to win Pennsylvania and the presidency.
Fox News Digital reached out to Biden’s staff and did not receive an immediate response.
Alexander Hall is an associate editor for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to Alexander.hall@fox.com.
