Shapiro Says Campaign Rhetoric Is 'Dangerous' and Urges Leaders to Answer Cruelty With Kindness
Pennsylvania's governor, seeking reelection, told Face the Nation that threats against his family since a 2025 arson attack on his residence weigh on him but will not control him.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said Sunday that public officials have a duty to set a civil example as Election Day approaches and campaign rhetoric grows harsher, calling the tone of the current political debate "dangerous." Speaking on CBS News' Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan, the Democrat urged leaders to respond to what he described as cruelty from President Donald Trump with kindness.
"Try and bring back kindness in the face of the cruelty that we see from this president," Shapiro said. He said he has deep disagreements with Trump and with his opponent in the governor's race, but argued that cruelty is not an acceptable way to express them. "I think it makes everyone less safe," he said.
Shapiro, who was first elected governor in 2022 and is seeking a second term, spoke about the threats he faces. He pointed to the arson attack on the governor's residence in 2025, which came shortly after he and his family held a Passover Seder there. Since then, he said, more people have threatened him, his wife and his family because of his religious faith. "It weighs on me, but it doesn't control me," he said.
He acknowledged that knowing people want to harm him is a burden, but said it motivates him to keep serving and to keep extremists from succeeding. He said he and his family discussed whether he should run again, and agreed they could not let the people threatening them win.
Asked about the tone of the campaign in Michigan, where a closely watched Senate race is underway, Shapiro described the rhetoric as dangerous and hateful. He did not single out one candidate in the portion of the interview CBS News summarized. Other midterm developments that CBS News covered the same weekend included Sen. Bernie Sanders criticizing Republican rhetoric about Democratic nominee Abdul El-Sayed, and former Rep. Haley Stevens endorsing Republican Mike Rogers amid a rift with El-Sayed.
Shapiro urged Americans to push back against hatred and to model decency in public life, framing it as a responsibility for leaders and citizens alike. His message was aimed at the final stretch of the campaign, when candidates in both parties are making their closing arguments and when, as Shapiro's own experience shows, the rhetoric has consequences for the people who hold office and their families. CBS News also reported that Trump planned to speak at the National Mall's Reflecting Pool as the campaign nears its end.
The full interview, nearly 20 minutes long, aired Sunday on Face the Nation, and a transcript is available on the program's website.
