AMBLER, Pa. — Democratic governors from two of the nation’s biggest battleground states gathered in the Philadelphia area on Monday to make their case in support of presumptive presidential nominee Kamala Harris.
Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, who had each floated themselves as Harris’ running mates, teamed up to rally more than 1,000 supporters at a high school gym in Shapiro’s hometown of Montgomery County.
Both leaders seized the opportunity to slam former President Donald Trump while touting their own accomplishments with the simple, vulgar catchphrase, “Get s–t done” (GSD for short).
Taking to the stage first was self-described “Big Gretsch” Whitmer, who launched into an impassioned defense of key Democratic issues, including abortion rights and “the freedom to move forward, not just push through.”
“As Governor Shapiro likes to say, we are the party that brings ‘real freedom’ to the American people,” Whitmer said, drawing a smile from the governor.
On the same day, Senator Whitmer stated that she was not involved in the vetting of Senator Harris’ running mate, but supported the re-election of Senator Bob Casey (Democrat, Pennsylvania) and thanked “Scranton native” President Joe Biden for his 50 years of service.
She also criticized Trump’s pick for vice president, J.D. Vance, bringing up the Ohio senator’s now-infamous “childless cat-loving woman” comment from 2021.
“As Democrats, we want to make sure everyone is included in the discussion – cat lovers and dog lovers alike,” Whitmer said, joking about Vance, to thunderous applause.
Governor Whitmer then sarcastically praised Vance’s “efficiency” and claimed he had “insulted women, black people and Jews in the same sentence.”
Shapiro, who took the stage after “Big Gretsch,” struck a similar chord when he criticized Trump’s record of “chaos.”
The local governor accused the former president of “packing” the Supreme Court with “hand-picked extremists” and disparaged America with his comments.
“My message to Donald Trump is: Stop talking crap about America,” Shapiro said. “This is the greatest country on Earth. Let’s act like it!”
In their speeches, both Whitmer and Shapiro praised Harris’ record as a prosecutor, with Shapiro saying Biden picked her “because I wanted to govern with her.”
Shapiro concluded that the vice president is fully prepared to take over as president after the election.
“I hope for a future where I can look the 47th president of the United States in the eye and say, ‘Hello, Mr. President,'” Shapiro concluded.
The event marked the third time Gov. Shapiro has spoken on behalf of Harris in the past four days. The governor Friday in Philadelphia Another outbreak occurred in central Pennsylvania on Saturday.
Participants at Monday’s joint rally praised both governors as “powerful” speakers.
Some, like local resident Mark Pirner, told The Washington Post they were motivated by protests against the political polarization they believe Trump has created.
“I want to be able to have that conversation. [with friends who disagree]”I can’t do that right now. I just can’t,” Pahner said, noting that the election “isn’t political. It’s personal. It’s part of our freedom, and we should be able to say anything.”
Prior to the rally, a small but significant group of Trump supporters gathered outside the high school gym, waving flags in protest of the two governors’ events.
Two local women who did not want to be named spoke to The Washington Post about Shapiro’s criticism.
They said they “don’t trust” Pennsylvania’s governor to look out for the interests of people “like us.”
