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(WASHINGTON) — Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, in a forthcoming memoir, claimed that the running mate vetting team for Vice President Kamala Harris during her 2024 run for the presidency asked him if he were ever an agent of the Israeli government, ABC News has confirmed.

The New York Times first reported Shapiro’s claim.

Shapiro writes in his memoir “Where We Keep the Light,” which is set to be released on Jan. 27, that he was asked last minute by Dana Remus, a former White House counsel and member of the vetting team, if he had ever been an agent for Israel. He said that told Remus he found the question offensive, according to excepts reported by The New York Times.

He wrote that he was also asked by Remus if he ever spoke with an undercover Israeli agent, to which Shapiro said he responded in part, that if they had been undercover, “how the hell would I know?”

Shapiro wrote in his memoir that he understood Remus had to do her job, but criticized the line of questioning, according to the excerpts.

Shapiro — who is Jewish and has been outspoken about his religion, as well as his support of Israel and criticism of the current Israeli government — said he was also asked more general vetting questions about Israel and his handling of campus protests about Gaza.

“I wondered whether these questions were being posed to just me — the only Jewish guy in the running — or if everyone who had not held a federal office was being grilled about Israel in the same way,” Shapiro wrote, according to the excepts.

ABC News has reached out to spokespeople for Shapiro and Harris, and to Remus about the questions she allegedly asked Shapiro.

While Shapiro was a reported contender for Harris’ running-mate spot, amid major debates within the Democratic Party over the Israel-Hamas war and the U.S.-Israel relationship given Israel’s conduct in Gaza, he faced scrutiny from progressives over his pro-Israel views, as well as some previous time spent volunteering in Israel, including on an Israeli army base. 

He also faced questions over his college writing on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict where he expressed doubts that Palestinians could come to a peace agreement with Israel.

Shapiro and his spokespeople said at the time that his time volunteering did not include military activity, and that his views on the conflict had evolved to support a two-state solution to the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians.

The vetting process for running mates is known to be intensive and often tries to get ahead of questions that may be asked publicly of candidates.

Harris, in her memoir “107 Days,” wrote that during the vetting process for running mates, she spoke with Shapiro “about how to handle the attacks he’d confronted on Gaza and what effect it might have on the enthusiasm we were trying to build,” and that they discussed the opinion piece Shapiro wrote in college.

“He said he felt he’d been able to deal with critics by stating clearly that his youthful opinion had been misguided and that he was fully committed to a two-state solution. He had also publicly called Netanyahu ‘one of the worst leaders of all time,'” Harris wrote.

She also framed the decision against Shapiro as more about his ambition and fears that he would be frustrated with the vice presidential role — claims Shapiro has rebuffed. Shapiro campaigned as a Harris surrogate even after not getting the running-mate nod.

Some Jewish officials who served in President Joe Biden and Harris’ administration have slammed the alleged vetting question, saying that it ties into antisemitic tropes that American Jews have dual loyalties between the United States and Israel. 

President Donald Trump faced similar, separate allegations of conflating Israel and Jews during his 2024 presidential campaign.

Aaron Keyak, former deputy special envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism at the State Department and a board member of the Combat Antisemitism Movement, told ABC News on Monday that he was surprised at “how blatant the rhetoric was when it comes to playing into antisemitic tropes.”

“What’s even the point of asking that question in that way? Were they trying to send some sort of message to Gov. Shapiro? Were they trying to intimidate him?” Keyak said.

Keyak, who is Jewish, said he had also been asked questions during the vetting process for his own Biden administration State Department role that he later heard non-Jewish appointees were not. He said he was not able to share the specifics of the questions, but that the implications of the questions were similar to what Shapiro had allegedly been asked.

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(NEW YORK) — New Jersey Democratic Gov.-elect Mikie Sherrill criticized President Donald Trump on Sunday for pursuing the acquisition of Greenland while the cost of living remains a top issue in the United States.

“There is not one person in New Jersey that wakes up in the morning and says, ‘Gee, I hope today’s the day that the president dumps billions of dollars into buying Greenland while my grocery store costs continue to go up,'” Sherrill told ABC News’ “This Week” co-anchor Jonathan Karl.

Two days before her inauguration, Sherrill talked with Karl in an exclusive interview and pledged to lower costs as governor without going into specific policies she would pursue.

Sherrill said that tariffs Trump has imposed during his first term are raising costs for Americans.

“Right now, the doors to opportunity are being shut down at every level. We see a president who constantly is running this tariff regime, putting more money in his own pocket and raising costs on everybody else,” Sherrill said. “So we are fighting against that.”

Sherrill was elected in November by a double-digit margin, outperforming former Vice President Kamala Harris’ margin in the presidential race in the Garden State. Asked by Karl what lessons the Democratic Party should take away from her victory, Sherrill said Democrats should “listen to people.”

“Get on the street and listen to your constituents or would-be constituents,” Sherrill said. “But the best thing I can do now for the Democratic Party is to govern effectively, to deliver on the promises I made, because, as I’ve mentioned, there’s an affordability crisis.”

Sherrill has previously said she will declare a state of emergency on utility costs, thereby freezing existing rates, on Day 1 in office.

Karl also asked Sherrill about the ongoing immigration enforcement operations in Minneapolis, where protesters clashed with federal agents over the weekend.

“[ICE is] assaulting people on the street. They’re busting through windows in cars … people are getting shot and killed by these out of control proto-military agents,” Sherrill said. “I think the president’s trying to incite the protesters so that he can take America’s eyes off the fact that his militia that he’s building around this country is actually attacking American citizens.”

Karl asked Sherrill, a Naval Academy graduate who flew helicopters in the Navy, “You’re a military veteran … what would it mean if he actually goes through with the threat to invoke the Insurrection Act and send those active duty troops that are now on standby into Minneapolis?”

“[Trump] seems to be trying to incite an insurrection so he can then put troops on the street for the insurrection,” Sherrill said. “This is something that every single American should be concerned about.”

Trump administration officials have said there are no plans to pull federal agents out of Minneapolis, and have defended the conduct of ICE agents following multiple shootings. The fatal shooting of Renee Good in Minneapolis on Jan. 7 by ICE agent Jonathan Ross sparked backlash from Democrats and some residents of the city.

After threatening to invoke the Insurrection Act, Trump told reporters on Friday that he didn’t think he needed to invoke it now.

“If I needed it, I’d use it. I don’t think there’s any reason right now to use it, but if I needed it, I’d use it. It’s very powerful,” Trump said.

Immigration enforcement operations also took place in Sherrill’s home state of New Jersey last week, with one raid in Princeton on Thursday leading to two arrests.

Sherrill previously said that she supports her state’s Immigrant Trust Directive, which orders New Jersey police officers not to comply with ICE operations, but opposes it being signed into law, citing concerns about the law being blocked in court.

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(NEW YORK) — Republican Rep. Michael McCaul warned on Sunday that any U.S. military intervention to obtain Greenland would put America at odds with its NATO allies — and possibly spell the end of the alliance itself.

“What do you make of what’s going on with the president in Greenland? And now he’s slapped tariffs on eight of our allies in Europe; he’s not ruling out military force to get Greenland. What is going on?” “This Week” co-anchor Jonathan Karl asked McCaul, who serves as chairman emeritus of both the House Foreign Affairs and Homeland Security committees.

While McCaul acknowledged the strategic importance of the autonomous island, which is part of the Kingdom of Denmark, and noted that previous Presidents have considered acquiring the territory, he said the U.S. already has a treaty that allows “full access” to protect Greenland — effectively negating the purpose of any invasion. 

“The fact is, the president has full military access to Greenland to protect us from any threat,” McCaul said. “So if he wants to purchase Greenland, that’s one thing. But for him to militarily invade would turn Article 5 of NATO on its very head and, in essence, press a war with NATO itself. It would end up abolishing NATO as we know it.”

McCaul added, “If we want to put more military in there, we can; we don’t have to invade it. If he wants to buy it, that’s fine. But I don’t see a willing seller right now.”

Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen echoed McCaul’s point on “This Week,” and accused the president of “lying” when he says obtaining Greenland is about national security.

“Denmark and Greenland have both said to the United States, ‘You can take what measures you need to protect the security of the United States and, of course, the NATO alliance,'” Van Hollen said. “We have a base there already, and we can expand that base.” 

“This is not about security,” Van Hollen told Karl. “This is about a land grab. Donald Trump wants to get his hands on the minerals and other resources of Greenland, just like the real reason he went into Venezuela had nothing to do with stopping drugs from coming.”

Asked if there was any action that Congress could take to prevent Trump from using force to take over Greenland, Van Hollen called on Congress to invoke the War Powers Resolution.

“We could, for example, cut off any funds that could be used for military purposes with respect to Greenland; we could take action under the War Powers Resolution,” Van Hollen said. “But a lot of our Republican colleagues talk big until it comes time to vote. We saw that just this past week, where two Republican senators who had voted in favor of moving forward the War Powers Resolution on Venezuela backed off. So they have to stop giving Donald Trump a blank check.”

Van Hollen also criticized Trump’s threats to intervene militarily in Iran amid reports that thousands of protesters have been killed in demonstrations against the country’s regime.

“I don’t believe we should be using American military force to try to impose democracy on Iran,” Van Hollen said.

“We should support the protesters,” he added. “But the president of United States should not suggest that we’re going to come in there and provide military support to get rid of the regime.”

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(MINNEAPOLIS)– Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey defended himself and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz on Sunday, insisting they’ve “done nothing wrong” amid what sources say is a new federal investigation targeting the two Democratic officials.

“If the rumors are true, this is deeply concerning, because this is way more important than just me. This is a very serious matter, and this whole investigation would ultimately be the product of one of the most basic foundational responsibilities that I have as mayor, which is to speak on behalf of my constituents,” Frey told “This Week” co-anchor Jonathan Karl. “There are other countries where you get put away for the things that you say. There are other countries where you get investigated for saying something that runs counter to what the federal government states. But in this country, it’s not that way.”

Frey said his office has not received a subpoena from the Department of Justice. He said he intends to comply with the investigation.

“Look, we have done nothing wrong, so of course we will comply in it, but at the same time, we need to be understanding how wild this is. We are doing everything possible right now to keep people safe in our city. We have spoken out to make sure that our residents are protected and people’s constitutional rights are upheld. Speaking out in that way is not illegality,” Frey said.

ABC News reported Friday night that the Justice Department was investigating whether Frey and Walz have been obstructing federal law enforcement activities in the state, according to multiple U.S. officials.

In response, Walz accused the administration of “weaponizing the justice system and threatening political opponents.”

Without directly confirming the investigation, shortly after news broke Attorney General Pam Bondi posted on X, “A reminder to all those in Minnesota: No one is above the law.”

In a separate interview on “This Week,” Rep. Michael McCaul — a Republican member and former chair of the House Homeland Security Committee — said that investigating political leaders like this is “uncommon.”

“It’s a federal offense to impede a federal investigation like we’re seeing in the streets right now. I think that is very uncommon to go after political figures like that. I think it may be more of a statement more than anything else. But you know, we’ll see,” the Texas lawmaker said.

Frey and Walz have clashed with the Trump administration in recent weeks. Up to 3,000 federal agents have been surged to Minnesota to conduct immigration enforcement operations and investigate fraud allegations. Those agents have been met by protesters demanding they cease operations and leave the state.

On Jan. 7, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer fatally shot Minneapolis resident Renee Good, a mother of three. The deadly altercation prompted outrage from residents, local officials and Democratic lawmakers, as well as continued protests, which have been mostly peaceful. The Trump administration has defended the officer, asserting he was acting in self defense because it says the shooting victim was attempting to run him over with her vehicle.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said there are no plans to pull federal agents from the city.

Walz put the Minnesota National Guard on standby over the weekend in case protests got out of hand. While there were some clashes between protesters and counterprotesters, the Guard has not been deployed to the streets.

On “This Week,” Frey said the federal agents’ presence is to blame for the inflamed tensions on the ground.

“The intensity is caused by the unwanted, uninvited people that are here in the form of ICE,” Frey said, adding that there around about five times as many federal agents in the city than there are city police officers. “The calm exists where you don’t have ICE agents. So, if you are looking to restore order and prevent chaos, there’s a very straightforward antidote, and that is for ICE to leave.”

Frey said he doesn’t regret telling ICE to “get the f— out” of Minneapolis after the fatal shooting of Good.

“I don’t regret it at all,” Frey said. “If I seemed like I was angry and frustrated, I was. And part of my responsibility as mayor is to channel what in our city are feeling. And the people in our city were angry. They were upset.”

McCaul, the Texas Republican, called on everybody to tone down the rhetoric and try to deescalate tensions.

“I think we need to — on both sides — start calming down the rhetoric. I’m glad the president did not invoke the Insurrection Act. To throw our military in the middle of all of this just sort of escalated the violence,” he said.

The president has not ruled out invoking the 1807 law that would allow him to deploy the U.S. military for domestic law enforcement. However, he said on Friday, “I don’t think there’s any reason right now to use it.”

While the administration has defended federal agents’ conduct, McCaul said he thinks “maybe some [officers] need to go maybe have some enhanced training.”

Asked about Vice President JD Vance and White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller asserting ICE officers have “immunity” from federal prosecution, McCaul said, “That’s not accurate.”

“I mean, if there’s an unlawful use of force, that is something that can be prosecuted by — under federal law,” said McCaul, who previously worked for the DOJ. “They don’t have full immunity if, you know, if they violate the use of force laws. But at the same time, people who impede a federal investigation don’t have immunity from that either.”

However, McCaul agreed with the administration that immigration enforcement operations are necessary due to the surge in undocumented immigrants who entered the country under the Biden administration.

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