Credit: Tom Sofield/NewtownPANow.com
Gov. Josh Shapiro details his reservations regarding the 2024 vice presidential vetting process, a private phone call with President Donald Trump, the attack on the Governor’s Residence, and his early warnings to President Joe Biden in a new book coming out next week.
“Where We Keep the Light: Stories from a Life of Service” comes out on Jan. 27 as Shapiro launches his reelection campaign and faces speculation on whether he will launch a 2028 presidential bid next year.
In excerpts reported by multiple news outlets over the holiday weekend, the Montgomery County resident and former state attorney general shares his thoughts and recounts key moments.
A recap of the excerpts from the book, as reported by Politico, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Washington Post, Fox News, and ABC News:
Shapiro considered seeking the Democratic nomination for president in 2024 after Biden withdrew from the race. He wrote that he wondered if he should participate in a party process to replace the president, but decided against it after a phone call with his wife, First Lady Lori Shapiro, who was in Canada at the time.
“I am in a Canadian Walmart right now,” Shapiro recalled his wife, a Bucks County native, saying. “I don’t think we are ready to do this.”
After the call, Shapiro endorsed Kamala Harris for president.
The governor writes that he felt “perturbed” by the vice presidential vetting process and wrote the process by Harris aids was “unnecessarily contentious.”
Credit: Tom Sofield/NewtownPANow.com
Shapiro, who is Jewish, notes that Harris’ team focused on his views on Israel. At one point, asking if he had ever served as an agent of the Israeli government.
Shapiro wrote that Harris “seemed to dislike the role” of vice president, and shared she had frustrations over a lack of a private bathroom in her office. He also wrote she stated she had a limited voice in decision-making.
The book also recalled a phone conversation with Trump after an April 2025 arson attack at the Governor’s Residence in Harrisburg.
Shapiro wrote that Trump cautioned him against seeking the presidency “given how dangerous it had become to hold the office now.”
During the call, Trump reportedly analyzed potential 2028 Democratic contenders and told Shapiro he “liked the way I talked to people and approached problems.”
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Shapiro wrote in the book that he warned Biden’s team as early as April 2024 that the president was “in real trouble” in Pennsylvania.
Credit: Tom Sofield/NewtownPANow.com
After Biden’s first debate, Shapiro wrote he shared internal polling showing Biden was “down and falling.” Shapiro said that Biden told him his own team “had different numbers that showed the race much closer.”
The governor’s residence attack, which occurred during the Passover holiday, is a central moment in the memoir. Shapiro reflected on the moment his youngest son asked if the family was targeted for their faith.
Credit: Shapiro administration via public records request
The arsonist, Cody Balmer, later cited Shapiro’s religion and the war in Israel and Palestine as motivations for the attack. Balmer is now serving time in a state prison.
“This destruction and fear was overshadowed by the light from the love, support and rallying that came in the wake of it,” the governor wrote.
Shapiro is scheduled to begin a book tour to promote the release.
