Shapiro urges Democrats to protect healthcare, food assistance

Shapiro's priorities for the new Congress

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said he hopes Democrats make healthcare and food assistance top priorities when they take control of Congress in January. He spoke in an interview with NBC News' "Meet the Press" that aired Sunday.

"I hope one of the first things that the Congress does is to stop these Medicaid cuts, stop the SNAP cuts, roll back the cuts, the effective cuts in the Affordable Care Act," Shapiro said, according to NBC News.

Beyond those programs, he said Democrats should pursue "an aggressive agenda that cuts costs, that ends the war, that gets put on the president's desk." He added that he hopes President Donald Trump will sign such measures because they would be "common-sense stuff that makes people's lives better."

The Pennsylvania numbers and the veto question

Shapiro pointed to the effects in his own state. He said 510,000 people in Pennsylvania are losing healthcare and 143,000 more are losing SNAP, the federal food assistance program, because of cuts approved during Trump's second term.

NBC News reported that Trump has said he intends to work with Democrats when the new Congress begins. He has also promoted a new "VETO"-branded hat since Republicans lost their majority in the midterm elections.

Asked about the prospect of vetoes, Shapiro said that if Trump rejects Democratic legislation, "it's yet another signal to the American people the president actually doesn't care about their well-being."

Accountability alongside legislating

While stressing Medicaid and SNAP, Shapiro said Democrats should not lose sight of oversight of the administration. "I think the Congress needs to be responsive to where voters are on corruption, and there has to be real accountability for this administration," he said.

He said Democrats need to "walk and chew gum at the same time," passing effective legislation while also pursuing "real accountability for the corruption that exists in Washington." In his words: "It can't be either/or. It has to be both/and."

Shapiro noted that Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., who is poised to become the next speaker of the House, "has made very clear that both are going to be on the agenda for the first 100 days and for these next two years."

Questions about 2028 and his own future

Shapiro, who has been mentioned as a potential 2028 presidential contender, did not commit to a run. He said Democrats should not yet be focused on that election. "We should be thinking about how to make people's lives better in 2027," he said.

He described that work as shared between Congress and the states. "It's incumbent upon the Congress to now do that, and it's incumbent upon governors now to continue to lead the way in our states," he said.

Asked whether he was more likely to run than not, Shapiro said his focus was on advancing policies such as raising the minimum wage and other measures he said Republicans have blocked. NBC News noted that Pennsylvania Democrats won a majority in the state legislature on Tuesday.

He also did not directly say whether he would serve his full four-year term. "Well, I committed to run for governor, and that's the work I'm focused on doing," Shapiro said. "And if I've got something to say about my future, I'd love to come back on your show and talk about it."