Matt O'Donnell's interview with Josh Shapiro

Here's how people are framing the race, right? So you're a popular, incumbent governor in a purplish state. You need to win re-election, but also run up the score so that you're relevant in 2028 during the presidential sweepstakes. How do you frame that? Yeah, I don't really think about it that way. I want to win re-election so I can keep getting stuff done for the good people of Pennsylvania. As you heard me here today, I'm also trying to help others get elected with me. We've got the ability here in Pennsylvania to reshape the balance of power. Congress of the United States, because we've got four competitive congressional races here. We've got the ability to win a trifecta in Harrisburg for the first time since 1992. So I'm focused on these midterms and these midterms only and helping people up and down the ballot. Republicans frame your time in Harrisburg this way. You're the I-95 governor without a big victory since. You struggle to pass state budgets. You haven't secured long-term funding for SEPTA and other mass transit agencies. And you've been dipping into the rainy day fund on non rainy days. How do you respond? I mean, look, obviously, none of that's true. The reason why we haven't been able to fully fund mass transit is because Republicans have blocked it. The reason why we haven't been able to pass a minimum wage increase to $15 an hour is because the Senate Republicans blocked it. But the reason why we have dramatically increased funding for public education, for public safety, the fact that we have the only growing economy in the Northeast, and The fact that we've done more economic development in the last four years than the prior 15 years combined is because I stay at the table, I fight for what I believe in, and I force their hand on multiple issues. Too often times, I think they like to say no to something and then go out and criticize me for not getting it done. They should probably look in the mirror. It's one of the reasons why I'm working so hard to defeat their candidates who have stopped trying to fund SEPTA, who have stopped the minimum wage increase. Affordability, top issue in Pennsylvania and across the country. I know who you're going to blame for it. The question for voters is what can you do about it as governor. We have cut taxes 10 times during my time as governor. We delivered the largest targeted tax cut for seniors in more than 20 years. We delivered child care relief by tripling the child care tax credit. We've cut taxes for small businesses four different times and we passed a new working Pennsylvanians tax credit. So about a million Pennsylvanians who are working who are struggling to get by. We put about $800 back in their pockets. Now, listen, I'm proud of that work. We've never raised taxes here. But I know how people feel. Like, we've put a dollar in their pocket from the state, but then Trump has ripped $2 out the other side because we see gas prices over $4 a gallon because of this war in Iran that we had no business getting into, because of the tariffs that this president thinks if you slap on another country, they pay. He's wrong. We all pay it. Every Pennsylvania family is paying $3,100. More a year because of the tariffs and this war in Iran with the higher fuel prices. So I get why people are frustrated with higher costs. But I also know that we've been able to cut them here in Pennsylvania. Why do I need four more years. Because I'm going to continue to cut taxes continue to put money back in people's pockets. I want to reduce the cost of housing for Pennsylvanians by passing a major housing overhaul to develop more affordable housing. Stacey Garrity says she's amused by the fact that people talk about the AI Shapiro, but she hasn't heard a response to what the points make in the ad. She's been lying about me for a year and a half. Now she uses some phony AI ad to lie about me. I think actually what you're seeing across Pennsylvania where she chose to run this ad is real backlash against her. I mean, I think what you're seeing is a whole lot of people going, I can't believe this is legal. And I think it also just diminishes her and her campaign. But, Her campaign will be over in a few days. I'll continue to fight hard as your governor. When you first saw yourself, what did you think on television that was not you? Yeah, I mean, it doesn't really matter. Look, I am used to it in this job where people want to take shots at you. And what I've learned about people in politics is they take shots at you when they have nothing to offer themselves. She's got no plan for Pennsylvania. She's someone who called our January Sixers, a whole bunch of patriots. She's someone who has a secret with Donald Trump in order to earn his endorsement. And that endorsement, he has demanded of her total loyalty. The US data center map, the website says Pennsylvania has 147 data center facilities and plans to make some. Much of that happened on your watch. And voters sometimes are asking, why weren't you apprehensive about this all along? I would just respectfully, you know I'm in this respect, push back on that data. There are not 147 data centers being built in Pennsylvania. In fact, the executive order that I signed is the strictest guardrails in the entire nation when it comes to data center development. And it says that if a local community opposes the construction of a data center, it's dead. It will never get. a hearing from the state. There were probably about 100 proposed data center projects when I issued my executive order. Probably more than 90 of them are dead now. And the other 10 have to go through a local ordinance process to determine if they'll ever even get a hearing from the state. Not a single data center has been approved since my executive order went into place. Your administration has sued the Trump administration more than two dozen times. Have you ever thought about- I've won every single time. Have you ever thought about changing, doing the opposite? No, because, listen, let's talk apples to apples here, right? I sue the Trump administration when they violate our rights, whether it's our voting rights or the rights of reproductive freedom, and I win. I sued the Trump administration when they took $3 billion away from this commonwealth, money that was for public safety and public health. I won every one of those lawsuits. That money belongs to the people of Pennsylvania. Someone's got to stand up. To this lawlessness and not just roll over to it the way some other people are now where I can work with the president to do something that benefits Pennsylvania, like saving steel worker jobs here in our commonwealth. I do that, but I'm not going to get let his lawlessness take advantage of our commonwealth. Good to see you. Thank you, Matt.