Vice President JD Vance’s office fired back Monday at Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, who used a Philadelphia press conference to attack Vance while unveiling the state’s contingency plan to maintain SNAP benefits during the government shutdown.
Shapiro, who joined 24 states in suing the USDA over November’s SNAP suspension, criticized Vice President Vance’s “bull—- politics,” referencing Hillbilly Elegy and his Appalachian roots in Kentucky. Pennsylvania was not part of the lawsuit, as GOP Attorney General David Sunday declined to join.
“America has a president and a vice president that don’t give a damn about all Americans,” claimed Shapiro.
Vance press secretary Taylor Van Kirk told Fox News Digital Monday that Gov. Shapiro should “look in the mirror if he wants to see who’s to blame for this Democrat shutdown,” accusing him and other Democrats of backing “Schumer’s shutdown” and “screwing over working-class Americans.”
“While little Josh was whining like a child about the problems his own party created, the Trump administration has been crafting a deal with commonsense Democrats to reopen the government and fund SNAP benefits,” Van Kirk added.
Shapiro and fellow Montgomery County Democrat Val Arkoosh, the state’s human services secretary, discussed the SNAP freeze and their efforts to aid affected families. When told that Vance criticized the court order releasing SNAP funds, Shapiro said he’d expect that from President Trump—but not from someone with Vance’s background.
“JD Vance is a total phony… [he] rose to some prominence by writing a book about growing up in Appalachia, where there’s a whole lot of people who get SNAP,” Shapiro said.
The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC), co-chaired by Gayle Manchin and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, defines 423 counties from Alabama to New York—including most of Pennsylvania—as part of Appalachia. The ARC reports that 1.4 million families in the region rely on SNAP benefits, including 14% of families in Appalachian Pennsylvania.
“[Vance] made millions of dollars on the backs of telling their stories, and then he turned his damn back on those very people who he likes to write about and claim as his own,” Shapiro said.
He added that Vance claims to be a man of faith, citing a verse from Deuteronomy urging people to help those in need with an open hand.
“So for JD Vance now to turn around after claiming all these things his whole life and literally go to court to stop hungry people from eating, that is not only phony, it’s shameful, said Shapiro. “You’ll excuse me for getting emotional about it, but when I see hungry people in my state who are hungry because of JD Vance’s bull—- politics, that makes me angry. And that’s why I went to court.”
GOV. SHAPIRO: “JD Vance claims to be a person of faith — but when I see hungry people on my stage who are hungry because of JD Vance’s bullshit politics, that makes me angry.” pic.twitter.com/6T7zuICNSE
— The Tennessee Holler (@TheTNHoller) November 8, 2025
