ST. CLAIR — Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s criticism of U.S. Rep. Dan Meuser during a Democratic campaign rally in Schuylkill County drew a sharply worded response from the congressman, who defended his support for federal tax policies and accused the governor of misleading voters.
The exchange followed an event featuring Shapiro, Lt. Gov. Austin Davis and Democratic candidates, including Rachel Wallace, who is challenging Meuser for Pennsylvania’s 9th Congressional District seat.
Shapiro Criticizes Meuser’s Legislative Record
During his remarks, Shapiro called Meuser “one of the most spineless people I know in politics” and criticized the Republican congressman’s legislative record, particularly on healthcare, food assistance and tax policy.
Shapiro accused Meuser of supporting tax cuts benefiting wealthy Americans at the expense of services used by working families. The governor said federal policy changes threatened health coverage for approximately 510,000 Pennsylvanians, including about 10,000 Schuylkill County residents, and food assistance for approximately 143,000 people statewide.
Those figures were presented by Shapiro during his criticism of federal policy.
Meuser Defends Tax Policies and Disputes Shapiro’s Claims
In a statement shared with Skook News on Friday, Meuser rejected the governor’s characterization.
“Josh Shapiro doesn’t even realize criticizing me for supporting tax relief on Social Security, overtime pay, tips, small businesses and working families is just stupid,” Meuser said. “Lying about cuts to health insurance and food assistance is an example of his lack of moral character.”
Meuser’s statement disputed Shapiro’s claims about healthcare and food assistance but did not provide a detailed response to the figures cited by the governor.
The congressman also responded directly to Shapiro’s “spineless” remark, invoking the nickname “Jellyfish Josh” and accusing the governor of failing to follow through on school choice.
“In Harrisburg they say Josh often projects: he attributes his own feelings and insecurities onto other people,” Meuser said. “Calling me ‘spineless’ is a projection of a nickname he doesn’t like very much, which is ‘Jellyfish Josh,’ meaning he has no backbone.”
Meuser pointed to Shapiro’s debate remarks about the legislature’s role in education policy and criticized his position on allowing an education freedom tax credit to take effect in Pennsylvania. He accused Shapiro of yielding to special interest groups.
The statement escalated beyond policy disagreements, including an allegation that Shapiro had engaged in “stolen valor.” Meuser did not identify the conduct underlying that allegation or provide supporting evidence in the statement.
Meuser Also Criticizes Congressional Opponent Rachel Wallace
Meuser also directed criticism toward Wallace, accusing his Democratic opponent of concealing aspects of her past and spreading false statements. He said he intended to pursue the matter legally after the election.
“And frankly, my opponent is no better. She’s doing everything she can to hide her past while spreading lies and slander, something I will address legally after the election,” Meuser said.
His statement did not identify the specific statements or aspects of Wallace’s background to which he was referring.
“It’s a shame we have political figures who conduct themselves this way, but fortunately good people see it from a mile away and will act upon it in this election,” he added.