Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro revealed Monday he spoke with President Donald Trump two days earlier, nearly a week after authorities said an arsonist set fire to the governor’s residence while Shapiro and his family were inside.
Shapiro, appearing at the Mt. Lebanon Fire Department to unveil $30 million in grants for firefighters statewide, said he spoke with the president “for quite a bit of time” about the attack.
They also discussed the future of U.S. Steel and the jobs that depend on it.
“I appreciate his call very much, and we agreed to stay in touch,” Shapiro said.
Shapiro last week said he had received calls from political leaders around the country, including FBI Director Kash Patel and Attorney General Pam Bondi ahead of his conversation with the president.
Bondi described the arson as “absolutely horrific” and said she believes the alleged culprit “wanted to kill him.”
Shapiro had quickly spoken out after a would-be assassin injured Trump during a rally in Butler County last July. One rallygoer was killed and two were seriously wounded when gunman Thomas Crooks opened fire at the Butler Farm Show grounds.
“Immediately following the assassination attempt on the former president, now president, in Butler, Pennsylvania, I condemned that in the strongest of terms,” Shapiro said in a Good Morning America interview last week.
“When the assassin who killed the U.S. health care CEO was caught in Altoona, Pennsylvania, I immediately went there and condemned that kind of violence in clear terms. And I think it’s also important when you’re not dealing with a traumatic event in Butler, in Altoona, or here in Harrisburg, to be leading every day in a way that like brings people together and doesn’t just continually divide us.”
During their discussion about U.S. Steel, whose nearly $15 billion purchase by Japan’s Nippon Steel Corp. was blocked by the Biden administration, Shapiro said he told Trump his top priority was keeping jobs in Western Pennsylvania. The president agreed, Shapiro said.
“My goal remains the same, which is to protect the jobs here in the Mon Valley and to make sure the investment comes here and the jobs don’t get ripped away to another state as the CEO of U.S. Steel had been doing and had been on a path to do,” Shapiro said. “While I’m not going to get into the specifics of my conversation with the president, I will tell you that we spent a good bit of time speaking about U.S. Steel.”
Shapiro said he and Trump agreed to continue working on saving jobs associated with the steel giant.
Trump earlier this month renewed his opposition to the sale of the American steel producer to Nippon Steel, which former President Joe Biden had blocked before leaving the White House, citing national security concerns.
The reports of Trump’s opposition of a sale sent shares of U.S. Steel plummeting.
But the president also announced a fresh review of the deal. A group of Trump appointees will determine whether the companies may be able to mitigate national security risks.
Going home
The governor said he plans this week to return to his fire-damaged home. He and his wife will host an Easter egg hunt for kids there on Tuesday, he said, and he’ll be sleeping there this week, though the dining room and other areas are “destroyed.”
“I feel safe there,” Shapiro said. “I feel safe in the protection of the Pennsylvania State Police. I know they are going to learn from this experience.”
An independent expert will review security at the official residence.
Questions have arisen about how the man accused of starting the fire, Cody Balmer, managed to evade Shapiro’s security detail and lob improvised Molotov cocktails into the residence.
Shapiro and other elected officials on Monday repeatedly lauded the first responders who whisked Shapiro and his family to safety and put out the blaze.
“This past weekend, my family and I experienced what it’s like to be rushed away from a fire while you see heroes rushing in in order to put out a fire and save lives,” Shapiro said.
Standing in front of a Mt. Lebanon fire engine, Shapiro announced a three-pronged plan included in his budget proposal that would help fire departments around the commonwealth that are struggling to recruit and retain members and afford increasingly pricey equipment and vehicles.
The new $30 million competitive grant would provide funding for equipment, training and upgrades for fire departments.
The governor also proposed to launch a pilot program that would encourage more collaboration and resource sharing between neighboring fire companies.
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A third component would ensure free annual cancer screenings for firefighters, who are at increased risk of cancer because of the chemicals they may inhale on the job.
“Governor Shapiro’s proposed cancer screenings will save lives,” said Ralph Sicuro, president of Pittsburgh’s firefighters union.
Firefighter funding in jeopardy
The additional support for first responders is particularly important as Trump’s administration has sought to slash funding, jeopardizing money for police, firefighters and EMS, said U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio, D-Fox Chapel.
“Whatever your political stripes, I don’t think many people around here want to see police and fire defunded from Washington,” he said.
Officials said fire departments — especially those manned by volunteers — have struggled in recent years to recruit and retain members. And fundraising has become increasingly challenging as inflation has caused the costs of everything from fire trucks to protective clothing to skyrocket.
First responders shouldn’t have to spend their time raising money to pay for essential equipment so they can fight fires, said state Rep. Dan Miller, D-Mt. Lebanon. Shapiro’s budget proposal, he said, is a good start to providing much-needed support so firefighters can afford training and equipment.
“No firefighter joins a department because they like bingo. No firefighter joins a department because they want to hang out on an intersection with a boot,” Miller said. “It’s not why they do the job. They don’t do it for medals, and they don’t do it for praise. They do it to help.”