Josh Shapiro, Spencer Cox talk political violence at bipartisan panel with host Savannah Guthrie …

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Josh Shapiro, Spencer Cox talk political violence at bipartisan panel with host Savannah Guthrie

Govs. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania and Spencer Cox of Utah decried the state of the political discourse in the country and talked of leaning on each other after high-profile cases of political violence in a wide-ranging interview with "Today" co-anchor Savannah Guthrie on Tuesday.

Both have been at the forefront of handling political crises in their states.

Cox, a Republican, was widely praised for his handling of the assassination of conservative political activist Charlie Kirk in Utah in September, an event that inflamed political divides. Shapiro, a Democrat, has dealt with political violence repeatedly in his state, including the attempt on President Donald Trump's life at a rally in Butler last year and the politically motivated firebombing of his own home this year.

Amid rising hate, governors share message of faith and hope

Just hours after concluding their Passover Seder at the Pennsylvania Governor’s Mansion in April, Gov. Josh Shapiro and his wife Lori were evacuated from the home alongside their children and dogs when an arsonist started a fire using Molotov cocktails.

Shapiro spoke with emotion about the experience on Tuesday night at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., alongside Utah Gov. Spencer Cox. The event was presented in partnership with Disagree Better, The Wheatley Institute at Brigham Young University, and the National Institute for Civil Discourse

It was Shapiro’s experience with religious and political violence that led him to call Cox in the moments after Charlie Kirk was shot and killed at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10, he said.

'Civil war': Utah, PA governors call out political violence in bipartisan panel

Two of the nation’s top state leaders who have had close brushes with political violence in 2025 hosted a panel on Dec. 9 where they called on Americans to stop hating their political enemies before it leads to "civil war."

"We’re passing all the checkpoints, well ultimately towards failed states and things like civil war, I hate to even use that phrase," said Spencer Cox, Utah’s Republican governor whose longstanding campaign for political unity was thrust into the national spotlight with the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk in September.

Cox participated in the panel alongside Pennsylvania’s Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro, whose house was firebombed in April. 

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