Ari Shapiro

Ari Shapiro has been NPR's White House Correspondent since 2010. His stories appear on all of NPR's newsmagazines, including All Things Considered and Morning Edition, where he is also a frequent guest host.

Shapiro began reporting on the White House after five years as NPR's Justice Correspondent, covering national security and counterterrorism during one of the most tumultuous periods in the Justice Department's history.

He spent 2012 on the campaign trail, leading NPR's coverage of Mitt Romney during the primary and general election. He also travels widely overseas in his reporting, including visits to Afghanistan with President Obama and to Iraq with Attorney General Michael Mukasey.

The first NPR reporter to be promoted to correspondent before age 30, Shapiro has been recognized with several journalism prizes, including The American Bar Association's Silver Gavel for his coverage of prisoners lost in Louisiana's detention system after Hurricane Katrina; The Daniel Schorr Journalism Prize for his investigation of methamphetamine use and HIV transmission; the Columbia Journalism Review's "laurel" recognition of his investigation into disability benefits for injured veterans; and the American Judges' Association's American Gavel for a body of work reporting on courts and the justice system. He regularly appears as a guest analyst on CNN, PBS, NBC, and other TV news outlets.

Before covering the Justice Department, Shapiro worked as a public radio reporter in Atlanta, Miami, and Boston.

Shapiro moonlights as a guest singer with the "little orchestra" Pink Martini, based in his hometown of Portland, Oregon. Since he debuted with them at the Hollywood Bowl in 2009, he has performed with the band at many of the world's most storied venues, including Carnegie Hall in New York, L'Olympia in Paris, and Mount Lycabettus in Athens. He has recorded songs on three of Pink Martini's albums, in five languages.

Shapiro is a magna cum laude graduate of Yale. He began his journalism career in 2001 in the office of NPR Legal Affairs Correspondent Nina Totenberg. Shapiro was born in Fargo, North Dakota, and grew up in Portland, Oregon.

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Election 2012
4:51 am
Thu October 18, 2012

Romney Reviews Debate Issues During Virginia Stops

Originally published on Thu October 18, 2012 12:11 pm

Transcript

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

It's MORNING EDITION, from NPR News. I'm Renee Montagne.

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

And I'm David Greene. Good morning.

After their lively town hall debate on Long Island Tuesday night, President Obama and his Republican rival Mitt Romney jetted off in different directions yesterday to rally the faithful and woo the undecided in some key battleground states.

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Presidential Race
5:44 pm
Wed October 17, 2012

GOP Angry With Moderator Crowley After Debate

Originally published on Wed October 17, 2012 7:09 pm

Transcript

ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST:

Now, to NPR's Ari Shapiro, who's traveling with Mitt Romney. The Republican flew this morning to Chesapeake, Virginia, for a rally. And Ari, what did he have to say about last night's debate?

ARI SHAPIRO, BYLINE: Well, he came out sounding chipper and he relived the moments of the debate that he was proudest of. This was right near the start of his stump speech today.

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Presidential Race
5:44 pm
Tue October 16, 2012

Can Romney Debate As Well When Not The Underdog?

Originally published on Tue October 16, 2012 7:06 pm

Transcript

ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST:

For Mitt Romney, this moment is a peak in a campaign that has had more than its fair share of valleys. During the Republican primary campaign, Romney suffered a number of close calls as the nomination and the presidency seemed about to slip through his fingers. The most recent of those close calls came just two weeks ago in Denver when Romney lagged far behind President Obama going into that first debate.

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Presidential Race
6:17 am
Sat October 13, 2012

Candidates Return To The Trail After VP Debate

Originally published on Sat October 13, 2012 10:15 am

Transcript

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

This is WEEKEND EDITION from NPR News. I'm Scott Simon. It's a time-honored tradition in presidential campaigns to debate after the debate. Both sides are still squabbling now over who won this week's vice presidential faceoff. And on the campaign trail yesterday, the running mates themselves were out spinning for their side. NPR's Ari Shapiro has this round-up of the day on the trail.

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Presidential Race
4:57 pm
Fri October 12, 2012

Ryan Attacks Biden On Libya Post-Debate

Originally published on Fri October 12, 2012 5:59 pm

One day after Congressman Paul Ryan debated Vice President Joe Biden, Mitt Romney took to the campaign trail in Virginia and Ohio.

Election 2012
4:47 am
Thu October 11, 2012

Romney Tries To Move To The Center

Originally published on Thu October 11, 2012 7:14 am

Transcript

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

This week in Iowa, the Des Moines Register asked Mitt Romney about abortion. Romney replied: There's no legislation with regards to abortion that I'm familiar with that would become part of my agenda.

Democrats immediately noted that during the Republican primary campaign Romney actually wrote an article headlined, "My Pro-Life Pledge" that promised specific legislation. Much of his political base is pro-life and his campaign quickly clarified that Romney remains proudly pro-life and would support pro-life legislation.

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Election 2012
4:32 am
Wed October 10, 2012

Romney's Poll Numbers Improve Post Debate

Originally published on Wed October 10, 2012 6:48 am

GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney campaigned in Iowa and Ohio Tuesday, as a wave of new polls suggested Romney's strong debate performance last week paid off. Swing states that recently seemed far out of his reach now look like a virtual tie in polls, or even leaning in the Republican's direction.

Election 2012
6:31 am
Tue October 9, 2012

At VMI, Romney Criticizes Obama's Foreign Policy

Originally published on Tue October 9, 2012 11:25 am

Transcript

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

On a Tuesday, it's MORNING EDITION, from NPR News. I'm Steve Inskeep.

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

And I'm Renee Montagne.

Just about every poll since last week's presidential debate shows that Mitt Romney has made the race very close. A Pew survey showed Romney tied with President Obama among registered voters, and leading by four points among likely voters.

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Presidential Race
4:41 pm
Mon October 8, 2012

Romney Paints Obama As 'Weak Leader' In Middle East

Originally published on Sun October 14, 2012 8:28 am

Transcript

ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST:

From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Robert Siegel. Later this month, President Obama and Mitt Romney will meet for a debate focused exclusively on foreign policy, but the Republican is not waiting until then to confront the issue. Today, in a speech at the Virginia Military Institute, Romney attacked the Obama administration's policies, especially in the Middle East.

MITT ROMNEY: It's clear that the risk of conflict in the region is higher now than when the president took office.

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Presidential Race
8:05 am
Sat October 6, 2012

Romney Skirts Drop In Unemployment

Originally published on Sat October 6, 2012 7:55 pm

Transcript

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

And Mitt Romney a little more than a day to savor his presidential debate win before the September unemployment figures forced him to recalibrate. High unemployment has been Mitt Romney's number one argument for why voters should replace President Obama. Now, the jobless rate is still high, but it is below the important psychological threshold of 8 percent. NPR's Ari Shapiro reports on how the Republican presidential nominee reacted to the news.

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