President Trump and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) lobbed insults at each other on Sunday as the president threatens to send National Guard troops to more American cities, including potentially Baltimore.
Trump on Sunday morning slammed Moore, who was elected governor of the Old Line State in 2022, for suggesting the president visit the city and “walk our streets and not just talk about us from the Oval Office” during a recent speech.
“Governor Wes Moore of Maryland has asked, in a rather nasty and provocative tone, that I ‘walk the streets of Maryland’ with him,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post Sunday morning. “I assume he is talking about out of control, crime ridden, Baltimore? As President, I would much prefer that he clean up this Crime disaster before I go there for a ‘walk.'”
The president went on to criticize Baltimore over its crime rate and threatened to rethink federal funding for the rebuilding of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, which was severely damaged after a cargo ship crashed into one of its pillars last year. Moore has repeatedly defended his record on crime, noting the city’s homicide rates have hit a historic low under his tenure.
Trump later suggested Moore had lied about receiving a Bronze Star, apparently referring to a New York Times story that reported he had lied about getting one in a White House fellowship application. The governor later apologized, calling it an “honest mistake.” Moore received a Bronze Star last year.
The president’s attacks spurred Moore to hit back on social media.
“Trump is doing everything in his power to distract from the Epstein files. Really makes you wonder…” he wrote in one post.
“Did Donald Trump, the President of the United States, lie about an injury to dodge the Vietnam draft?” the governor tweeted later.
In another tweet, Moore linked to a clip of him on CBS’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday, writing that “Donald Trump can stay obsessed with me – that’s fine – but I’ll stay obsessed with working in partnership to continue our historic success of driving down crime in Baltimore.”
The back-and-forth came against the backdrop of Trump’s use of the National Guard, as well as federal law enforcement, to crack down on crime in Washington, D.C. The president is threatening to expand the effort to other major cities run by Democrats, including Chicago and Baltimore.
In his Truth Social post on Sunday, Trump appeared to suggest he would send in “troops” to Maryland’s most populous city, referencing his ongoing feud with California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D).
“Wes Moore’s record on Crime is a very bad one, unless he fudges his figures on crime like many of the other ‘Blue States’ are doing,” Trump wrote. “But if Wes Moore needs help, like Gavin Newscum did in L.A., I will send in the ‘troops,’ which is being done in nearby DC, and quickly clean up the Crime.”
Moore is seen as one of the Democratic Party’s rising stars, and his feud with Trump comes amid speculation he could mount a presidential bid in 2028. Newsom, who’s currently seen as one of the front-runners for the party’s nomination in three years, has garnered praise from Democrats for ratcheting up his attacks on Trump, especially through his use of social media posts mimicking the president’s style.
The California governor has also led the Democrats’ retaliatory efforts against the Texas GOP’s redistricting plan. In his CBS appearance on Sunday, Moore suggested Maryland, too, could follow suit and redraw its lines.
