President Donald Trump said that Maryland Gov. Wes Moore privately told him he was “the greatest president” in the governor’s lifetime.
Speaking from the Oval Office on Monday, Aug. 25, the president criticized Baltimore as being in a “horrible death bed” plagued by crime. While recalling the 2024 Army-Navy football game in Landover, Md., Trump, 79, claimed Moore, 46, approached him at the event.
“He came over, he hugged me, he shook my hand. He said, ‘Sir, you are the greatest president in my lifetime,’” Trump told reporters, adding that Moore allegedly followed up with, “‘Sir, you’re doing a fantastic job. I just want to shake your hand.’”
Moore quickly denied the claim. First, he reposted a video of Trump’s comments with a short response: “lol.” A few hours later, he added another post: “Keep telling yourself that, Mr. President.”
Later that day, Moore addressed the issue on Baltimore’s WBAL radio. “I’m a person who takes my integrity very seriously, and I spent the six months before that election explaining why I did not think he should be the next president of the United States,” he said. “So when I say that conversation never happened, that imaginary conversation never happened. I mean, it never happened.”
Moore’s senior communications adviser, Carter Elliott IV, also told The Washington Post that while the two men did meet, the governor never made such remarks.
On Sunday, Aug. 24, Trump had threatened to send military forces into Baltimore. He also wrote on Truth Social that the city was “out of control” and “crime-ridden.”
Moore responded by inviting the president to walk Baltimore’s streets with him and local officials to discuss public safety. Trump declined, telling reporters on Monday, “Clean up your crime, and I’ll walk with you.”
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The clash between the two leaders comes just weeks after Trump ordered the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Police Department and the National Guard to crack down on crime and homelessness in the nation’s capital.
On Aug. 11, Trump declared a “public safety emergency” at a press conference. Since then, National Guard troops have been deployed, leading to increased arrests. The move has also sparked protests after ICE checkpoints were set up and curfew zones for minors were expanded.
During an Aug. 21 interview with conservative radio host Todd Starnes, Trump defended the effort: “So we’re going to do a job. The National Guard is great. They’ve done a fantastic job.”
