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Maryland Gov. Wes Moore falsely claimed to have received the Bronze Star medal earlier in his political career, according to reports.
The specter of stolen valor has hovered over the Democratic governor since his campaign for the office in 2022, when two television interviewers introduced the politician as a Bronze Star recipient.
Moore did not correct either interviewer, but his staff has been adamant that he never claimed to have gotten the reward.
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Maryland Gov. Wes Moore speaks at an event on Gun Violence Awareness Day at Kentland Community Center in Landover, Maryland. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
A Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request filed by the New York Times revealed Moore did, in fact, assert that he had received the Bronze Star, on an application for the White House fellowship in January 2006.
“For my work, the 82nd Airborne Division have awarded me the Bronze Star Medal and the Combat Action Badge,” Moore wrote.
Moore later received the Combat Action Badge in May of that year but was not a recipient when he wrote the application. He was never awarded the Bronze Star.
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Moore discussed the false claims in a conversation with the New York Times, telling the newspaper that it had been an “honest mistake” made because his commanding officer had told him to include the award on his application.
Michael Fenzel, a current lieutenant general, was a lieutenant colonel in Afghanistan when he instructed Moore to include the award on his fellowship application.
Fenzel believed that Moore had earned the Bronze Star and was initiating the approval process, expecting that it would be awarded before the fellowship began.
The Bronze Star medal is a prestigious military decoration awarded to members of the U.S. Armed Forces for “heroic or meritorious achievement or service.” (Ben McCanna/Portland Portland Press Herald via Getty Images)
However, the Bronze Star never materialized.
“I made an honest mistake by including something because my commanding officer thought it was a good idea,” Moore said. “He thought that I earned it, and he was already going through the paperwork to process it.”
Fenzel, who remains a close personal friend of Moore, told the New York Times that he was only made aware Moore had never received the medal this week. The general told the newspaper that he intended to re-initiate the process of securing Moore a Bronze Star.
“I take full accountability,” Moore told Fox 5 DC Friday. “It was my application.”
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Nikki Ogunnaike, the editor in chief of Marie Claire magazine, did not grow up the scion of an Anna Wintour or a Marc Jacobs.
But, she said, “my mom and dad are both very stylish people.”
They got dressed up to go to church every week in her hometown Springfield, Va. Her mother managed a Staples; her father, a CVS. “Presentation is important to them,” she said.
Since landing her first internship with Glamour magazine in college, Ms. Ogunnaike, 40, has held editorial roles there and at Elle magazine and GQ. She has been in the top post at Marie Claire since 2023.
She recently spent a Saturday with The New York Times as she prepared for Milan Fashion Week.
Health
Massachusetts health officials have confirmed the state’s first two measles cases of the year, a school-aged child and a Greater Boston adult.
The Department of Public Health announced the cases Friday, marking the first report of measles in Massachusetts since 2024.
According to health officials, the adult who was diagnosed returned home recently from abroad and had an “uncertain vaccination history.” While infectious, the person visited several locations where others were likely exposed to the virus, and health officials said they are working to identify and notify anyone affected
The child, meanwhile, is a Massachusetts resident who was exposed to the virus and diagnosed with measles out-of-state, where they remain during the infectious period. Health officials said the child does not appear to have exposed anyone in Massachusetts to measles.
The two Massachusetts cases come as the U.S. battles a large national measles outbreak, which has seen 1,136 confirmed cases nationwide so far in 2026, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“Our first two measles cases in 2026 demonstrate the impact that the measles outbreaks, nationally and internationally, can have here at home,” Massachusetts Public Health Commissioner Robbie Goldstein said Friday. “Fortunately, thanks to high vaccination rates, the risk to most Massachusetts residents remains low.”
Measles is a highly contagious disease that spreads through the air when an infected person sneezes, coughs, or talks. The virus can linger in the air for up to two hours and may even spread through tissues or cups used by someone who has it, according to the DPH.
Early symptoms occur 10 days to two weeks after exposure and may resemble a cold or cough, usually with a fever, health officials warned. A rash develops two to four days after the initial symptoms, appearing first on the head and shifting downward.
According to the DPH, complications occur in about 30% of infected measles patients, ranging from immune suppression to pneumonia, diarrhea, and encephalitis — a potentially life-threatening inflammation of the brain.
“Measles is the most contagious respiratory virus and can cause life-threatening illness,” Goldstein said. “These cases are a reminder of the need for health care providers and local health departments to remain vigilant for cases so that appropriate public health measures can be rapidly employed to prevent spread in the state. This is also a reminder that getting vaccinated is the best way for people to protect themselves from this disease.”
According to the DPH, people who have had measles, or who have been vaccinated against measles, are considered immune. State health officials offer the following guidance for the Measles-Mumps-Rubella (MMR) vaccine:
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