Northeast

Wes Moore says he regrets not correcting interviewers who called him a Bronze Star recipient

Published

1 year ago

September 10, 2024

Wes Moore says he regrets not correcting interviewers who called him a Bronze Star recipient

AUSTIN, Texas– Democratic Maryland Gov. Wes Moore says he’s regretful over failing to correct past interviewers who wrongly claimed he was a Bronze Star recipient.

Moore, a rising star in the Democratic Party who served as an Army captain in Afghanistan, has been the target of critics after it was revealed he had included the prestigious military honor in his 2006 application for a White House fellowship, according to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request filed by The New York Times. Subsequently, he did at least two interviews where he was identified as a Bronze Star recipient but did not correct them at the time.

“It was an honest mistake that I made nearly 20 years ago, and I own it,” Moore told Fox News Digital in an interview Friday.

RISING DEMOCRATIC STAR ADMITS FALSELY CLAIMING BRONZE STAR AWARD

“When I was just coming back from a combat deployment, when I was now being thrust into a national media that I’d never been in before, when I was still very much dealing with a lot of the consequences of conflict,” he continued. “Should I have, in a long introduction, gone back and said something? In retrospect, I probably should have… And I take responsibility for that.”

Democratic Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said he takes responsibility for not correcting interviewers who falsely claimed he was a Bronze Star recipient during an interview with Fox News Digital. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

Moore was misidentified as a Bronze Star recipient in a 2008 interview by the late “PBS NewsHour” host Gwen Ifill and in a 2010 interview with comedian Stephen Colbert on “The Colbert Report.”

Moore remains proud of his service and said his love for the country is “undying.”

“I joined the military when I was 17 years old. I chose to raise my hand and serve with the uniform of this country, the flag of the country on my shoulder, and to serve with one of the most elite units in the entire United States military,” Moore said. “I led soldiers, I led paratroopers in combat, and I was rated as a top 1% officer. My senior rater said I was the best lieutenant that they worked with in all of Operation Enduring Freedom, in the entire Afghanistan campaign.”

“I am deeply proud of my service. I’m deeply proud of the work that we did. I’m deeply proud of the work that I did, that I’m doing now to support veterans and veterans’ families now as the governor of Maryland. And I will always do that, and I will always be very proud of the service I did,” he added.

WES MOORE PRAISES WALZ FOR MILITARY SERVICE, COMPLETING ‘MISSION’ DESPITE RETIREMENT OUTRAGE

Moore first admitted his mistakes to the Times, but that didn’t stop his critics from linking him to the controversy surrounding Democratic vice presidential nominee Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, whose military service record has been scrutinized since he joined the 2024 Democratic ticket.

During Moore’s introduction on a 2008 installment of “PBS NewsHour” where host Gwen Ifill claimed he “earned a Bronze Star medal.” (Screenshot/PBS)

The subject was broached during a conversation at the Texas Tribune Festival where he was asked whether Walz as well as his GOP rival Sen. JD Vance were having their military service “maligned.”

“It’s happened to me,” Moore told NPR’s Michel Martin. “Less than 1% of this country has worn the uniform of this country. And so when we’re talking about veterans issues, frankly, when you’re having a national conversation with this country, it’s more of a voyeuristic conversation because people haven’t experienced it.”

“I look at what’s happened to so many of these soldiers and airmen and Marines and sailors, how you’re watching this pushback from their service. Like, these are not people who raised their hands when the country asked. Like, these are not people who were willing to not just leave their families, but willing to leave their bodies when the country asked,” Moore later said. “And so, you know, I don’t have patience nor tolerance to be lectured by anybody, particularly from people who have no idea what they’re talking about and have no idea about the emotions that are going through that soldier or sailor or airman and Marine’s mind as they’re getting ready to say goodbye to their family, not knowing that’s the last thing they’re going to be able to say to them.”

MARYLAND GOVERNOR SIGNS BIDEN-INSPIRED BILL ESTABLISHING ‘CENTER FOR FIREARM VIOLENCE PREVENTION’

“And so whether we’re talking about Sergeant Major Walz, someone who’s devoted 24 years of his life wearing the uniform in this country and willing to leave it all on the line, or whether we’re talking about Corporal Vance, people who raise their hands as the country asked, I frankly just think that we have to remember that ‘Thank you for your service’ cannot just be a statement. There needs to be meaning behind it. And when we have two people who truly were willing to pay the highest price to be called American and who now we know that the next vice president of the United States will be someone who has worn the uniform of this country, no matter who wins in this thing. I just say there’s a deep sense of pride as a veteran that I have in that.”

According to the Minnesota National Guard, while Walz served as command sergeant major and long referred to himself as a retired command sergeant, he “retired as a Master Sergeant in 2005 for benefit purposes because he did not complete additional coursework at the U.S. Army Sergeants Major Academy.”

Democratic Maryland Gov. Wes Moore publicly addressed the Bronze Star controversy at the 2024 Texas Tribune Festival in Austin, Tx. on Sept. 6, 2024. (Joseph A. Wulfsohn/Fox News Digital)

Moore later addressed his own dust-up, explaining how he was instructed by his commanding officer and a former White House fellow to include the Bronze Star in his application.

“He told me that I was going to be awarded it. He instructed me, ‘Put it on your application,’ and the paperwork [for the Bronze Star] never processed,” Moore said.

“Because that never happens in the army,” Martin sarcastically chimed in.

“Yeah, because paperwork issues never happen in the army,” Moore also quipped with a chuckle. “And people have said, ‘Well, why don’t you go back and correct it,’ something that happened 20 years ago? The truth is I forgot about it. The truth is that I was just happy to make it home. The truth is that I didn’t serve because I was looking for a medal. I didn’t serve because I was looking for an award. I serve because I love my soldiers. I serve because I love this country.”

Moore added that he was “humbled” that his commanding officer, who learned that the governor never received his Bronze Star after hearing the reports, told him he was going to “resubmit” him for the honor.

RISING DEMOCRATIC PARTY STAR GOV. WES MOORE SAYS HE DOESN’T ‘SPEND MUCH TIME LISTENING TO DONALD TRUMP’S FOOLISHNESS’

Moore is widely seen as a rising star in the Democratic Party, landing a prominent time slot during this year’s DNC convention in Chicago. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Despite his remorse, the Democratic governor chalked up the attacks against him as “foolishness.”

“I don’t have time to play these games. I’m too busy trying to make the lives of Marylanders better. I’m too busy trying to make sure that our veterans are taken care of,” he said.

“I don’t have time for foolishness. I never have. I never will. And so I think the thing that we do- what real patriots do- we keep our heads down and do the work, and that’s how I respond to this,” he later added.

Fox News’ Brian Flood contributed to this report.

Joseph A. Wulfsohn is a media reporter for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to joseph.wulfsohn@fox.com and on Twitter: @JosephWulfsohn.

Read the full article from Here

New Hampshire

Sen. Denise Ricciardi & Jeff Rogers: Stopping super speeders can save lives in New Hampshire

Published

34 minutes ago

February 28, 2026

Press Room

Sen. Denise Ricciardi & Jeff Rogers: Stopping super speeders can save lives in New Hampshire

State

Zip Code

Country

Source link

New Jersey

N.J. group demands review of Trenton immigration arrest operation at auto shop

Published

40 minutes ago

February 28, 2026

Press Room

N.J. group demands review of Trenton immigration arrest operation at auto shop

U.S. Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, D-Mercer, said in a statement on Facebook that she has been briefed about the incident and her office is monitoring the situation.

Pazmino said her organization is calling on members of the community to come together.

“Brown and Black immigrant communities and nonimmigrant communities are welcome, and should be uniting against this force,” she said.

She is also calling on local officials to assist relatives of those taken into custody.

“We need to support families affected by these kidnappings, with mutual aid, donations and anything else you think will help each other,” Pazmino said.

A woman identified as Andrea, while holding her 1-year-old daughter, Genesis, tearfully spoke in Spanish about the anguish she feels and her fears about the future without her husband Christian, one of the men taken into custody. A friend, who translated her word into English, said Christian was a good and honest man.

“If he used to see a neighbor carrying something heavy, he would run to help them. If a friend needed a favor, he didn’t ask, he just did it,” she said.

Andrea (left) whose husband, Christian, was taken into custody during a raid on a Trenton auto repair shop, holds her 1-year-old daughter, Genesis, while translator Ashley Batz reads her statement in English. (Emma Lee/WHYY)

She said “his daughter was his whole world. He would wake up to her and give her kisses every morning. He would play with her after a long day at work. He loved us and protected us. He didn’t do anything wrong, so why was he taken?”

The Rev. Erich Kussman, St. Bartholomew’s pastor, said the entire Lutheran Church stands with the family.

“Anything you need, you can come to us. I want you to know that. I will stand with you, and we will do what we can to protect you, because that’s the call of the gospel of Jesus Christ,” he said.

“Standing with ICE is antithetical to the gospel of Jesus Christ, hands down,” he added. “Fifty-one times the scriptures tell us to welcome the immigrant and foreigner as one of our own. If you’re not living true to that gospel, the words of Christ himself, you are not a Christian, no matter what you claim to be.”

With immigration enforcement activity on the rise in New Jersey, lawmakers have proposed several bills to expand protections for immigrant communities. One measure called the “Fight Unlawful Conduct and Keep Individuals and Communities Empowered Act” would allow individuals to file a lawsuit against ICE agents who violate their constitutional rights.

Asma Elhuni speaking at a podium — Asma Elhuni, an organizer with Resistencia En Acción NJ speaks at a press conference at St. Bartholomew Lutheran Church in Trenton, joined by pastor Erich Kussman. The group was responding to the detention of three workers at Agudo’s Repair Shop on Feb. 20, 2026. (Emma Lee/WHYY)

Another proposed bill would require any business that operates a private prison or detention facility in the state to pay a tax equal to 50% of the taxpayer’s gross receipts derived from the operation of the facility during the previous year. The bill also stipulates all revenues generated would go to an “immigration protection fund.”

Recently proposed legislation would prohibit ICE agents from ever holding a public job in the Garden State, and New Jersey U.S. Sens. Cory Booker and Andy Kim are proposing legislation to prevent new funding for the Department of Homeland Security from being used to purchase a warehouse in Roxbury, New Jersey.

Requests for comment from ICE and the U.S. Marshals Service were not immediately returned.

Source link

Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania Lottery Mega Millions, Pick 2 Day results for Feb. 27, 2026

Published

1 hour ago

February 28, 2026

Press Room

The Pennsylvania Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.

Here’s a look at Friday, Feb. 27, 2026 results for each game:

Winning Mega Millions numbers from Feb. 27 drawing

11-18-39-43-67, Mega Ball: 23

Check Mega Millions payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 2 numbers from Feb. 27 drawing

Day: 4-7, Wild: 5

Evening: 8-8, Wild: 0

Check Pick 2 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 3 numbers from Feb. 27 drawing

Day: 6-7-7, Wild: 5

Evening: 0-0-3, Wild: 0

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 4 numbers from Feb. 27 drawing

Day: 7-2-1-4, Wild: 5

Evening: 5-7-3-1, Wild: 0

Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 5 numbers from Feb. 27 drawing

Day: 8-4-5-4-4, Wild: 5

Evening: 1-1-9-8-7, Wild: 0

Check Pick 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Cash 5 numbers from Feb. 27 drawing

04-14-16-20-38

Check Cash 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Treasure Hunt numbers from Feb. 27 drawing

02-04-08-13-30

Check Treasure Hunt payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Match 6 Lotto numbers from Feb. 27 drawing

10-12-23-31-33-46

Check Match 6 Lotto payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from Feb. 27 drawing

03-04-13-28-42, Bonus: 02

Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize

Sign the Ticket: Ensure your ticket has your signature, name, address and phone number on the back.
Prizes up to $600: Claim at any PA Lottery retailer or by mail: Pennsylvania Lottery, ATTN: CLAIMS, PO BOX 8671, Harrisburg, PA 17105.
Prizes from $600 to $2,500: Use a Claim Form to claim at a retailer or by mail: Pennsylvania Lottery, ATTN: CLAIMS, PO BOX 8671, Harrisburg, PA 17105.
Prizes over $2,500: Mail your signed ticket with a Claim Form or in person at a Lottery Area Office (9 a.m. to 4 p.m.).

Lottery Headquarters is currently not open to the public. Visit the PA Lottery website for other office locations near you.

When are the Pennsylvania Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 10:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 11 p.m. Tuesday and Friday.
Pick 2, 3, 4, 5: 1:35 p.m. and 6:59 p.m. daily.
Cash4Life: 9 p.m. daily.
Millionaire for Life: 11:15 p.m. daily
Cash 5: 6:59 p.m. daily.
Treasure Hunt: 1:35 p.m. daily.
Match 6 Lotto: 6:59 p.m. Monday and Thursday.
Powerball Double Play: 10:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, Saturday.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Pennsylvania editor. You can send feedback using this form.

Source link