Maryland Gov. Wes Moore took on the issue of whether he has presidential ambitions by saying at the National Governors Association winter summit, “I don’t answer to the Democratic Party.”
The first-term governor has been widely speculated to be a Democratic contender in the 2028 presidential election, despite his repeated insistence that he’s not.
When asked by Politico’s Adam Wren whether a politician who says he or she won’t run for president can turn back on such comments, Mr. Moore said, “I don’t think there’s any reason to hide a ball from people.”
He added, “I’m not thinking about this at all,” referring to a presidential campaign, instead citing his need to help Maryland residents who have been furloughed by the federal government or are facing growing costs.
He contended he’s not a puppet of his party but is accountable to his constituents.
“I don’t come from a political world. I don’t come from a political background. I don’t come from the world of punditry. You know, when I first came on board, I was very clear that there is no political party that made me,” Mr. Moore said. “In fact, the Democratic Party put millions of dollars to try to stop me from winning. I don’t answer to the Democratic Party. I don’t answer to party bosses. I answer to the only people who made the government of Maryland, which is the people of Maryland.”
The widely attended annual gathering of governors kicked off on Thursday in Washington with conversations on topics ranging from education and economic growth to energy and artificial intelligence.
At the top of the three-day meeting, Mr. Moore said, “We’re going to debate hard ideas. We’re going to coordinate. We’re going to find places where we’re seeing best practices all across the country. We’re going to model them and adapt them and steal them and bring them home for our states.”
The NGA will have its annual White House meeting on Saturday, but President Trump did not invite two Democrats, Colorado’s Jared Polis and Mr. Moore, the nation’s sole Black governor and the vice chair of the NGA, to the bipartisan, black-tie dinner for governors and their families.
“What makes it especially confounding is that just weeks ago I was at the White House with a bipartisan group of governors, working with the administration on reforms to lower energy costs and strengthen grid reliability. We proved in that moment what’s possible when we stay focused on outcomes over politics,” the Maryland governor wrote in a statement.
He nailed home this sentiment for bipartisan reconciliation on Thursday, saying that “the NGA is bigger than who sits in the White House.”
• Mary McCue Bell can be reached at mbell@washingtontimes.com.
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