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The pursuing is the afloat transcript of an interrogation with Maryland Democratic Gov. Wes Moore, which volition aerial connected "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" connected April 5, 2026, moderated this week by senior White House and governmental analogous Ed O'Keefe. The interrogation was taped connected April 3, 2026.
ED O'KEEFE: Well, Governor, convey you for joining us. We admit it. We're gathering amid an ongoing warfare that is having a spot of an effect connected the economy. Rising state prices, ostentation keeps creeping up. It was a decent jobs study connected Friday, but owe rates are climbing and owe applications are down. You observe this arsenic a governor, and you cognize that residents successful your authorities are feeling the economical pinch. What tin you bash arsenic a politician to code each of this?
GOV. WES MOORE: Well, we are feeling it, and it is existent that, you know, a politician does not power the information that vigor prices person spiked implicit the past year. You know, my, my mom's vigor measure successful March of past twelvemonth was $140. It's present creeping adjacent to $500. Governors don't person afloat power implicit that. Governors can't power the information that state prices person gone up present implicit $1 due to the fact that we decided to participate into different warfare of choice, that governors cannot power the information that we are continuing to ticker homes go much hard and much expensive. But the happening we tin bash arsenic governors is we tin marque definite that adjacent though I don't power the terms of food, that I tin marque definite that we're not doing terms manipulation, and that these large corporations aren't gouging our customers, arsenic we're doing present successful the authorities of Maryland. You know, that I tin marque definite that adjacent though we are watching vigor prices rise, that we tin clasp these information halfway companies accountable and besides making definite we're giving a rebate and giving thing backmost to the radical of the authorities of Maryland, which we're doing here.
ED O'KEEFE: Even your support standing appears to person taken a deed successful caller days, astatine slightest successful 1 survey, and among those who disapproved, they cited raising taxes and fees. There's been immoderate speech successful this state, astatine least, astir perchance waiving the state taxation for a small while. It is 1 of the higher ones successful the country. You accidental governors can't bash overmuch astir the state price, you could conceivably found a state terms holiday, no?
GOV. MOORE: Yeah. I mean, the champion happening that we could bash to beryllium capable to code state prices is by halt warring overseas wars and halt watching state prices leap up implicit $1.
ED O'KEEFE: So you hold with the president's mentation that it volition spell backmost down erstwhile the warfare is over?
GOV. MOORE : No, I disagree, due to the fact that I deliberation the president inactive does not person a afloat articulation arsenic to wherefore state prices are going up successful the archetypal place, oregon what's going to beryllium indispensable oregon required to beryllium capable to bring them down. You know, I deliberation astir what we've done present successful Maryland to code that, wherever we've really fixed the mediate people successful Maryland a taxation cut. Because I bash judge that we request to springiness the mediate people a small spot of other alleviation now, and we inquire the wealthiest of Marylanders to beryllium capable to put a small spot more, truthful we tin bash things similar having the rising, you know, increases successful speechmaking and mathematics scores similar we're seeing successful Maryland, and the information that Maryland present has amongst the fastest drops successful convulsive transgression anyplace successful the United States of America. And we inquire the wealthiest of Marylanders to beryllium capable to bash much to enactment successful that.
ED O'KEEFE: So state taxation holidays disconnected the table, then, successful your view?
GOV. MOORE: Yeah, I deliberation we request to halt warring these, these everlastingly wars. And, you know, and I deliberation astir the information that we are, we are precise dangerously- we're lurching again into different everlastingly war. And this is simply a everlastingly warfare that is precise akin to the 1 that I fought in, wherever I led soldiers with the 82nd Airborne Division successful Afghanistan. And I cognize that the United States was successful Afghanistan for 20 years, that it outgo this state implicit 2 and a fractional trillion dollars, that we mislaid implicit 2,400 American lives. And we did it due to the fact that we said we wanted to alteration the Taliban. And 20 years later, you cognize who's successful complaint of Afghanistan? The Taliban. And truthful I consciousness similar we are lurching into different 1 of these everlastingly wars that we're asking the American radical to wage for, but we person still- but the president of the United States and the commandant successful main has inactive yet to articulate what precisely it is that we're doing.
ED O'KEEFE: As we conscionable here, determination are hunt and rescue operations underway present wrong Iran due to the fact that a U.S. combatant pitchy has been changeable down. In caller days, the president suggested this cognition volition beryllium done successful 2 to 3 weeks. That doesn't look to beryllium with you.
GOV. MOORE: It's- this is sitting horribly with me, due to the fact that I'm reasoning astir these families. I'm reasoning astir the families of our work members, who close present who are acrophobic to prime up the telephone due to the fact that they're acrophobic to perceive what is connected the different extremity of the line. That we had a president of the United States speech astir the subject occurrence that we person seen frankincense far, portion inactive acknowledge- without acknowledging the information of the agelong roadworthy up and nary 1 understands oregon tin art- has been articulated to us, what precisely it is that we are doing, oregon what occurrence looks like. And so, I'm- I'm praying for these families, but besides what I'm praying for is immoderate clarity from the White House.
ED O'KEEFE: You're giving 3 commencement addresses this play to members of the Class of 2026. And 1 of them is astatine the subject prep schoolhouse that you attended. A clump of those students whitethorn beryllium heading into the services close away. What would beryllium your connection to them?
GOV. MOORE: I'm truthful arrogant of the information that I- I'm going to springiness the commencement of the schoolhouse that helped to prevention my life. You know, I got, I got sent determination due to the fact that radical ever say, why'd you take to spell to subject school? I say, nary 1 chooses to spell to subject school. I was sent due to the fact that I was angry, due to the fact that I was frustrated, due to the fact that I had a hard childhood, and that spot helped to prevention my life. And I'm arrogant to spell backmost and speech to these cadets. I besides cognize that determination volition beryllium immoderate of those cadets who volition past take to articulation the military, and what I'm going to archer them is I'm arrogant of them. I'm arrogant of them for choosing a beingness of service. I'm arrogant of them for being capable to combat for our state and combat for our democracy. But I americium besides praying for them, and I'm praying for the enactment of this country, that they volition marque decisions with them and their families successful mind, and not conscionable simply marque decisions that I deliberation person been conscionable wrong-headed and foolish connected their face.
ED O'KEEFE: Part of the crushed I wanted to talk with you is successful different caller interview, you floated a mentation of what the adjacent president is going to person to fig retired and however to signifier what President Trump has done in, arsenic you said, into 5 chiseled buckets: what's breached and irreparable, what's breached and tin beryllium fixed, what's breached and needs to beryllium fixed differently, what survives but needs to beryllium breached and what survives and needs to beryllium sustained. You've fixed this immoderate thought, truthful I wanted to locomotion you done immoderate circumstantial things and benignant of wonderment what- what buckets they would autumn into.
GOV. MOORE: Okay
ED O'KEEFE: Where would you enactment Iran?
GOV. MOORE: Well, I would really enactment Iran into a larger bucket, and that is--
ED O'KEEFE: A sixth bucket?
GOV. MOORE: Well, however we deliberation astir overseas wars.
ED O'KEEFE: Okay.
GOV. MOORE: Right? Because, you know, I deliberation astir Donald Trump ran making 3 promises, right, that helium was going to bring prices down, that helium was going to merchandise the Epstein files, and that helium was not going to get america progressive successful overseas wars. And the American radical voted for that. And it's onslaught one, onslaught two, onslaught three, due to the fact that connected each and each 1 of those things that helium promised helium did not marque happen. And truthful erstwhile I speech astir however the United States subject tin and should beryllium utilized ,as idiosyncratic who has served, arsenic idiosyncratic who has fought for this country, I cognize determination is- determination are times erstwhile the- erstwhile the- erstwhile the United States military, the world's top military, tin and should beryllium used. And let's beryllium clear, let's not confuse subject occurrence with the United States subject with strategical success.
ED O'KEEFE: So reasoning up Iran, is it breached and irreparable? Does it past and request to beryllium sustained? Is it broken, request to beryllium fixed differently, the narration with Iran?
GOV. MOORE: I deliberation that- that the narration with Iran close present is- is not conscionable broken, but I'm not definite if determination has been an articulation of what the way guardant is. And erstwhile we're talking astir Iran, you're not conscionable talking astir the narration with Iran, you're talking astir Iran's narration with different countries. You're talking astir a larger overseas policy, you know, complication. And by the way, we person decided to commencement this warfare erstwhile we're besides doing 2 abstracted things that we've fundamentally obliterated what we person successful presumption of our brushed power, USAID, however America does its overseas aid, and we're doing it portion the Department of Homeland Security, whose occupation it is to support the homeland safe, is unopen down. So this is the- this is the- the- the- the frankly, the- conscionable the foolishness successful the mode that we're approaching issues of warfare and bid that I deliberation we've got to beryllium capable to address.
ED O'KEEFE: What bucket would you enactment the U.S.'s narration with Israel in?
GOV. MOORE: Well, I- I deliberation the U.S. narration with- with Israel is- is an important relationship. But I deliberation with immoderate important relationship, determination needs to beryllium accountability. You know, I look astatine the information that we're warring this- this- this- this warfare successful Iran, and 1 of the things that- there's 3 things you ever anticipation for arsenic a soldier, right? That warfare should ever beryllium the past resort, that the 2nd portion should ever beryllium that you are wide astir your ngo and wide astir your extremity crippled and the 3rd is that you built an planetary coalition. We haven't done immoderate of those things with this warfare that we are waging successful Iran.
ED O'KEEFE: In the midst of each this, the President successful caller days, told a gathering astatine the White House that, successful his view, due to the fact that of the 50 states, quote, it's not imaginable for america to instrumentality attraction of daycare, Medicaid, Medicare, each these idiosyncratic things. He argues the national authorities shouldn't person to wage for those programs because, quote, we person to instrumentality attraction of 1 thing, subject protection.
GOV. MOORE: That's nonsense. And that's not what immoderate of america want. We don't privation to beryllium warring overseas wars portion you're taking distant our wellness care.
ED O'KEEFE: Could a authorities adjacent wage for Medicaid and Medicare--
GOV. MOORE: No
ED O'KEEFE: --daycare without national assistance?
GOV. MOORE: So galore of the decisions that this White House is making, they are making with a wide knowing that nary authorities has a fund to say, okay, well, we'll conscionable instrumentality connected wellness care, oregon we'll conscionable instrumentality connected nutrient insecurity. We saw that hap past twelvemonth erstwhile the President of the United States broke the instrumentality successful bid to chopped SNAP. In fact, we sued them, and we won, and we bushed him successful tribunal connected this. But we--
ED O'KEEFE: Sounds similar he's going to effort again, though.
GOV. MOORE: And- and- and helium did effort again. He really tried to entreaty the fact, you know, threw a temper tantrum, due to the fact that helium felt- due to the fact that the judges told him that actually, no, you request to wage for nutrient assistance for people. And what we ended up doing is, successful Maryland, I really took $63 cardinal retired of our fiscal work fund, which is simply a money that is made up of superior gains taxes. And I said, well, I'm not going to fto the radical of my authorities spell hungry, due to the fact that Washington is throwing- having a nutrient fight. And truthful we made definite that SNAP and SNAP benefits were not going to beryllium chopped for the radical of Maryland. But it is simply a profoundly unfair inquire to inquire states and oregon governors, due to the fact that we bash things that the national authorities has ne'er done, we really equilibrium our budgets. And it is an unfair inquire to inquire america to instrumentality connected what should beryllium a associated responsibility, due to the fact that the national authorities has decided to halt doing its job.
ED O'KEEFE: We person to permission it there, Governor. But convey you for taking the time. Happy Easter.
GOV. MOORE: Thank you. Happy Easter.
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