U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he intends to deploy the National Guard in Baltimore, escalating a weeks-long feud between him and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore.
The statement comes amid rising tensions between the president and governor that began when Trump announced he would deploy the National Guard in Washington, D.C., and suggested crime in Baltimore was out of control.
Homicides in Baltimore City have decreased by nearly 40 percent since 2020, according to the Office of the State’s Attorney for Baltimore City, with 91 homicides from Jan. 1 to Aug. 31 — the lowest eight-month total in more than 50 years.
“Donald Trump, if you are not willing to walk our community, keep our name out of your mouth,” Moore, a Democrat, said at an event at Pimlico Race Course on Aug. 21 in response to Trump’s initial mention of Baltimore. “If you are not willing to stand with our people, keep our names out of your mouth.”
Moore sent a formal letter to the White House on Aug. 21 explaining his frustration with Trump’s characterization of the city and inviting him to attend a public safety walk in Maryland with Moore, Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott, state officials, local law enforcement and community groups.
Tensions further escalated when Trump responded to the invitation on Truth Social on Aug. 24, calling Moore’s tone “rather nasty and provocative” and telling him to “clean up this crime disaster” before he would go for a walk with him. Trump also threatened to revoke federal funding for the rebuilding of the Francis Scott Key Bridge.
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Moore responded with a heated X post the same day.
“President Bone Spurs will do anything to get out of walking,” he wrote. “Even if that means spouting off more lies about the progress we’re making on public safety in Maryland.”
The clash marks a shift for Moore, who said in a CNN interview at the start of Trump’s second term that he would not be the “leader of the resistance” against the president.
“This isn’t about Wes Moore, and it shouldn’t be about Donald Trump,” David Turner, Moore’s senior advisor and communications director, told The Diamondback Wednesday. “This is about what can we do that’s best for the people of Maryland.”
Turner said the Moore administration will continue to push back against federal changes that negatively affect Marylanders.
“When there are issues or policy decisions or things like pulling the FBI out of Prince George’s County, we’re going to say, ‘no, this is wrong, and this isn’t the way you should do it, and here’s why,’” Turner said.
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Moore has also been weighing into the nationwide redistricting debate.
“All options are on the table,” Moore said Aug. 24 on CBS’ Face the Nation. If Maryland redrew its congressional districts ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, it could potentially get rid of the only Republican seat in the state’s congressional delegation.
After another week of back and forth between the president and the governor, Trump said in the Tuesday press conference that he intends to send the National Guard to Chicago and Baltimore.
“We have the right to do it because I have an obligation to protect this country, and that includes Baltimore,” Trump said. “Baltimore is a hellhole.”
Moore responded to Trump’s comments in a press conference Wednesday by addressing Marylanders and saying there is “nothing that I would not do to keep you safe.”
“When there are ways that we can find mutual goals and want to work together, we’re going to do that,” Turner told The Diamondback. “But, when the president is spouting, frankly, just inaccuracies and trying to spread untrue characterizations of this state’s largest city, the governor’s going to stand up for the people too.”
