Gov. Wes Moore on Trump Administration’s Mass Layoffs of Federal Workers

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR: Toughen up. Those are the stern words of former President Obama to his fellow Democrats in the wake of President Trump’s unpopular domestic policy bill. As the Democrats search for their way forward, Obama implored his party to stand up for the things that you know and you think are right. And Maryland Governor Wes Moore is committed to doing just that in his state. He speaks to Michel Martin about how he’s going to be doing it.

MICHEL MARTIN: Thanks Christiane. Governor Wes Moore, thank you so much for talking with us.

 

WES MOORE: Thank you so much. Great to be with you.

 

MARTIN: So governor, obviously we wanted to talk to you. You’re, you’re highly visible. You’re the first black governor of Maryland, but you are also in such close proximity to the nation’s capitol that you’re experiencing what a lot of people are calling the Trump triple whammy. 

So why don’t we start with just the, the, the whole economic picture, Maryland, by the state’s own numbers, lost some 3,500 federal positions earlier this year, which is, which is a big number in a state where nearly 7% of the working population is or was federally employed. So how are you thinking about this moment? How are you thinking about navigating this?

 

MOORE: There’s no doubt this is a really challenging moment because Maryland has a greater level of exposure to these federal cuts than any other state inside the country. You know, you, you mentioned, I have over 260,000 federal jobs – federal, federal employees in the state of Maryland, over 160,000 federal jobs within the state of Maryland. So when we’re talking about things like cuts to the NIH, when we’re talking about cuts to social security, you know, these aren’t just real institutions that serve people within our country. These are oftentimes Marylanders who are now losing their jobs. And so we’ve just been having to be very aggressive and very thoughtful about ways we can support our federal workers. 

 

And you know, we were the, the first state in the country to announce a platform called the Feds to eds, feds to eds, which is basically saying if a person is a laid off federal worker and they have an interest and also a, a, a skillset to become an educator, to become a teacher in the state of Maryland, then we were going to streamline that process, cut the red tape, get them inside of classrooms. And already we’ve seen that even in, just in these first months, that initiative alone has been able to cut about 10% of our teacher shortage that existed in the state of Maryland, that we’ve been working with our private sector partners to be able to identify how can we make sure that those skills that Marylanders utilize can actually fulfill their needs as well. 

And, and thus far, we’re really proud of the results where Maryland is one of the fastest job growth, job growth rates in the entire country. That our unemployment rate right now is 3.2%, which is more than a full point lower than the national average. So I’m really proud that Maryland has really helped to meet this moment despite the fact that the relationship between the federal government and our states has really been severed.

 

MARTIN: The other thing about Maryland, it’s a very diverse state. I mean, it’s got urban centers, but it also has rural areas. 

MOORE: Right.

MARTIN: These Medicaid cuts that, that have, that are part of the president’s sort of big tax and spend bil –, I, they, you know, the Republicans don’t call it cuts, but everybody else calls them cuts because, you know, these work requirements, the working assumption is that these work requirements will cause certain people to be dropped from the roles and also just the reimbursement rates. I mean, it’s a very technical issue, but the concern is that hospitals, particularly in more rural areas, will not be able to make it. Is that a concern of yours?

 

MOORE: It’s a very real concern. And this is a devastating hit, particularly to our rural hospitals. And, and you’re absolutely right. The, the number one industry in the state of Maryland is agriculture. And so, so rural supports, rural hospitals are crucial to our economic growth and our economic advancement in addition to our healthcare. And, you know, I was actually just recently out in the eastern shore of Maryland speaking to folks because we just finished making his historic investment in rural hospitals, both in the eastern shore and also in western Maryland. And despite the fact that we, on the state level, my administration just made historic investments in rural healthcare, we’re now seeing that, that the, the Trump administration is now proposing cutting about a quarter of a billion dollars from Maryland’s rural hospitals. So this is not even an inconvenience for our rural healthcare industries. This is an existential question that you have for many of our hospitals, and that means, does a person have the ability to get not just specialized care, but just basic primary care? Do they have a chance to get that without having to travel an hour and a half to go get it? And so there’s a deep level of unfairness that exists in this, in the way that the that this bill was structured, and it’s gonna have a significant impact on rural communities.

 

MARTIN: Is there anything that you could do about it? I mean, some states are obviously trying to develop, kind of, a rural health fund. In fact, there is, there’s an element of that in the bill that that does offer some support for rural hospitals. But it’s, it’s, it’s, it sounds like a big number. It’s about $50 billion. But it’s nowhere near the amount that actually would be cut. It’s like about a third of that amount. So that, again, that’s arithmetic, not calculus. So is there any way for the state to make up that difference?

 

MOORE: Well, you, you, you just said it best. It’s, it’s, it’s arithmetic, not calculus. I mean, that, that fund that was being proposed is is, is almost offensive when you look at that in comparison to the cuts that are then gonna happen to rural healthcare. And the truth is, is that there’s not a single state to include Maryland that has the resources to be able to make up for when the federal government just decides to cut themselves out of a process. When the federal government basically looks at all of our states and says, you’re on your own, and looks at the American people and says, you’re on your own. And so this is this is, this is damaging, and we are, we are getting creative. We will continue to be thoughtful, and as we say in the state of Maryland, we leave no one behind. Yet at the same time there is no state that has the balance sheet to just simply make up for when the federal government decides that they’re no longer willing to engage.

 

MARTIN: There have been a number of pain points for Maryland specifically. One is that, you know, the FB, FBI headquarters was scheduled to move to Maryland. It’s, it’s a long term project because it’s a huge facility. And the Trump administration decided that no, they wanted the headquarters to remain in the District of Columbia. 

MOORE: Yeah. 

MARTIN: The football team is supposed, is leaving, supposed to be leaving, you know, Maryland for, for Washington DC as well. And one of your big amusement parks is closing. Not to mention the key bridge, one of your major transportation hubs, the key bridge in this freak accident that caused death and, you know, significant impediments now on the plus side, you, with the help of federal partners, were able to get that bridge, at least a workaround up and running in far less time than people had anticipated, which has to be a point of pride.

 

But on the other hand, these are also some real economic blows, which you could not have anticipated at the time you ran for governor. So the question then becomes, is, how do you navigate all that at the same time?

 

MOORE: Yeah. You know, I, I think one thing that the people of the state of Maryland knew when they elected me as governor is they knew they were electing a soldier. You know, my background is not in politics. My background is actually in the private sector. And also I led soldiers in Afghanistan. And the thing that I always learned was that the only thing that is predictable is expect the unpredictable, is that things are going to change. And one thing, and you’re absolutely right, you know, we came in realizing and learning on our first days, not just of the, you know, realizing the structural deficit that we inherited, but also looking at the other fiscal realities that were coming on board. And to include things like, to your point, that the FBI building, which Maryland worked for a decade, and worked through GSA to be able to get it done, that I was notified that the Trump administration was not planning on putting the FBI building in the state of Maryland. Not because we were called, not because they reached out, but because I received a Washington Post News alert that he said it randomly in a press conference. 

So, so this is the dynamic that we have when it comes to the relationship with the federal government, which is deeply frustrating. But the thing I tell the people of my state is this, despite that when I was first inaugurated, Maryland was 43rd in the country in unemployment. Now we’re going on 16 straight months of amongst the lowest unemployment rates in the entire country, that we went from being one of the one of the deadliest states, where you saw the homicide rate in the state of Maryland nearly double over an eight year period before I became the governor. Now we’re having amongst the fastest drops in violent crime, not just in the country, but in, in, in history. And so the people of our state know that even when crisis comes is that we know how to lead and we know how to deliver.

 

MARTIN: Well also though, I mean, it has to be said, you, you’re call these investments. Your critics call this a massive tax and spend kind of spree, the minority leader, the house, the Maryland State House minority leader and about 20 GOP legislators describe the fiscal 2026 budget as a “massive tax and spend budget.” And he says that, “any attempt to couch this as a tax cut budget is just inaccurate.” How do you respond to that?

 

MOORE: I, I say it’s accurate because numbers don’t lie. I say that 94% of Marylanders either just got a tax cut or so, no change in their taxes at all. The majority of Marylanders, middle class Marylanders, actually just got a tax cut, and the numbers are irrefutable. And the people who we did ask to invest more, frankly, the overwhelming majority of anyone who saw a tax increase were millionaires. And I do not have an issue. We worked with everybody across the economic spectrum. I do not have a problem asking millionaires to pay a little bit more so we can invest in having the best public schools in the country, that we can pay a little bit more to invest. And so we’re not laying off police officers and not laying off firefighters, and we’re continuing to lead one of the fastest drops in violent crime anywhere in the United States of America.

And so the, you know, I prioritize the middle class, and if you look at what happened on the federal side you know, with the, the, the Republican budget, that budget prioritized millionaires, and it literally is the largest consolidation of wealth in world history. That’s what they just passed. Giving millionaires a tax cut so they could cut benefits for working families. And so in Maryland, I just decided that we are going to move differently than that, that we are going to actually make sure we’re giving the middle class a break, that we’re going to give working families a break. And yes, we are gonna ask people who have done very, very well to be able to invest a little bit more so we could have the type of society that each one of us can believe in, and each one of us can benefit from and been able to see – <crosstalk>

MARTIN: Sorry, forgive me, governor. Is the calculation here that whatever the tax increase is in Maryland, is gonna be offset by the tax cut on the federal side so that the higher earners are basically it’s gonna be a wash? Is that, is that part of the calculation here?

 

MOORE: Well, the thing we know is that in this most recent budget in Maryland, you know, I I also – there’s about two and a half billion dollars worth of cuts in Maryland’s budget. You know, I’m the first governor now in over a decade to actually have three straight years of, of, of decreasing the size of the general fund, basically decreasing the size of state government. And this is the largest cut to the state budget that we’ve seen in 16 years. So we’ve shown a very real measure of, of discipline and modernization and, and frugalness when it comes to how government is spending. Yet at the same time, you are absolutely right that the people in Maryland who are being asked to invest a little bit more are also the ones who the Trump administration just said, and here’s more money, here’s your tax cut.

 

MARTIN: There’s always the question of there’s what the, what, there’s what the numbers show, and then there’s what people feel. Yeah. Is your argument that these investments as you consider them, or spending as the Republicans would say, are going to improve the quality of life in Maryland to the point where people will feel it? Is that your argument?

 

MOORE: Absolutely. And I think then I think they already have, where you are now seeing, for example, in public education where our fourth, our third grade reading scores have jumped 20 states since I have been the governor, that we have now seen how public safety and, and violent crime has had amongst the fastest drops in our state’s history, that we’re seeing population increases in Baltimore City, you’re seeing the largest population increases that we have seen in recent history. And so I think we are showing that you can be an efficient government, you can streamline, you can focus on modernization. Where one of the first hires I made as governor was I actually hired a, a, both a chief innovation officer and, and focusing on modernization and really focusing on streamlining, cutting costs, cutting waste, fraud and abuse in a humane way. And so I think people in the state of Maryland are seeing that our investments are actually working, that are strategy is actually working. And yes, at a time when the federal government is forcing increased prices on everything for working families, we believe that working families and middle class families actually deserve a tax cut.

 

MARTIN: Let’s talk about that homicide drop in Baltimore, I mean, the city recorded just 68 homicides through June, the lowest in 50 years, that’s like a 23% drop from just the first half of 2024. Now, obviously you’re not the mayor, you know, of Baltimore, but what do you attribute that decline to? What do you think was the state’s role in this?

 

MOORE: Well, I, I think you know, the state played a really important role, especially when it came to coordinating with our local leaders and, and the mayor and the state’s attorneys and local law enforcement. You know, we made the largest investments in local law enforcement in our state’s history that we’ve invested in, in predictive analytics and technologies to be able to stop crime before it happens. And if someone commits a crime, particularly with a, a violent crime with a handgun, I want them in handcuffs in 24 hours. And we’ve been able to invest in community intervention groups and stop retaliatory violence. The most violent year recorded in Baltimore’s history was 2022, the year before I became the governor. Now, the least violent year in recorded recent history is now 2025, 2 years into our governorship. And so we’ve been able to fundamentally break the back of violent–

 

MARTIN: That sounds like a co– that sounds like a correlation, not a causation. I’m asking you, what’s the cause?

 

MOORE: Well, I, I, I think, I think the cause is that we’ve actually started working together. And so we put more boots on the ground. We’ve invested in local law enforcement, we’ve been able to invest in technology that we’ve been able to put, we’re one of the few states that actually puts capital into the US attorney from, from balance sheet, that we’ve been able to focus on juvenile justice reform and be able to have real focus on supporting and elevating our youth and focus on issues of poverty and employment. And so I think we’ve been able to take an all the above approach to include the fact that we’ve been able to put, you know, additional $50 million into the Baltimore Police Department. Those type of things do make a marked impact. And I think you’ve been able to see where we have gone from in 2022, the most violent year in Baltimore’s history, to essentially now having – the last time the homicides rate were this low in Baltimore City. I wasn’t born yet. And you’re seeing it not just in Baltimore City, you’re seeing it all across the state of Maryland. So it’s really encouraging results, but we also just know we’re not done yet.

 

MARTIN: What do you see as your role right now, particularly at a time when democrats on the whole, nationally, are not that happy with their leadership? They don’t feel that they’ve taken an aggressive stance in addressing the things where there are strong disagreements with the Trump administration. Many people don’t think they’ve been effective in, in opposing things with which Democrats profoundly disagree. Do, do, do you see yourself as having a particular role right now? What do you think it is?

 

MOORE: Yeah, I mean, I, I think my role is to, is to do what we’re doing, which is delivering results for the people of Maryland. That’s why they elected me. They did not elect me to revive the Democratic Party. They did not elect me to be able to, you know, talk about things that are, should be happening in other places. They elected me because we could do things like have record drops in violent crime. They elected me because we could have things like record drops in unemployment. They elected me because we could focus on making Maryland the first day in the country that now has a service year option for all of our high school graduates. And as you mentioned earlier, that we could you know, be able to accomplish a clearing of the federal channel after the Key Bridge collapse in record speed.

 

I, I think the people are seeing that in the state of Maryland and with our, in my administration, we don’t do no and slow. We do, yes and now. And we make sure we’re providing real opportunities to provide pathways to work, wages, and wealth for the people of our state. And so the fact that people around the country are paying attention to the results that we’re driving in the state of Maryland is very humbling. And I deeply appreciate it. I also just know that the way you win elections is by actually doing what you say you are going to do. And that’s exactly what we’ve done in the state of Maryland.

MARTIN: Who do you like for president 2028, as a Democrat? Thoughts?

 

MOORE: I, I think right now, it, it for anyone who is who is paying attention to 2028, it means you’re not paying attention to 2025. Hmm. We’ve got real issues going on right now. We have, we have essentially a full assault that’s taking place from our federal government on the people of our state. On our federal workers, on families with disabilities, on our seniors, on our students. And so, I, I think anyone who is, who is, who is paying attention to what’s gonna happen in 20   28, they’re not paying attention to what’s happening right now in 2025. 

 

MARTIN: Is this job what you thought it would be?

 

MOORE: I love this job. I love, I love this job because it’s you know, having a chance every single day to make policies that that you have thought about, dreamed about and have a chance to see them in action is really exciting. And again, we, I, we spend all of our time out in communities out in neighborhoods all over the state, Western Maryland, the eastern shore, everywhere in between. And to see the people of our state knowing that they have a fighter and excited that they have a fighter as their governor is is just very humbling.

 

MARTIN: Governor Wes Moore, thank you so much for talking with us. 

 

MOORE: Thank you.