Wes Moore Rips Trump on MS NOW: ‘One Big Con’ Interview
Photo: Amunankhra House Ltd. / CC BY 3.0
Maryland Governor Wes Moore did not come to MS NOW’s The Beat on October 27, 2026 for small talk. Sitting across from host Ari Melber one week before the midterm elections, the Democrat launched into a blistering critique of President Donald Trump, accusing the president of running what he called a giant con on ordinary Americans — getting richer while everyday families got poorer.
Moore’s appearance was part of a broader Democratic push in the final days of the campaign. Melber’s show that evening covered a federal grand jury’s refusal to indict a key January 6 witness, the Ohio Senate race, and the affordability fight — and Moore leaned into every one of those threads.
Moore Accuses Trump of Enriching Himself While Families Struggle
Moore told Melber that Trump’s time in office has been a masterclass in self-dealing. The governor argued that the president used the highest office in the country to build personal wealth, while, according to Moore, the typical American family fell behind financially on his watch.
It is classic campaign-season rhetoric, but Moore delivered it with unusual sharpness. He framed the midterms as a referendum not just on policy but on whose interests the government actually serves — the president’s circle, he suggested, or the people paying for groceries and rent.
The Question Moore Says Democrats Must Answer
Perhaps the most interesting part of the interview was not the attack on Trump but Moore’s challenge to his own party. He pressed Democrats to give voters a clear answer to a simple question: if Americans hand them power again, what exactly will they deliver?
Moore’s answer leaned on kitchen-table promises — lower costs, safer communities, and an economy that works for people who clock in for a living. It was a signal that at least some Democrats believe the path to victory runs through concrete results, not just opposition to Trump.
Moore Touts Maryland’s Record Under Fire From Critics
Moore used his home state as his exhibit A. He claimed Maryland has cut violent crime by nearly 60 percent during his tenure, grown jobs at roughly twice the national average, and kept unemployment below the national rate — all despite what he described as federal job cuts hitting the state.
Critics are unlikely to let those numbers stand unchallenged. Moore signed a $67 billion fiscal 2026 budget in May 2025 that included more than $1.6 billion in new taxes and fees, closing a $3.3 billion deficit. The package added a 3 percent sales tax on data and IT services, a 2 percent capital gains surcharge on income over $350,000, and hikes on cannabis taxes, sports wagering, vehicle title fees, and emissions inspections. Republican leaders, including Senate Minority Leader Steve Hershey, blasted the tax package as a burden on families and businesses — a line Moore’s opponents will surely deploy in response to his crime-and-jobs claims.
A Familiar Face in a Familiar Fight
This was not Moore’s first headline-grabbing media moment this fall. In September, he criticized Trump’s approach to the Constitution during a CNN appearance, remarks that came after the White House moved to bar CNN, Politico, and MS NOW from briefings. Trump has countered that press freedom does not guarantee any outlet a seat in the White House briefing room — a dispute that continues to simmer.
Whether Moore’s fiery MS NOW appearance moves any votes in the final week before Election Day is an open question. But it was clear the governor came prepared with a message: Trump’s second term, in his telling, enriched one man at the expense of millions — and Democrats are the ones, he says, who will put the country’s wallet ahead of their own.
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