Reply To Governor Moore’s State of the State Address

Text of reply as prepared

My fellow Marylanders,

Today Governor Wes Moore Gave his state of the state of the state speech, i am excited to be ere talking to you tonight, one my first IG live campaign speec i ope to do more of tis going forward.

This  speech was  more of the same lofty platitudes about progress and possibility. But when the cameras go away he and his team will keep working behind the scenes with the Democratic leadership  in Annapolis to side with corporations, landlords, polluters, arms dealers. and the  peddlers of false fear of crime narratives. Governor Moore is right about one ting, Maryland is in crisis—our economy is stagnant, the cost of living is sky high, and we are already slashing the education plan Annapolis Democrats mortgaged our future for.  

All of that was the case before Trump and the DC Republicans were elected. Business as usual Annapolis politics cannot meet this moment of crisis. 

Lets be Clear, Wes Moore and the Annapolis Democrats are afraid of former governor Larry Hogan, This was the case in 2024 when Hogan was running for US senate and it is the case now that they are afraid He will run for Governor in 2026.  This speech represented the beginning of  a two year campaign cycle that will see Moore move to the right. 

Let’s break down what he did and didn’t say:

1. Tax Fairness Governo Moore touted his progressive tax reforms, but he  did not say that his corporate tax cuts and slight  tax increases  on the 1% fails to close the deficit, and  he did not say that he  and the Annapolis democrats have refused to take up progressive taxation for the last several years. He didn’t say that his budget relies on regressive user fees, hidden tax increases, and that it passes hundreds of millions of dollars in unfunded cost to the counties, in turn forcing them to raise taxes. This further squeezes hard working Marylanders already tight budgets.

2. Education: Governor Moore boasts about the Kirwan Commission’s Blueprint for Maryland’s future  and the importance of education to Maryland but he didn’t say his budget slashes well over 100 million in funding from public universities— and shifts 1.6 Billion away from the Blueprint for Maryland's Future over the next 4 years. This is a  betrayal to our children and educators.

3. Immigration: Governor Moore took the time to recognize the individual Immigrants who are contributing to their communities,  but he did lay out how his administration will protect those same immigrant communities from Trump’s sweeping mass deportation policies. 

4. Housing: Governor Moore talked about the necessity for affordable housing to convert renters into homeowners but did not talk about Maryland’s skyrocketing rental rates or mass eviction crisis, we lead the nation in eviction filings and if we don’t address that problem first. 

5. Crime: Governor Moore Talked about how we are “beaking the back of violent crime”, but he didn’t mention that our prison population leads the nation in young people charged as adults, and has the nation’s highest percentage of Black people in its prisons when compared to the general population.

6. Economy: Governor Moore talks about building an economy that is not dependent on the Federal government, and investing in the economy of the future, but his plan to focus on sectors like  AI, biotech, and life sciences simply falls short. The federal government is the leading employer in maryland and in 7 counties, and employs over 300,000 people. Moore has no plan to deal with Trumps slash and burn approach to these workers. 

Now I want to Shift to a couple of things Moore does not talk about:

• Climate Failure: Moore does not mention Climate change, or the risk that it poses to Marylanders, he does not mention that we incinerate trash and call it renewable energy, he does not mention that corporations like CSX that maintain a large open air coal pile in Curtis Bay   have his administration's support while the communities are forced to deal with the cumulative consequences.

• Complicity in Genocide: Moore does not mention that in word, deed, and law Maryland is complicit with the ongoing Israeli genocide in Gaza. He does not mention that maryland through the Maryland Israel Development Corproation has a joint venture that 

The Republican’s responded to Moore by putting their most professional and reasonable sounding  speakers in front of the cameras, but tomorrow I fully expect their most vocal leaders in the Freedom Caucus to get back on social media and 

• Cheerlead Trump’s Plans to Destroy Maryland.

• Share their  Longing to Live In Virginia.

• Offer Half Baked Solutions To Energy, Education, and Crime.

• And Celebrate Cruelty to The Most Vulnerable.

Neither Democrats or Republicans have the solutions Maryland needs in this time of crisis, and we need new voices and new ideas in the Debate. 

Today , through all of this Governor Moore spoke of “courage,”  as a recurring theme But let’s be clear: 

Courage isn’t repeating the same failed policies that created the crises we face. Courage is daring to imagine a Maryland that is fundamentally more democratic, peaceful, just, and ready to face the many crisis coming for us.

Courage is the power to transform Maryland into a place that does not lead the nation in Youth incarceration or eviction filings, Courage is the Power to stand up and say we won’t be complicit in war and genocide, courage is refusing to work with the trump administration to deport members of our families and communities.  Courage requires being real about the future of Maryland’s economy and the sacrifices it will take to get to a Maryland that works for everyone. 

We need a movement with the courage to imagine a different world and the power to transform Maryland

Over the Next two years we will work with Marylanders of every political affiliation across the state  to offer A Green vision rooted in peace, justice, democracy and Ecological Wisdom. It will include 

• A Transparent and Progressive Taxation System to fund schools, housing, transportation and climate action, and to reduce the burden on working class people and families.

• An Agenda For A Solidarity Economy  to transition beyond dependence on the federal government, and toward an economy rooted in repairing and revitalizing Maryland Communities.

• A Path To Multiparty Democracy in Maryland to ensure more voices are heard, more people are represented, and more solutions are part of the debate.

• A Vision of Public Safety That Does Not Start and end With Police and Prisons.

• A Plan for Climate Resilience and Reconstruction that makes polluters pay, and prepares Marylanders for a future beyond fossil fuels.

I am not a career politician, I’m not a member of the one percent, I am a working class Marylander who like all of you is worried about my family, my friends and my community. I don’t know what the future holds or how it will treat us. But I do know that when we say power to the people and  work together with the  courage to imagine and the power to transform. We can build a Maryland that works for everyone.

Thank you and have a good night!