Stolen valor has been one of the hottest political topics nationally this summer, and new information confirming Maryland Gov. Wes Moore falsely claimed to have received a Bronze Star for his service in the U.S. Army has reignited the fire. Moore admitted to New York Times reporter Reid J. Epstein that he had claimed to have been awarded a Bronze Star on his application for a White House fellowship in 2006, despite not having been issued that honor by the Army. But he told Epstein that he had no memory of making the claim until a copy of the application was sent by the Times to his office Wednesday. The Times obtained the 2006 document through a public information request.
Moore's false claim in 2006 would have put him in violation of the Stolen Valor Act of 2005, which included the possibility of a prison sentence of up to six months for falsely claiming to have received any military decoration or medal of the U.S. armed forces. But the U.S. Supreme Court struck that law down in 2012. A new stolen valor law was passed by Congress almost a decade after Moore's transgression.
The governor mounted a vigorous defense of his actions after learning of the imminent Bronze Star revelation by the Times. He has cited "mental strain" from his service as the reason he did not correct TV hosts who introduced him as a Bronze Star recipient. Most significantly, Moore has shifted blame to his former superior officer, Gen. Michael R. Fenzel, whom he said encouraged him to claim he had received a Bronze Star on the White House application. While Moore told the Times he had no memory of including the Bronze Star on the application, he said he did have a memory of not wanting to do so.
"That was him following the direction of a lieutenant colonel, and he was at the time a first lieutenant,” General Fenzel told the Times in an interview arranged by Moore. "He was following the advice of a more senior officer." Fenzel admitted that Moore should not have made the claim, even as he backed up Moore's excuse that he was only following Fenzel's advice to make the claim. Fenzel and Moore both said that Moore had been recommended for a Bronze Star, but that the Army never issued the award to him.
Unnamed "allies" of the governor told the Times that the "chaotic" nature of the Afghanistan war meant that soldiers' award paperwork was often not processed or approved. Moore said he never inquired about why he did not receive the Bronze Star.
Moore expressed remorse for not confronting the Bronze Star controversy head on during his successful 2022 gubernatorial campaign. Heat over the stolen valor issue never rose above a low simmer among Maryland media outlets that year, reducing most of the firestorm to social media posts among Republicans.
But, in a statement released by his office Thursday, Moore characterized media investigations regarding his false Bronze Star claim as "new ways to undermine my service to our country in uniform." He called his false claim "an honest mistake" that he now regrets.
Ironically, Moore may politically benefit from having the issue explode to the surface again now. While Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz faced strong criticism over clearly false claims he had made about his rank and combat experience after becoming Vice-President Kamala Harris' running mate, his defenders slammed critics for questioning the service of anyone who had worn a military uniform, especially for as long a timespan as Walz did in the National Guard. And that defense appears to have worked for now. According to the mainstream media, American voters just aren't all that hung up on veterans embellishing their service records, and the issue has receded into the background of overwhelmingly-favorable media coverage of Walz.
Moore's statement suggested he has recognized that shift in the political zeitgeist himself. "Over the last few weeks, our country has grown used to seeing what it looks like when a veteran's integrity is attacked for political gain. But those who seek to cast doubt on our records misunderstand something fundamental about true patriots, who have put on the flag of our country and put everything on the line to be called Americans: We don't get shaken. We put our heads down, and we do the work. And that is what I will continue to do."
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