Following controversy, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore receives Bronze Star for Army service 18 years ago
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore has received a Bronze Star for his deployment to Afghanistan 18 years ago
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Maryland Gov. Wes Moore received a Bronze Star for his deployment to Afghanistan 18 years ago, several months after a controversy arose when a newspaper reported he had claimed to have received it on a 2006 White House fellowship application when the paperwork had not been fully processed.
The private ceremony at the governor's residence in Annapolis, Maryland, on Friday was confirmed by the governor's office.
Lt. Gen. Michael Fenzel, the governor's close friend and former commander who had recommended Moore for the medal, pinned the Bronze Star for "meritorious service” onto the governor’s chest at the ceremony, The Washington Post reported.
“I’m so happy to be in a position to right a wrong,” Fenzel said during the ceremony, the newspaper reported.
Moore, a Democrat, had been recommended for the medal while he was deployed by his superiors, including Fenzel, and Fenzel encouraged Moore to include it in the application because it had received the necessary approvals, both men said.
Moore, then 27, questioned it but said Fenzel assured him it would be awarded by the time fellows were selected. Yet the award paperwork never went through. Around the time Moore ended his 11-month deployment, he won the White House fellowship.
The New York Times reported in August that Moore had prematurely claimed the Bronze Star on the fellowship application.
Fenzel said Friday that the controversy was the first time he learned that Moore, a former Army captain, had never received the Bronze Star. On learning about it, Fenzel said he immediately called the chief of staff to U.S. Secretary of the Army Christine Wormouth to notify her that he planned to recommend Moore for the award again and create the paperwork anew, including collecting approval from Moore’s old chain of command.
The citation was signed on Nov. 19. But Moore learned he received the medal on Dec. 14, when Wormouth personally told him at the Army-Navy football game, according to the governor’s staff.