Gov. Wes Moore
Appearances
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
It is. Yeah. No. And listen, I'm in a whole lot of text chains with a whole lot of vets and a lot of them are conservatives. And to hear how the tone has changed over the process of these past weeks, this is real. Like people are realizing this is not what we fought. And this is not the policies that we believed in or voted for or whatever the case is.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
So there is a sleeping giant that's now being awoken in the military veterans community.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
So I do believe that we have to be able to embrace this mantra of patriotism. I believe that we can't allow other people to just simply bastardize it the way that it oftentimes happens when it comes to when you're looking at how a lot of MAGA World and Donald Trump and them talk about it. But I do think it's about not just blindly accepting
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
I don't know how you can claim to love this country or drape yourself in the flag when you're so disrespectful to Americans. Loving your country does not mean loving the ones who supported you. And loving your country does not mean lying about its history. or masking entire segments of its history. Loving your country does not mean defending some of the people in the country.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Loving your country means having a firm understanding that this country's arc has been deeply uneven. But the reason that we've been able to make progress is because we've had people who are willing to believe in the hope of all of us and not just some of us. It's difficult to look at the policies that we're seeing in place when their baseline is division,
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
when their baseline is separation, when their baseline is going back to these old political tropes about what can you do to separate us? Because if you separate us and divide us, you have a better chance of winning fragmented elections. And that's what I think that this goal is. This is not about bringing us together. This is actually just about power.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
No, and I think it's very clear about whose interests come first. Yeah. And think about it. You can't argue that you believe in American competitiveness when you're directly going after many of the things that make America so competitive in the first place. You're going after things like our institutions of higher education. our research grants, the NIH. Let's be clear.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
One of the things that makes America so powerful is the fact that we have some of the best research institutions in this country. One of the things that makes this country so unique is the fact that you have people who are coming from all around the world, the world's best and brightest, who want to come to the United States to learn,
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
to train, to get their degrees, to start their families, and to build. It's the reason why our immigrant communities have been some of the strongest contributors to the United States. One of the United States superpowers is the fact that we are this beautiful melting pot of the world's best and brightest who all come here. We are the globe's dream team.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
this country or talking about this country as if its history doesn't matter. I actually think patriotism means saying, no, I'm not going to just sit down. I'm not going to just take it. I'm not just going to allow someone to take the country in the wrong direction. I'm going to fight and I'm going to fight for it. And I think that's actually the most patriotic thing that you can do right now.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
That's what the United States has always supported itself on. And some of the first things you go after are the institutions of higher education, Some of the first things you go after are research institutions, the thing that's bringing them here. Some of the first things you go after is things like the NIH.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
I mean, you cannot argue that you believe in American supremacy or making this the golden age when you're actually directly going after the things that make America so unique in the first place and ceding that leadership to other countries.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Just the white guys. Bounce passes.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Of course there's going to be, because this is a really hard issue. Right. It's a hard issue that I'm not going to lose on because it's one of the big reasons why we decided to run. If you think about, you know, think about this and this is what's wild to him. The greatest driver of wealth in our nation and nation history has been housing. Right. People were able to accumulate real estate.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
People accumulate value. That's how you're able to actually have generational wealth and generational wealth that you can pass on. The greatest driver of poverty. in our society is housing insecurity. So if you look at, housing is the barbell, right? Housing either can generate significant wealth or generate significant poverty, both generational.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
And so if you look at one of the biggest reasons why young Marylanders are considering leaving our state, it is because of one word, housing. Right. Housing costs, housing affordability. But it's all comes back to housing. And so I've been very clear. We have to build more housing. We have to be able to have more inventory.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
We have to be able to make sure that we're turning more renters into homeowners. We have to make sure that we're protecting our renters. We have to make sure that we're creating generational wealth. And if you look at what we did last year, we passed the most aggressive housing package of any Maryland governor in recent history.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
We focus on things like transit oriented development and density bonuses and making sure that we can provide more incentives for developers and knowing that there's places we should not build. But in the places where we should build and can build, we will build. Right. And I told the legislature and next year I'm coming back for more. And we are.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
And this year we have a whole new bill that's focusing around looking at the places where we have significant job growth and saying, but the job growth will be unsustainable unless you can build more housing, build more options for people to live in and create better incentives and not only incentives, but also greater supports for people to become homeowners.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
So, yes, it is hard and it is difficult.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
It is people who will put arbitrary barriers in the way of it happening because change is tough and change is hard. And I get it. I also know we need to be better. If you want to grow an economy, if you want to invite more people in, if you want to bring housing prices down, you must increase inventory. You know, it's true.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Many are saying that Maryland is probably one of the most aggressive states in the country right now when it comes to building more housing. I agree. Guilty as charged. Because a lot of people are not going to touch it because it is politically challenging. It is politically fraught. It is a third rail of American politics. I understand that. And we have to be unafraid to touch it.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Tim, what's going on, man? How you doing?
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Because if we do not, you will never be able to get the economic growth and the economic prosperity that you're hoping for. So, yes, I'm very aggressively pro-housing. And we're going to continue to be as long as I'm the governor of the state.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Yeah. Well, you know, March 26th is the year anniversary of the Key Bridge collapse. And I'm telling you, man, I'm never going to get that morning when I got a call at 202 in the morning that the Key Bridge was gone and that the Port of Baltimore, which represents about 13% of our economy, was now shut down.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
A bridge that's about a two mile long bridge that 40,000 people went over every day was now in the bottom of the river. And then we had six Marylanders who we lost that morning. So I remember that first morning we laid out four objectives as I stood there with a whole phalanx of leadership. And I said, you know, we are going to bring closure and comfort. to these families.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
We're going to reopen the federal channel as quickly as possible. And people told us it would take 11 months. We got it done in 11 weeks. We said we're going to make sure that everybody who was impacted was going to be supported, the port workers, their families, the small businesses. And we did that. And I said, and we're going to we are going to rebuild the Francis Scott Key Bridge.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
And so I'm thankful that late last year with bipartisan support, Republicans and Democrats, Congress voted for the 100 percent cost share for the Key Bridge rebuild. So we're already in the process of moving. We're already doing the analysis of soil sampling starting off this spring. We're going to finish the final demolition of the. of the pillars that are still up and start the reconstruction.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Yeah, well, I mean, I'm I was a kid who, frankly, when people talk about the breakdowns of this of this country and the inequality of this country, I explain to people like I was born into it. You know, some of my first memories was literally watching my father die in front of me because he didn't get the health care that he needed.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
But I'm really proud of the fact that Maryland put on a case study on how to respond in crisis because we responded in a unified fashion. And I think that's the only reason we were able to get this done as quick as we were able to.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
You know, and you're right. And this is another one. This is very personal to me. You know, people talk about what happened with men in the election. I'm like the election. Shit, man, this has been going on a lot longer than that. Like the election was the tail. Yeah. we've known about this problem for a long time and we've known about it because society has failed.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
you know, I think we did a really wonderful job. You look at the past 30 years, we looked at the data and the data showed that how women were just so significantly falling behind.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
And so there was a distinct and a very intentional move to be able to make sure that we're elevating women, getting, you know, coming to everything from education to employment, to wealth creation, to all this kind of stuff. And we were successful. That's exactly right. Pay a little bit better. That's exactly right. Right. So, and we were successful, right? We still haven't gotten it exactly right.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
But to look at where the numbers were in the 60s and 70s and look at where the numbers are now, you've seen a drastic move. Well, all I'm asking is do the same thing we did then. Look at the data. Look at what the data right now is showing about when it comes to young boys and employment. Look at what the data is showing when it comes to suicide rates that we're seeing with young men.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Look at what the data is showing when it comes to college attainment levels. College attainment levels right now are at the same level as they were for men and boys back when it was in 1964. Right. And so if you look at what's happening when it comes to juvenile justice within our state right now, where the juvenile justice system is so heavily dominated by boys. and our young boys.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
And so all I'm saying is, y'all, we have to follow the data. And the data says, if we do not put a distinct focus on young men and boys, we will fall behind because you will have repeatedly have young men who are falling behind. And so, yeah, so, you know, I've actually issued Bruno probably the most aggressive in the country push to be able to deal
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
With this issue, I've ordered all of my cabinet secretaries where we are coming together on this exact issue. And I'm actually having this as a lens on how I look at performance management for our cabinet secretaries about what ideas that we're working on together to be able to address it. It does go back to education levels. It does go back to things like employment.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
that some of my first memories was watching my mother not get her first job that gave her benefits until I was 14 years old. First job that gave her reliable hours. And this was an immigrant single mom who came to this country and eventually went on to get a master's degree. and still did not get her first job that gave her benefits until her son was 14 years old.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
and moving more men into agencies, into areas, being like teachers and nurses and places where we have massive shortages of men in those areas. It does go back to making sure that we're supporting the juveniles and our young men who are involved in the juvenile justice system and getting them back onto a right track.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
And so we're thinking really broad-based and holistically about it, but I have an exclusive focus. If we do not address what is happening with our young men and boys in the state of Maryland, The state of Maryland will never succeed. And I really do believe the state of Maryland is going to lead on this issue.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
And I think there's a lot of truth to that. But I think we've stopped even trying. And I think that that's noticeable too. I think that we have stopped being curious. We've stopped caring. We stopped asking. And we look at so many times with young boys where we do not ever even really evaluate what was happening. I mean, I'm thinking about it for me, right?
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Again, I was a kid who had handcuffs on my wrist at 11 years old. What'd you do? That time I was for tagging.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Tagging and loitering in a drug-free zone. That's crazy. But this is real. You know what I'm saying? And I remember they would have all these meetings. And I talked to my mother about this because even at school, because I ended up getting kicked out of school in seventh grade, ended up going to a military school in eighth grade. What did you do in seventh grade? What did you do for that?
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
That one was actually pretty justified. That was everything from skipping class to fights to there was an incident with a smoke bomb. It was bad. That one actually was probably pretty deserved. The handcuffs were not. The kicked out of school probably wasn't. But I say that because they would have all these meetings.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
And I remember talking to my mom about it, where I was like, there are all these people are meeting about me without me. Like they're talking about me. But never once did anyone ever ask me, what is going on? Because the thing is, if they did, I might have actually told them. But there was never an interest to actually ask me, what is up with the anger? Why are you constantly getting into fights?
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
I had handcuffs on my wrist by the time I was 11 years old. I joined the army when I was 17. I wasn't even old enough to sign the paperwork. My mother had to sign the paperwork for me. I went to a two-year college. So there was nothing about my life that said, oh, he's one day going to be the 63rd governor. of the state of Maryland.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Why are you not showing up to school? That this was almost like you're dealing with me like I'm a problem that has to be fixed, but not like I'm an asset. And not like I actually had a say in this. And I think that's what happened.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
That is what happened with a lot of culture when it comes to men and particularly black men, men of color, et cetera, young boys, et cetera, where we're just like, we're not being part of the conversation. We're just subjects of the conversation. And I remember... I was at a barbershop once, and my son actually goes to the same barbershop that I went to when I used to have to get haircuts.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
So my son goes in and out, and I remember hearing this conversation that we were having. And someone said something really interesting, because they were talking about all the supports that are happening for black women. And one of the guys is a barber who actually is the I think is I think is three girls. And so he's a real girl dad and all the kind of stuff.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
And he's like, but he's like, listen, I'm all for all the things that are happening to support my daughters. But he said, I just do not want black girl magic to turn into black boy tragic. And I thought that was such an interesting way of phrasing this out. It's almost like society stopped caring. And society now deals with this issue of young men and boys as just a problem.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
And I think that that is part of the thing where it's where, to your point, I don't think there's even a level of curiosity that people have until we're talking about election rolls. But if that's what motivates you to start talking about this issue, then, dude, it's like you really don't get it, do you?
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
fundamentally getting rid of this whole kind of way of categorizing everybody yeah i i think what it is it's just it's being honest that every well all anyone's hoping for is to be seen you know i'm not asking to be a category i'm not asking to be a campaign platform i'm not asking to be a talking point do you see me or not Do you care about me? Do you care about my future?
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
My grandfather was the first one on my mom's side of the family born in this country. And when he was just a toddler, the Ku Klux Klan ran them out of the country. And so my life has been almost like consistently littered with this reminder of a brokenness of an American dream and an American promise in many ways.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Are you actually interested in removing the barriers that in many ways have been intentionally put in front of me? The reason I had handcuffs on my wrist when I was 11 years old is because I came up in a community that was over-policed and we knew it. A community that this was the way that young boys were dealt with. was criminalizing.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
That we came up in a framework where we knew that for a lot of the young boys who were learning differently than the young girls when they were coming up, that we were then either punished or medicated. without understanding that sometimes it just takes a little bit more time and understanding and acceptance.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Came up in environments where, you know, the reason that we want to recruit more men into the classroom, also partially because that a lot of the kids who are inside those classrooms are kids who are coming from single parent, oftentimes women only dominated homes. And so some of the first examples and role models
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
that a lot of these young boys are gonna have of how a man acts, talks, walks, et cetera, could be that teacher inside that classroom. And so these are the type of things that I think we just have to have a measure of honesty about, that introducing and celebrating this idea of masculinity or whatever we wanna call it, it's not a bad thing.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
But I do think we have to be honest about the problem in the first place and actually have a real sincerity about ways we're going to address it and not a motivation of what can we do to increase voter rolls.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
I would say it's because Trump spoke to the frustration well. Trump spoke to the anger well. You know, when Trump talked about how the system doesn't work and the system is broken and, you know, and now for Trump, everything is personalized. So he's like the system persecuted me. Right.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
So for Trump, everything is always personal, but, but Trump does a masterful job of speaking to the frustration and speaking to the fact that, you know what, you don't think this society works, do you? Neither do I. You think these people look down on you, right? They look down on me too.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
But I also know that I stand here as the 63rd governor of the state because my life has also been littered by the blessings of this country. by the blessings of people who were willing to sacrifice on my behalf and the people who were helping me to actually see higher than myself. And so I'd never run for public office before in my life. I spent time in the army.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
You think that you can work and do all this kind of stuff and this person's gonna get the job offered before you, right? You think that this person, that their child is gonna get into college before your child, right? This person's gonna take the spot on your daughter's sports team, right? Yeah, so do I. So he is an amazing vessel for the frustration, right?
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
there wasn't this move to Donald Trump because people believed in him. There's a move to Donald Trump because people didn't believe in the system. That's what he represented. And if we cannot be honest about this system does not work for a lot of people where they feel like they're doing everything right. We are doing our work. We are we are protecting our family and we still can't get ahead.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Then do not ask me to vote for the party that's protecting the status quo or who's saying I want a continuation of this because many people did not. And that's what he mastered.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
And actually, you know, and here's what's wild. It was crazy. So they were like, you know, can the governor come and visit? And I think they wanted me to like say a couple like rah, rah, you know what I mean? But I was like, no, you're like, go Terps. I was like, no, like, can I practice? And they're like, what do you mean? It's like, can I actually practice with the team?
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
And we got on board, threw the gear on, and I ran a full practice with the University of Maryland football team.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Well, during practice, I was playing wide receiver because I played wide receiver in college. So I played college football. And so it actually felt very comfortable. The big difference is I was actually hanging with these dudes. They're like, OK, he can actually ball. Here's the problem. The next morning, I couldn't feel my legs. Yeah. Did you take any hits? Was it a full hit?
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
You were taking hits? I was taking hits and giving them. And I'm telling, because I told him, I was like, you were giving hits as a wide receiver?
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Oh, in the drills. Because I was telling him, don't take it easy on me. Like, if we're going to work, let's work. And I'm very competitive and I don't like losing, especially to like, you know, to 19 and 20 year olds. Were you shit talking? Oh, hell yeah. Hell yeah. But I ain't going to lie. The difference is this, is they got up in the morning and they probably did another two a day.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
I got up in the morning and I just needed to just pound Advils all day long just to make it through.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
So I actually work out every morning at the Naval Academy.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Every morning I work out with the midshipmen. And it's cool. Squats or what you do? Yes. I mean, every day is something different. I mean, today we were burning out on sleds in Versa. Yesterday we were doing backs and buys. So, I mean, every day I'm out there working out with the midshipmen. So they keep me honest, man. It's good. That's cool.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
I'm losing. Absolutely. I'm losing.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Listen, I don't have an issue. And trust me, as someone who very often will take a cigar, I don't have an issue with it. I also think that we need to make sure we have ways of focusing on public safety on it, too. And so I really don't have an issue with it, particularly as adults go and do what adults need to do. Like no one's going to tell me not to smoke cigars ever. You know what I mean?
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
I was a paratrooper with the United States military. I led soldiers in combat in Afghanistan. I came back and I started working in finance. I was working in investment banking. Then I started a business, had a successful exit in 2017. And then I ran one of the largest poverty fighting organizations in this country.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
At the same time, though, I want to make sure that our kids are protected. All right. There are some kids vaping out there, so I get that.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
I began to understand it, I'd say probably right in 2018, 2019 or something like that. You got to get it now that the president's running a crypto grift. Yeah, but as you're watching it completely fall off the cliff when it comes to value. So I think people just need to be careful. So no West coin? Nah, ain't no West coins. There will be no West coins.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
So I mean, listen, for anyone who wants to get in it, whatever like that, that's cool. It's something I've actually, I really got into because intellectually, I wanted to understand it. And probably around 2018, whatever, I really started to like, oh, this is actually kind of interesting. It's just, it's not my thing. I like things that are tangible.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Actually, I think the Big Ten is real college football.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Duh. You been to Knoxville? I actually have on my bucket list. I have on my bucket list that there are a couple places that I really got to get to. Tiger Stadium. And that's definitely one of them. Actually, Michigan's another one. That's another bucket list for me. And Ohio State. I'd love to see Michigan, Ohio State. That's another bucket list game. But yeah. No, but Big Ten.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Big Ten is actually some of the best football you're going to find.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
That sounds good to me.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
And so one day I'm like, the issues I want to work on is I want to beat child poverty. I don't understand why society has child poverty. I understand the role that policy has played in all this. And I was like, I can just keep on screaming about elected officials not doing things or I can actually run for myself. So one day I was like, all right, I'm gonna run for governor.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Because I think I'm constantly reminded this country is not perfect. You know what I mean? Like, I don't need enough reminders of America's imperfection. You know, it's like, this has never been an even line when you think about the history of America. You know, the case of my grandfather, where, you know, some of his earliest memories was when his father was a minister and a very vocal minister.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
That's what got the Ku Klux Klan then making threats to our family, where in the middle of the night, he picks up his family and he leaves. And they didn't just leave town, like they left this country and they went back to Jamaica. And most of my family always said that they would never come back to this country. And much of my family has never come back to this country.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
But my grandfather did because he always felt that, you know, as he always say, like in all of his humility, this country would be incomplete without me. So so he comes back to this country. He attends an HBCU in Pennsylvania, Lincoln University. He then becomes a minister like his father. Right.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
And what was crazy to him is that the same threats that started coming to his father started coming to him. But he stuck. He never left. And he devoted the rest of his life to his faith, to his community, to his family. He devoted his life with a deep belief in this country. And I tell you, because he had a deep Jamaican accent his entire life.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
And he's maybe the most patriotic American I've ever met. Can you do it? Do you got to? Oh, yeah. I got to.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
All right. I like that. But, you know, but he believed in this country. But it's not like he was ignorant to it. He believed in what it could be. And I just feel like it'd be real disrespectful to him. And to everything he had to endure for me to turn around and say, because of an election, I'm done. You know what I mean? Like this, this country is not built that way.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
If we said that every time there was a bad election in America, if we said every time there was a bad occurrence or a bad incident, then then none of this would be real. This is a real bad one, though. This is a real no, honestly. And it's a real bad one because no one should be surprised. Right. That's the thing. All the stuff we're doing, we're saying right now is not like we didn't warn you.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Yeah. And frankly, it's not like Trump ain't warn you because he told you he was going to what he's going to do. And he's actually executing on it right now. And so I just feel like we have to remember this. That what we also have to do is it's not even just about the people who went from, OK, how does a person go from Clinton to Trump or Biden to Trump or Obama?
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Like, let's talk about the fact that there were tens of millions of people who just decided not to vote because they do not think this system works for them. And the reason I know who they are is in many cases, they're actually my family members. You know, I remember when I first ran for governor, I had to convince members of my family to vote for me when I was running for governor.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
And it's not that we're not cool, like we're cool. It's that I had to convince members of my family to vote. You had to register to care, to get an assistant. And even the ones who are registered just to go out. because it's like they don't see how this system works for them. And the truth is, it hasn't.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
And that's why I think we have to be real, real careful about somehow spending our time defending a status quo, when for real, for many people, the status quo never worked for them. So how are you, you're defending something that's indefensible. That's in many ways, that has been Trump's genius, is that Trump has been a vessel for the frustration He's just not a vehicle for the solution.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
He's going to tell you what's wrong, but then he's not going to have an offer or an idea as to how to make it better.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Yeah, but I don't think you have to defend the institutions, right? For me, this is not about saying, oh, everything about the institution is right and you all are not getting right. This is about saying, like, listen, I believe that there are certain things within these institutions that needed adjustments. I actually agree with you.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
For example, you know, I was a White House fellow for both the State Department and USAID. And even when I was there, and that was, shit, like 12 years ago, something like that, maybe more, 14 years ago. Even when I was there, I was kind of like, how do these two things work when you ask a single question about how much foreign aid are we giving to Botswana?
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Why do you need to talk to eight different people to get an answer? I actually have questioned that for a while. So it's not saying I'm defending the status quo. What I'm saying is there's a way to do this. There's a way to do this is actually data informed. There's a way to do this that is humane. And there's a way to do this that actually makes sense.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
And so, for example, one of the first people that I hired when I became the governor was I hired a chief performance officer for the first time in the history of the state. Their job exclusively for the past two and a half years, two years that I've been the governor, their job exclusively has been find the waste waste. within our state agencies. Find the things that were not working.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
yeah i mean it's definitely something that i'm doing but we're doing because it's authentic yeah you know what i mean and that's i think got to be the key thing is that people need to know that you're real about it and that you're sincere and the reason we talk about patriotism is not because it's going to win you electoral points it's because you believe it. And I really do.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Find the things that we cannot give any quantifiable evidence of efficacy and let's go fix it or eliminate it. And so, for example, we started doing things like saying, OK, take a look at fleet management. Take a look at data consolidation and IT consolidation. Take a look at real estate. Why are there certain buildings that are sitting on our state balance sheet? I'm like, what does that do?
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Get it off our balance sheet. Right. Do a focus on procurement reforms, focus on consolidation of agencies that we can actually start to make sense so we can cut down costs, but also making sure that they're more efficient. That is a smart way of doing efficiency. And in turn, we have saved the people of this state tens of millions of dollars in doing so.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
What Doge is doing is just blatant, inhumane and frankly, uninformed cuts by people who have no idea what the hell they're talking about. There's a difference. The irony is, is that there are some things that Trump and them are doing that I'm like, you know, in theory, I actually I kind of get it and it kind of makes sense. But, yo, like how we do things matters.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
And they are just deciding to, I mean, literally come after Trump. These people come after these agencies in a way that is not at all informed and in a way that is deeply inhumane.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
The way we treat our veterans. I'm so pissed about this, man. I'm like, yo, these are people who, and I serve with a lot of them, right? These are people who just every time the country is asked, they've raised their hand. Every time the country is asked, they have said, I will take pay cuts. They said, I will leave my family. They said, I will pick up and move every two years.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
They have said, I will miss occasions. I will miss children's birthdays because the country asked me to. Right. And the thing that gets me most about this is we didn't ask for anything in return. Just simply make sure that you honor your promises to us. Simply make sure that you're taking care of our families. We're not asking for anything that has not already been promised.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
And so when you're talking about taking out a federal bureaucracy, when you're talking about taking out federal workers, you're doing it without an understanding or maybe with an understanding, which makes it even worse, that one in three federal employees are military veterans.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
One in three federal employees are people who have taken off a uniform and are now showing up to make sure that our food is safe, who are now showing up every day to make sure that our seniors are getting health care, who are now making sure and showing up every day to make sure that our veterans and their families can be laid to rest in an honorable way. That's what they're doing.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
But then I'm now getting, you know, the doge people who are coming in and saying, yeah, thanks for your service. But now we're going to send you on your way. And I'm telling you what we are doing to U.S. military veterans is disgusting. I mean, our state, I'm really proud of the way our state is being so aggressive in terms of the way we're responding.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
I believe in this country, flaws and all. I believe in the fact that there's no way you can understand a journey like mine or a journey like my family's and not say there is something special and unique about the United States. and something that I was willing to fight for, willing to lay my life down for. I come from a whole family of people who believe in this country.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
One of the things we're doing, one of the many things we're doing is we're standing up these job fairs all over the state of Maryland. I was just at one yesterday, man. And we had a chance to meet with people who are military veterans. One guy named Jonathan, who I was actually with a couple of weeks back.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Jonathan was a US Army veteran who's now was working in Homeland Security, focusing on critical infrastructure protection. And Jonathan was told on Valentine's Day that Jonathan no longer had a job for no reason. I was talking to a guy, Steve, yesterday. Steve is a Republican who now gets up every morning and puts on a suit so his kids don't know that he lost his job.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
And he is now showing up at a job fair in Frederick County, Maryland, with his resume looking to be hired. And he has yet to tell his kids that he no longer has a job because he's embarrassed. So he gets up every morning at the same time and puts on a suit. I'm disgusted at the disrespect that they have just repeatedly shown to our U.S.
The Bulwark Podcast
S2 Ep1004: Wes Moore: The System Doesn't Work for a Lot of People
Army veterans, people and just military veterans, people who have done more to serve this country than they ever have. or ever would. And these are the people that they're going after.