Politics

Wes Moore dives into 2028 race in South Carolina

Published

1 year ago

May 31, 2025

COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA — Wes Moore made an early and urgent appeal Friday to one of the nation’s most important Democratic constituencies.

The first-term governor of Maryland said Democrats must adapt and change to counter President Donald Trump and improve life for the middle class if they have any hope of returning to power.

“Gone are the days when we are the party of bureaucracy, multi-year studies, panels, and college debate club rules,” Moore said in a speech before party insiders at the South Carolina Democrats Blue Palmetto Dinner. “We must be the party of action.”

South Carolina has a track record of vaulting Democratic primary winners to the White House, and Moore’s premium speaking slot before the state’s well-connected party leaders does little to tamp down speculation he’s kicking the tires on an upcoming presidential bid.

In a state where Donald Trump cruised to an 18-point victory nearly seven months ago, Moore said Democrats must also take cues from an unlikely instructor: the president himself.

“Urgency is the instrument of change. And do you know who understands that really well? Donald Trump,” Moore said. “I want to be clear: We can — and we must — condemn Donald Trump’s reckless actions. But we would also be foolish not to learn from his impatience.”

Moore talked about his roots in Charleston, where his grandfather was born, his Army service and record on crime and job creation in Maryland. He also spoke about the perilous times the country faces, and told the crowd that he is on a “mission” to help deliver adequate health care and livable wages for those who need them.

It’s a vision Moore sought to contrast with the “reckless actions” of Trump.

Moore, 46, is seen as one of the party’s most promising young stars and has caught the attention of Hollywood icon and Democratic megadonor George Clooney. While many Democrats are eager to turn the page after difficult electoral losses last cycle, the governor told the party faithful that mustering up the courage to fight can’t wait until the next presidential cycle.

“Anyone who is talking about 2028 does not understand the urgency of 2025,” Moore said.

Earlier on Friday, Moore toured the Scout Motors Production Facility in nearby Blythewood and planned to attend a campaign-style fish fry after the dinner — making his visit seem even more like a tryout for 2028.

Moore, Maryland’s first — and currently the nation’s only — Black governor has drawn the ire of a handful of Democrats back home and in South Carolina over his veto of a reparations bill passed by the state legislature. The measure called for the study of historic race-based inequality in the state.

At least one South Carolina lawmaker, state Rep. John King, called for Moore to be disinvited from the gala.

“The governor’s veto doesn’t just affect Maryland,” said King, who boycotted the dinner. “It echoes in every state where Black lawmakers are already working uphill. It makes our jobs harder, and that’s something we can’t afford to ignore.”

The issue of reparations remains politically divisive, with a 2022 Pew Research Center survey showing that 77 percent of African Americans supported them, while less than 20 percent of white respondents did.

In the governor’s veto letter he suggested that with economic headwinds facing his state, it is an inopportune time to fund “another study.”

Moore has also followed other Democrats thought to be eyeing White House runs by sitting for more podcast interviews.

This includes a recent appearance on “The Breakfast Club” co-hosted by Charlamagne tha God and Kara Swisher’s podcast to talk about DOGE cuts and impact to his state. He recently traveled to Georgia, a key swing state, to record an episode of a podcast hosted by Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens and taped a hoops workout with basketball shooting coach and influencer Chris Matthews.

A person familiar with Moore’s schedule said he’s limiting the number of out-of-state invites he is accepting to focus on his role in Maryland. But the person stressed he plans to hit the campaign trail in Virginia and New Jersey — both of which hold statewide elections this fall.

Politics

‘Don’t count on me to say bad words’

Published

18 minutes ago

June 21, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

The French minister for sports, Marina Ferrari, was in New York City to support her national team, which will play its second match tomorrow against Iraq. On Monday, she dropped by the French consulate across from Central Park for an event organized by Business France to discuss the opportunities this year’s three-country World Cup represents for French and American companies.

Panelists included French Football Federation President Philippe Diallo, New York City Economic Development Corporation interim CEO Jeanny Pak and representatives from the NFL and the New Orleans Saints, which are playing the first ever professional (American) football game in France this fall at a stadium in the Paris suburbs.

In prepared remarks, Ferrari talked about Franco-American cooperation, not just for major sporting events, but also for America’s 250th anniversary.

“France will be, as it always has been, at your side,” she said.

In an interview afterwards, Ferrari answered questions in English about politically outspoken French footballers, Qatari influence in French sports and the beautiful game being divided into quarters by TV commercials during World Cup “hydration breaks.”

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

What do you think of football becoming a four-quarter sport instead of a sport of halves? Are the Europeans concerned that this World Cup has made it into a four-quarter sport?

In France, we have been working with the broadcaster and they took the engagement not to put advertising during those pauses. For us, it’s important. When we organize in the future such a competition — with the weather and with the climate change — we will have to adapt the competition. So I understand clearly why those times now exist, but in France we take care about not pushing so much advertising during this time.

You talked about sports uniting. What do you think of Kylian Mbappé and others on the team taking stances against the far right?

I think a player is a citizen like anyone, so they can express their feelings, their political views, or their opinions. It is not forbidden — but, while playing, stop when you are wearing the shirt of France. But I think they are free to do that.

Paris 2024 was such a successful Olympics. What have you talked to Americans about to pull off a World Cup and an Olympics? And how are you meeting that same level for the Winter Olympics in 2030?

I think that we’ve got to think together about the future of these Olympic Games in winter, because you know, with the climate change, having snow in the future is more and more uncertain. So we’ve got to think, how do we produce snow in the future without taking water from the consumption of the citizens. So we have a lot to do on that, because in the future I think that only a few countries will be able to organize again [Winter] Olympics and Paralympics, so we’ve got really to create a new model, a sober model for the future and for the next generation.

Are you concerned about Qatari dominance of French domestic football, given the country’s sovereign wealth funds ownership of champion club Paris Saint-Germain?

We are proud of having Paris Saint Germain. I hear this bad buzz, blah blah blah, the investors, etc. I think we are lucky to have such a club, so don’t count on me to say bad words.