Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) has apologized for incorrectly stating on a White House application more than a decade ago that he was a Bronze Star recipient.
Moore, a rising star in the Democratic Party, served in the Army Reserve between 1996 and 2014. He was deployed to Afghanistan in August 2005 through March 2006.
Though he has won multiple awards for his service, including the National Defense Service Medal, he stated on a 2006 application for the White House Fellowship that his service won him the award of a Bronze Star.
“For my work, the 82nd Airborne Division have awarded me the Bronze Star Medal and the Combat Action Badge,” Moore wrote on his application, according to documents obtained and published Thursday by The New York Times.
The Bronze Star is awarded to service members who perform “acts of heroism in ground combat,” according to the Air Force’s Personnel Center.
But Moore never actually was awarded the prestigious award, according to the Times investigation.
In a statement Thursday, Moore said he made an “honest mistake” in 2006 when he wrote on his application for the White House Fellowship that he had won the prestigious military award.
“While serving overseas with the Army, I was encouraged to fill out an application for the White House Fellowship by my deputy brigade commander,” Moore said. “In fact, he helped me edit it before I sent it in. At the time, he had recommended me for the Bronze Star. He told me to include the Bronze Star award on my application after confirming with two other senior-level officers that they had also signed off on the commendation.”
Hellbound and Down 