The Wes Moore "HonestMDDems" Opposition Research Package

Full text made available in a complaint with State Prosecutor, Elections Board

Four months ago, Democratic candidate Wes Moore took the politically unusual step of making the "opposition research" package circulating against him in the Democratic primary a public document. Moore's campaign filed a complaint with the State Board of Election and State Prosecutor against fellow Democratic contender John King. 

Curiously, Moore counsel's complaint contained in full the package of nearly 40 pages of documents that someone using the email HonestmdDems@gmail.com address had been circulating. Among the alleged recipients were Maryland State Education Association board members.

According to the Moore campaign, the King campaign "may be responsible for this smear campaign" for anonymously disseminating "false and disparaging information regarding Wes Moore via electronic mail and social media in an orchestrated attempt to disparage Mr. Moore and damage his candidacy." King denied the charge.

The full text of Moore Counsel Amanda La Forge's 42-page complaint is available here: https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/21579303-wes-moore-complaint-to-osp-sbe-4522

Among the HonestMDDems charges are that Wes Moore falsifies his life story in his book The Other Wes Moore:

"The premises of this book was a description of how Wes Moore, now Democratic: candidate for Governor and the other Wes Moore grew up in similar Baltimore neighborhoods under similar circumstances. Even though they had the same circumstances Wes went on to be a successful Rhodes Scholar and the other Wes Moore went to prison."

However, "Wes did not live in Baltimore until the 2 years he attended John's Hopkins University and did not live in Baltimore until 2006 at the earliest. "And that "his mother was a successful TV producer, writer, journalist, and public relations professional that was able to afford to send multiple children to private school."

Elsewhere, "HonestMdDems" documents a variety of attempts by Moore to reinvent his life story, especially his connections to Baltimore.   Some of HonestMDDems charges are frankly silly, such as Moore’s camouflaging the fact that he was actually born in Takoma Park. More serious may be his filing of official documents that contained false information.