TRUMP SAYS HE WILL ORDER TROOPS TO B’MORE, BUT MAYBE NOT: President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he will order federal troops to Baltimore to fight crime, after weeks of flirting with the idea and sparring publicly with Gov. Wes Moore over the issue. Carson Swick/The Baltimore Sun.
- Trump intimated Tuesday he may direct troops to Baltimore after saying they were “going in” to Chicago as part of his crime-fighting plan. It’s unclear if Trump actually meant federal intervention in Baltimore was imminent — his remarks were meandering and the White House refused to clarify the president’s intentions. Lee O. Sanderlin, Pamela Wood, Brenda Wintrode and Emily Opilo/The Baltimore Banner.
- However, also on Tuesday, a federal judge in California ruled that Trump’s move to send National Guard troops and U.S. Marines to quell immigration protests in Los Angeles this summer violated a federal law against military members conducting domestic law enforcement. Trump has threatened to send troops into Chicago and Baltimore. But both Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore have vowed to fight it. Jacob Fischler/Maryland Matters.
- That judge’s ruling that the Trump administration’s deployment of National Guard troops was illegal in Los Angeles may have repercussions for Baltimore. Scott Maucione/WYPR-FM.
WIND DEVELOPER WILL GO AHEAD WITH SPARROWS POINT STEEL PLANT: The developer of a planned Maryland offshore wind farm insisted Tuesday that a related steel manufacturing facility in Sparrows Point will move forward, despite the federal government withdrawing a $47.4 million grant for the project last week. Christine Condon/Maryland Matters.
980 STATE EMPLOYEES APPLY FOR BUYOUT: Nearly 1,000 state employees are waiting to learn if they will be allowed to quit their jobs under a voluntary separation that aims to shrink the size of state government and cut expenses. Of the thousands who were notified of the early out program in July, a total of 980 employees had applied by the Aug. 4 deadline, state officials said. Lauren Lifke/Maryland Matters.
MARYLAND JOINS 21 STATES, DC SUPPORTING FEDERAL LABOR UNIONS: Maryland joined 21 states and the District of Columbia on a brief in support of federal labor unions who are suing to block President Donald Trump’s executive order canceling collective bargaining agreements with dozens of federal offices. William Ford/Maryland Matters.
BOATGATE: BRIT TABLOID GOES WILD AS MOORES CELEBRATE WIFE’s 50th IN ITALY: Gov. Wes Moore was photographed this weekend on actor and Democratic Party megadonor George Clooney’s boat in Italy, The Daily Mail reported Monday. Asked about the trip, Moore’s office responded: “The Governor paid for a trip to celebrate his wife’s 50th birthday.” Carson Swick/The Baltimore Sun.
- While the photo wasn’t available for viewing, the story, which was difficult to locate in the British paper, is headlined “EXCLUSIVE: Damning photos burn top Dem’s 2028 plans to the ground as he’s busted half-naked on kingmaker George Clooney’s luxury yacht in ITALY… while his ‘hellhole’ state faces crime apocalypse.” Natasha Anderson/The Daily Mail.
- Moore did not temporarily leave Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller in charge while he vacationed, according to the governor’s office. “The governor was not temporarily unable to perform his duties and therefore did not appoint the lieutenant governor to serve as acting governor in his stead,” his spokesman said. Bryan Sears/Maryland Matters.
- The spokesman confirmed that the Moores stayed at Clooney’s home and that they were accompanied by Maryland State Police troopers, who protect the governor both in Maryland and when he travels. Pamela Wood/The Baltimore Banner.
- Editor’s note: The yacht appears to be a small motorized boat.
COMMENTARY: TRUMP SUIT AGAINST JUDGES WAS A BRUSHBACK PITCH: A brushback pitch, according to the Baseball Reference site, “is a pitch thrown close enough to the batter to intimidate him.” That’s a fair description of the lawsuit the Trump administration aimed at all 15 of the federal district court judges in Maryland in their personal, not just official, capacities over an obscure court rule in deportation cases. Federal Judge Thomas Cullen has now dismissed what he deemed this “novel and potentially calamitous” suit, but its significance should not pass unnoted. The case isn’t over. Walter Olson/The Cato Institute.
BA CO VOTERS TO DECIDE ON PROCESS FOR FUTURE IG APPOINTMENTS: Baltimore County voters will decide whether the county’s inspector general should be selected by an independent appointment board in the future. The Baltimore County Council unanimously approved a charter amendment Monday evening that would create a seven-member panel to appoint or reappoint an inspector general to the role. Natalie Jones/The Baltimore Sun.
