A Democratic governor fact-checked Donald Trump after the president tried to blame him for the massive sewage leak affecting the Potomac River.
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, 47, hit back after Trump, 79, announced on Monday that the federal government would step in to contain a major sewer pipe collapse in January that sent millions of gallons of wastewater into the Potomac River—all while pinning the blame on Democrats.
“There is a massive Ecological Disaster unfolding in the Potomac River as a result of the Gross Mismanagement of Local Democrat Leaders, particularly, Governor Wes Moore, of Maryland,” Trump wrote in a lengthy Truth Social post.
“A sewer line breach in Maryland has caused millions of gallons of raw sewage to be dumped directly into the Potomac River, a result of incompetent Local and State Management of Essential Waste Management Systems,” he continued. “It is clear Local Authorities cannot adequately handle this calamity.”
Trump ordered federal authorities, including the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which his administration seeks to downsize, to provide the necessary direction and support “to protect the Potomac, the Water Supply in the Capital Region, and our treasured National Resources in our Nation’s Capital City,” adding that “The Federal Government has no choice, but to step in.”
The sewage leak began in January after the collapse of the Potomac Interceptor, a sewage system that carries about 60 million gallons of wastewater daily. The University of Maryland has described it as “one of the largest sewage spills in U.S. history.”
The Department of Energy and Environment assured the public that drinking water in Washington, D.C., remains safe and unaffected by the leak, though it advised “continued precautions and avoiding contact with the Potomac River.”
The DOEE’s own website indicates that the D.C. Department of Energy and Environment and D.C. Water are responsible for the leak—a point that Moore’s team made sure to emphasize.
“The President has his facts wrong—again,” Moore’s spokesperson, Ammar Moussa, said in a statement. “Since the last century, the federal government has been responsible for the Potomac Interceptor, which is the origin of the sewage leak.”
Moussa pointed out that the Environmental Protection Agency declined to participate in a major hearing about the spill cleanup last Friday.
“Apparently the Trump administration hadn’t gotten the memo that they’re actually supposed to be in charge here,” he said. “Where the president has failed to act, Maryland has played its part to protect residents, protect drinking water, and ensure accountability. Maryland officials were on site within hours of the leak to do our part to coordinate the response, and ensure the public was aware and protected.”
It’s not the first time that Trump has butted heads with Moore.
Earlier this month, the president bragged that he disinvited Moore from the annual National Governors Association dinner, a traditionally bipartisan event. Trump said the “foul mouthed Governor of Maryland” was “not worthy of being there,” while Moore said that, as the sole Black governor, he “can’t ignore that being singled out for exclusion from this bipartisan tradition carries an added weight.”
