Democratic Maryland Gov Wes Moore praises Trump Accounts as ‘smart policy’

Maryland Democratic Gov. Wes Moore praised President Donald Trump's new child investment accounts during a Tuesday interview, saying the policy could help address child poverty and the racial wealth gap even as he sharply criticized other parts of Trump's agenda.

Moore credited the administration for enacting a policy he compared to baby bonds while appearing on "The Clay Cane Show" podcast. 

"I will give this administration credit for this, is that we’ve had Democratic presidents and Republican presidents who have not been able to get this done, and it actually got done," Moore said. "So I actually, this is actually a smart policy."

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Moore said the accounts resembled baby bonds, a policy Democrats and progressive advocates have long pushed as a way to help children build wealth over time.

"I’m so with you because, honestly, it’s actually a good idea," Moore said. "And you know what it is, frankly? It’s essentially the same thing that we’ve been advocating for for a decade, which is like baby bonds."

He said the policy could give children a financial asset that grows as they get older.

"One of the fastest ways that you can address both child poverty and the racial wealth gap is actually baby bonds, by giving children a chance to be able to have something that can grow and grow in maturity, that can then give them an opportunity to have a measure of economic mobility and sustainable economic mobility," Moore said.

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The Maryland governor made clear that his praise was limited to the savings accounts, saying he objected to other provisions in the "Big Beautiful Bill" — also known as H.R. 1 — that Republicans passed in Congress last year to implement much of Trump's agenda. 

"I still have a lot of other issues with a lot of things that were in H.R. 1, like the fact that we gave tax cuts to billionaires, the fact that we gave tax breaks for people who own private planes," Moore said.

He added the accounts themselves were "good things for kids" but argued that other provisions in the law would hurt efforts to close the racial wealth gap.

"Even though these savings accounts are good things for kids, if you look at the other policies that came in under H.R. 1, we have moved the ball significantly backwards in an attempt to be able to address the racial wealth gap," Moore said.

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When Cane suggested baby bond proposals could sound like socialism, Moore rejected that framing and said the idea was about making capitalism work more broadly.

"It’s just saying how can you have a capitalistic system that works for everybody," Moore said. "I believe that capitalism has been a remarkable engine, and I believe that if the goal that I have, I want to create pathways to work, wages, wealth ... I believe that capitalism is the best vehicle to help us to be able to do that, but not when it’s corrupted."

He argued that the Trump Accounts would allow children to benefit from the stock market's growth.

"The savings account is a way for young people, for children, for babies, to be able to benefit from the rise in the stock market," he said.

Moore said he would work with Trump when he believed the administration was helping Maryland residents, but would oppose policies he believed hurt the state.

"I will work with anyone, but I will bow to no one," he declared.

The IRS said Trump Accounts are for children under 18 with valid Social Security numbers and include a $1,000 pilot contribution for U.S. citizen children born between Jan. 1, 2025, and Dec. 31, 2028.

The White House said contributions to Trump Accounts began July 4, 2026, and that families and others can contribute up to $5,000 annually. The White House has said the accounts will be invested in broad stock-market index funds and generally cannot be withdrawn before the child turns 18.