Gov. Wes Moore criticizes Trump's FBI HQ plan, says Maryland site 'build ready'

Carson Swick, Baltimore Sun on Mar 15, 2025

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BALTIMORE — Maryland Gov. Wes Moore is no fan of President Donald Trump’s plan to build the new FBI headquarters in Washington, D.C ., instead of in his state.

In a social media post Saturday, Moore touted the 61-acre site promised to Greenbelt in 2023 as “build ready” and criticized Trump for “turning this into a partisan issue.”

“The Maryland site for the FBI’s new HQ is build ready, and best meets the needs of the FBI. That’s why we won 4 out of the 5 selection criteria,” Moore wrote on X. “Turning this into a partisan issue makes our country less safe and harms the FBI’s mission of protecting Americans at home and abroad.”

According to a Moore statement from 2023, the Greenbelt FBI headquarters would bring “more than 7,500 jobs” to Maryland.

In justifying his D.C. headquarters plan, Trump called Maryland a “liberal state” and suggested a Washington location would allow the FBI to be closer to the Department of Justice and other federal law enforcement agencies. The president said FBI Director Kash Patel advised him the agency could use a former Department of Commerce building in the nation’s capital as its headquarters.

The General Services Administration considered three total sites for the new FBI headquarters: Greenbelt and Landover in Maryland, as well as Springfield, Virginia. The agency also planned to find a separate Washington location to host 750 to 1,000 FBI personnel.

While the GSA noted Landover was closer to other federal law enforcement buildings, Greenbelt’s access to public transit like the Washington Metro gave it the edge. Trump said Friday that the commute between Greenbelt and downtown Washington could take three hours, but both the Metro website and Google Maps estimate the trip at 35 minutes.

Maryland Sen. Angela Alsobrooks and members of the state’s congressional delegation have also opposed Trump’s plan to build the new FBI headquarters in Washington.