The Army officer who supervised Maryland Gov. Wes Moore every day in Afghanistan says Moore never led troops in combat, because his job was staff work at headquarters, not fighting.
Story Snapshot
- Retired Lt. Col. James “Jamie” Gottschling was Moore’s direct boss in Afghanistan in 2005 and 2006.
- He says Moore worked on information operations, had no troops assigned to him and never used a weapons system.
- Moore has said for years that he “led soldiers into combat in Afghanistan.”
- Moore’s office has not answered requests for comment on the new account.
- Army records found by a Baltimore TV station show Moore in Afghanistan for about seven months; he has said in interviews that he served 10 to 13 months.
The Supervisor Speaks Out
In an interview published Sunday, November 8, Gottschling said it is “disingenuous to say that you led paratroopers in combat.” His reason is simple: Moore’s job in Afghanistan was not a fighting job. According to Gottschling, Moore worked on the brigade staff doing information operations, which means shaping the public message and helping local officials tell their side of the story. Reporters who summed up his account called Moore’s war stories “unequivocally false.”
Gottschling is not a random critic. He was a major at the time and served as fire support coordinator, the officer who plans artillery and air strikes, for the 1st Brigade of the 82nd Airborne Division at Forward Operating Base Salerno. He was Moore’s immediate supervisor and his rater, the officer who writes the formal job review. He saw Moore’s work every day.
What the Officer Says Moore Did and Did Not Do
Gottschling gave Moore credit for his real work. “His service in Afghanistan was good. He was a valued member of the brigade staff,” he said. He added that Moore “did a really good job trying to train the Afghans how to kind of sell their own story.”
But he drew a hard line on the combat claims. “He didn’t have any troops assigned to him,” Gottschling said. Asked if Moore fired his weapon in Afghanistan, he said, “Not to my knowledge.” He also said Moore “wasn’t assigned to a parachutist position and didn’t earn jump pay, so therefore, he’s not a paratrooper.” His advice to the governor was two words: “Be honest.”
What Moore Has Claimed
Moore, a Democrat, was re-elected governor on Tuesday, November 3, and his Army service has been a key part of his public story. In a 2022 social media post, he wrote that he “led soldiers into combat in Afghanistan.” On a 2021 podcast, he said he “led a group of paratroopers.” In his 2015 book, The Work, he wrote of “the opportunity to lead soldiers in combat.”
Army records tell a smaller story, according to a yearlong investigation by a Baltimore TV station. They show Moore in Afghanistan from August 15, 2005, to March 14, 2006, about seven months, including roughly a month home on emergency leave. Moore has said in interviews that he served 10 to 13 months. His Combat Action Badge, an award for coming under enemy fire, came from a rocket attack on his base on December 9, 2005. No one was hurt. The investigators found no after-action reports, which are the Army’s official write-ups of a fight, and no witnesses to back up the firefights Moore has described.
Moore’s Response
Moore’s office did not respond to requests for comment on Gottschling’s account, and it did not accept an offer for the governor to sit down and dispute it. In past interviews, Moore has said he was never ordered to lead offensive missions but that he faced real danger. “There’s maybe ways I could have articulated things differently, but it still doesn’t take away from what we experienced,” he said in June. In a national TV interview, he called the attacks on his record “deeply slanderous and disrespectful.”
In June, when a reporter pressed his office on the combat claims, a spokesperson asked, “What is the difference between these two things?” The spokesperson also asked whether enemy fire aimed at the governor does not count as combat.
The Bronze Star Question
This is not the first time Moore’s record has drawn fire. On a 2006 White House Fellowship application, he listed a Bronze Star he had not received. In 2024, he called it “an honest mistake” and said, “I take responsibility for it.” He was later given the Bronze Star in a private ceremony in December 2024. Gottschling said he was not consulted on that award and would not have agreed to it. He said Moore’s end-of-tour award was the Army Commendation Medal, a lesser honor.
Why This Matters
No one disputes that Moore served in a war zone, and his supervisor says that service was good. The fight is over the words Moore chose. Leading soldiers in combat means taking men into battle and bringing them home. Working on a headquarters staff while rockets fall on the base is real service, but it is not the same thing. Veterans know the difference, and many voters expect a governor to know it too. As Gottschling put it, “It’s really the embellishment.”
Sources:
foxbaltimore.com, foxbaltimore.com, freebeacon.com, thebaltimorebanner.com, thebanner.com
