Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, wife photographed on George Clooney's boat in Italy

Carson Swick, Baltimore Sun on Sep 2, 2025

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Maryland Gov. Wes Moore was photographed this weekend on actor and Democratic Party megadonor George Clooney’s boat in Italy, The Daily Mail reported Monday.

The photos show Moore with his wife, Maryland first lady Dawn Moore, on deck as the boat powers through Lake Como, where Clooney and wife Amal own a $100 million waterfront villa and spend several months each summer. The small vessel sports an Italian maritime civil ensign flag and appears to be the same boat that hosted Barack and Michelle Obama, as well as WWE star Stacy Keibler — a Maryland native and former girlfriend of Clooney.

The Daily Mail reported that, while the Clooneys were out of town, the Moores had “all the luxuries of the more-than $100 million Villa Oleandra estate and its service staff at their disposal.”

Asked about the purpose of the trip, Moore’s office responded: “The Governor paid for a trip to celebrate his wife’s 50th birthday.” A state official characterized the governor’s trip as “personal vacation to a personal friend’s residence,” referring to George Clooney as the “personal friend.”

Though Moore has publicly said he’s “not running for president” in 2028, Clooney has sung the governor’s praises. In April, the actor said Democrats could “get behind” Moore for president and described him as “levitating above” the rest of the potential field.

Moore vs. Trump

The governor’s Italian getaway comes as his national profile rises amid an ongoing public feud with President Donald Trump over crime in Baltimore.

In recent weeks, Trump has threatened to deploy federal troops to Baltimore and rebuffed the governor’s invitation to walk through the city with leaders like Moore and Mayor Brandon Scott. The president has described Baltimore as a “hellhole” and a “horrible, horrible deathbed” in response.

Moore and Scott have credited their focus on guns and community partnerships with Baltimore’s declining violent crime rates. Baltimore City State’s Attorney Ivan Bates says his more aggressive prosecution of “repeat violent offenders” has just as much to do with the improvements.

In a social media post Tuesday, Trump White House deputy press secretary Abigail Jackson ripped Moore for traveling to Italy and dubbed him “Wes (wannabe President) Moore.”

“The crime crisis ravaging your city is no problem at all when you can jet off to an Italy yacht vacation,” Jackson wrote on X. “Unfortunately for residents of Baltimore, this isn’t their reality.”

Republican state Sen. Justin Ready, who represents Carroll and Frederick counties, poked fun at Moore’s trip by posting a photo of some hot dogs on a grill from his own Labor Day celebration.

“Well it wasn’t a European yacht ride but cooking outdoors while camping was a pretty good way to spend Labor Day weekend!” Ready wrote on X.

Striking a similar tone Tuesday, the conservative-leaning “No Moore” X account asked: “Where’s Wes?”

“@GovWesMoore ran off to Lake Como, Italy, to party with George Clooney while crime continues in Baltimore and his tax and fee hikes crush Marylanders,” a post from the group reads. “He doesn’t care about you, just his next job promotion.”

Lake Como is known as an exclusive vacation spot for top celebrities and other very wealthy people. Besides Clooney, other celebrities such as Madonna, Sylvester Stallone and Donatella Versace own or have owned properties in the area.

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