Maryland’s Democratic Governor sidestepped a probing question from a CNN anchor regarding newfound evidence that seems to challenge the authenticity of a narrative he’s shared about his family being ‘forced’ into exile abroad by the Ku Klux Klan.

A report from the conservative Washington Free Beacon claims the tale involving Governor Wes Moore’s maternal grandfather, James Joshua Thomas, and great-grandfather, Rev. Josiah Johnson Thomas, dating back to the 1920s, is inaccurate.

Historical documents from the Protestant Episcopal Church in Pineville, South Carolina, where the family resided, along with contemporary accounts, suggest their departure was, in fact, a routine professional relocation.

The records reportedly indicate that the family relocated after Rev. Thomas was assigned to fill in for a deceased pastor in Jamaica, as noted by the Free Beacon.

During an episode of The Arena on Wednesday, Gov. Moore seemed to dodge Kasie Hunt’s inquiry about the reported evidence. The anchor asked if church records showing a voluntary departure to replace a pastor who had passed away were incorrect.

Specifically, Hunt had asked: ‘And those church records that show that one of your family members left voluntarily to take over for someone who had passed away, those records are wrong?’

A curt Moore replied: ‘They should really ask the Ku Klux Klan about what their activities were during the 1920s.’

Hunt initially brought up the matter two minutes earlier. The moment was clipped and reshared by the Free Beacon reporter who penned the piece.

Maryland Governor Wes Moore on Wednesday’s edition of The Arena on CNN, where he was asked about the veracity of a story he’s told about his family leaving the country in the 1920s

Moore, 47, is seen being sworn in as Baltimore’s first African-American governor in 2023, with his wife and two kids. The report from the right-leaning Washington Free Beacon insists the story about Moore’s maternal grandfather and great grandfather fleeing racial violence in the US is not true

‘You say you are who you are,’ Hunt began, ‘The Free Beacon recently wrote about a story that you often tell about your great-grandfather and your family, and how and why they left the United States. 

‘They say that the story is – they report – they look at church records, they say the story is not true, that the Ku Klux Klan did not force your family to leave, your family left voluntarily.

‘Now, you of course have said – and your spokesperson said – “Anyone who wants to question whether terror and intimidation were pervasive in that era should open a history book. Reach out to the KKK and ask what they were up to in South Carolina in the 1920s.”

‘Fair enough,’ Hunt said of the official statement.

‘I think my question to you is, is there any truth to what The Free Beacon has written here?’ she went on to ask.

‘There is no truth to what a right-wing blog writes about me. No. There is not. Because I know my family’s history,’ Moore replied.

He went on to emphasize how his grandfather was a toddler at the time.

‘He still returned to this country. He became the first black minister in the history of the Dutch Reform Church. He died while I was in Afghanistan, fighting for this country. And he had a deep Jamaican accent his entire life. And he’s maybe the most patriotic man I’ve ever met.

Hunt specifically asked: ‘And those church records that show that one of your family members left voluntarily to take over for someone who had passed away, those records are wrong?’ prompting Moore to defer questions to the hate group he says ran his ancestors out

Moore and his children are seen here in 2021, before he was elected governor. He stood by his story about his family’s history in a statement to Fox News

‘And I live through him. He lives through me,’ Moore maintained. 

The 47-year-old then discussed threats both his grandfather and great-grandfather received as trailblazing African-Americans in both the US and overseas.

Hunt, however, was apparently not convinced, and she asked the follow-up.

Moore has repeatedly said his grandfather and great-grandfather fled the country to avoid being killed by the white supremacist group.

Records cited by reporter Andrew Kerr in the Free Beacon’s February 4 report appear to show Thomas had publicly accepted a transfer to a church in Jamaica – where he was originally from –  to replace a pastor who passed away unexpectedly.

The report also cites a Virginia Commonwealth University map of the region and the reach of the Ku Klux Klan, which suggested there was no chapter operating in Pineville at the time.

The publication has since stood by its reporting.

Moore, meanwhile, told Fox News on Thursday that he too stood by his own story.

He added of the Beacon report: ‘It’s hurtful, and it’s offensive.’   

Moore is the first black governor of Maryland in the state’s history. He denied rumors he’s planning a 2028 presidential run back in September.