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Columbus, OH – The first full week of the general election is drawing to a close, and multiple “dubious claims” about Bernie Moreno’s personal story are already surfacing. Whether it’s his lies about escaping socialism that “do not withstand historical scrutiny,” or his claims he built his business without “handouts” despite receiving an insider deal, Moreno has a lot of questions to answer as it becomes clear that he is only out for himself.

NEED-TO-KNOW THIS WEEK:

• Bernie Moreno was caught lying about “escaping” socialism – his claims “do not withstand historical scrutiny.”

• Bernie Moreno has centered his candidacy on claims he built his car dealership business “all on his own” and without “handouts” – but in reality, he received an insider deal that allowed him to purchase it at a “dramatically reduced price.”

• As the Supreme Court began oral arguments on the abortion medication mifepristone, Ohioans should know Moreno is “absolute pro-life, no exceptions.” 

🔥 PANTS ON FIRE: Bernie Moreno was caught lying about “escaping” socialism after relying on “dubious” claims that he came to the United States from Colombia to “form a central part of [his] campaign message.” The truth? Moreno’s claims “do not withstand historical scrutiny.” Read what they’re saying:

• The Guardian: “Bernie Moreno…says his family fled socialism when they came to the US from Colombia in 1971, when he was four years old. Though such statements formed a central part of Moreno’s campaign message…they do not withstand historical scrutiny.”

• Politico: “Bernie Moreno’s family history is under scrutiny.” 

• Cleveland.com: “Although GOP Senate candidate Bernie Moreno says his family fled socialism when it came to the US from Colombia in 1971, the first leftwing Colombian government in modern times didn’t come into power until 2022, the Guardian reports.” 

• Roll Call: “Bernie Moreno, the Republican nominee in Ohio’s hotly contested Senate race, has long said his family fled socialist Colombia and settled in the United States. But The Guardian examined Moreno’s claim and found that the dates don’t add up.” 

• Raw Story: “Bernie Moreno…has long intimated that his family decided to immigrate to America from their native Colombia to escape the economic landscape created by ‘socialism.’[…] However…at the time Moreno’s family left Colombia in the early 1970s, there was nothing at all resembling socialism running the country.”

🤥 ANOTHER PINOCCHIO FOR MORENO: Bernie Moreno claims he built his car dealership business “all on his own” and without “handouts” – but in reality, Moreno received an insider deal on his first dealership after Mercedes-Benz strong-armed the owner into selling it to him at a “dramatically reduced price.”

❌ ABORTION BAN BERNIE: As the Supreme Court began arguments in the mifepristone case this week, here’s your reminder that Bernie Moreno supports a national abortion ban and would overturn the will of Ohioans. Moreno has said he is “100% pro-life with no exceptions” and that he is “absolute pro-life, no exceptions,” and he opposed Ohio’s November Issue 1 and celebrated the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Moreno has made it clear he puts himself first – not the overwhelming majority of Ohioans who voted to protect abortion rights. 

🩺 BERNI-ELIMINATE OHIOANS’ HEALTHCARE: This week marked the 14th anniversary of the Affordable Care Act – but Bernie Moreno would vote to eliminate the ACA and strip healthcare from Ohioans. Moreno “expressed opposition to the Affordable Care Act,” which if eliminated would put 857,000 Ohioans at risk of losing their coverage and put 2 million Ohioans with a preexisting condition at risk of being denied healthcare and facing higher costs. 

 🗞️ WHAT OHIOANS ARE READING / WATCHING:

• The Guardian: “[Moreno] has made dubious claims in his campaign”

• WCPN: “Ohio Democrats have been pretty aggressive… and so I think Democrats do intend to use the baggage they see Moreno carries.” 

• Business Insider: “Moreno, an immigrant from Colombia, has frequently touted… his ability to do it all on his own […] yet when Moreno bought his first car dealership in 2005, he got some extra help”

• Washington Post:  “Moreno himself is an untested candidate…He has some potential skeletons in his closet.”

🐤 TWEET OF THE WEEK: 

🎶 CODA: “[Moreno is] a low-character candidate whose closet might be filled with enough skeletons to erode the possibility of victory.” – Brent Larkin, Cleveland.com

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The Guardian: Moreno “Has Made Dubious Claims In His Campaign”

Columbus, OH – Bernie Moreno has relied on “dubious” claims that he came to the United States from Colombia to “escape” socialism to “form a central part of [his] campaign message,” but new reporting today finds that Moreno is lying and his statements “do not withstand historical scrutiny.”

Read more: 

The Guardian: Bernie Moreno says he fled socialism in Colombia for the US in 1971. What does history say?

Martin Pengelly 

March 28, 2024

• Bernie Moreno, the Republican candidate for US Senate in Ohio who expected to mount a stern challenge to Sherrod Brown, the incumbent leftwing Democrat, says his family fled socialism when they came to the US from Colombia in 1971, when he was four years old.

• Though such statements formed a central part of Moreno’s campaign message on his way to securing the Republican nomination…they do not withstand historical scrutiny.

• In an interview in 2020, about his success as a car dealer in Ohio, Moreno described himself as “somebody who moved to this country a long time ago to escape what happens in most South American countries, which is socialism and the absolute prison of those ideas”.

• In 2021, as Moreno moved into national politics with a first run for a Senate nomination, the Cleveland Plain Dealer said he “says he came to the United States as a child with his mother and siblings to flee socialism in their native Colombia. He believes that same ideology is rising in the United States, and he wants to fight back.”

• But when Moreno was born, on 14 February 1967, Colombia was nine years into the 16-year period of National Front government, in which conservative and liberal parties alternated being in power as a way to avoid violence between the two factions.

• Moreno, however, has described an early childhood far removed from such worries.

• By his own description, his father was secretary of health under Misael Pastrana, a conservative and the last National Front president between 1970 and 1974.

• “We had a very, very, very, very incredible lifestyle in Colombia,” Moreno said in 2019, at a business event in Cleveland, adding that his mother moved the family to the US – initially against his father’s wishes – because she “didn’t want us to be raised as pampered indoor cats.”

• In 2021, writing in the Toledo Blade, he said: “I was born in South America, surrounded by socialist ideology.”

• The same year, Moreno told the Landscape, a Cleveland podcast: “I think the [US is] going off [in] a very dangerous direction. It’s a direction I recognise. I grew up surrounded by socialist ideology, whether it’s Venezuela or Cuba [or] now Peru, and I know where this movie ends.”

• And in a campaign ad, also from 2021, Moreno said: “I came from a country surrounded by the ideology of radicals like Fidel Castro and Che Guevara…”

• Such claims also shake under scrutiny.

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New Report Finds Moreno’s Claims That He Built His Business “All On His Own” Just Aren’t True

Columbus, OH – New reporting today shows Bernie Moreno is lying about his business origin story by claiming he built his car dealership business “all on his own” and going out of his way to say he did so without “handouts.” In reality, Moreno received an insider and special deal on his first dealership after Mercedes-Benz strong-armed the owner into selling it to him at a “dramatically reduced price.” 

Questions Bernie Moreno needs to answer about lying about his business origin story:

1. Why did you claim you never took handouts when new reporting shows you got your dealership at a steep discount?
2. Did your campaign refuse to provide information about the 2005 sale because it shows you are lying when you say you “didn’t take handouts” and will you make documents around the deal available?
3. Are there any other details about your time in business that you wish to clarify for the people of Ohio?

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As SCOTUS Begins Oral Arguments on Mifepristone Case, Ohioans Should Know Moreno Is “Absolute Pro-Life, No Exceptions”

Columbus, OH – As the Supreme Court begins oral arguments today on the abortion medication mifepristone, Ohioans should know that Bernie Moreno supports a national abortion ban without exceptions and would overturn the will of the majority of Ohioans who voted to protect reproductive rights last November.

“Bernie Moreno supports a national abortion ban that would overturn the will of Ohioans who voted to protect reproductive rights last year. Moreno puts himself first, not Ohioans,” said ODP spokesperson Katie Smith. 

Reminder of Moreno’s on-the-record support for a national abortion ban: 

• Moreno supports a national abortion ban that would overturn the will of Ohioans. Moreno has said he is “100% pro-life with no exceptions” and that he is “absolute pro-life, no exceptions.”

• Moreno opposed Ohio’s November Issue 1, which enshrined reproductive rights into the state constitution and included protections for IVF. Moreno has called attacks on IVF a “manufactured issue” and opposes federal protections for IVF.

• Moreno celebrated the overturning of Roe v. Wade, which has led to attacks on women’s reproductive healthcare like access to the abortion pill mifepristone. Mifepristone is unavailable in drugstores in Ohio due to Ohio’s restrictive abortion laws, which Moreno supported through his opposition to Issue 1.

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Columbus, OH – Today, the Ohio Democratic Party went live with its application to serve as an either an at-large delegate or Party Leader/Elected Official Delegate (PLEO) to the 2024 Democratic National Convention. Any Ohio Democrat can apply to serve as an at-large delegate, while Democratic public and elected officials can apply to serve as a PLEO delegate. The Ohio Democratic Party Executive Committee will elect a total of 27 at-large delegates and 17 PLEO delegates. 

Ohio Democrats can visit ohiodems.org/convention to learn more about the process of running for DNC delegate and fill out and submit their declaration of candidacy forms for the 2024 convention. Applications are due by Saturday, May 4, 2024 at 4 pm. 

“Ohio Democrats are excited to head to Chicago next August, mark the progress we’ve made over the last four years and look ahead to the work that remains to move our state and country forward. We’re ready to elect a broad, diverse coalition of delegates to Chicago and show off our Ohio pride at the 2024 Democratic National Convention,” said Ohio Democratic Party Chair Elizabeth Walters. 

Ohio Democrats will send a total of 143 delegates to the Democratic National Convention. The convention will take place in Chicago from August 19 – 22, 2024. 

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