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This Week in #OHGov: Bodyguard Blues & More Clues About Why Ohioans Can’t Trust Ramaswamy

Columbus, Ohio- It was another week to forget for Vivek Ramaswamy. He’s showing Ohioans why they can’t believe a single word he says, from lying about his record on COVID-19 while making more money for himself, to failing to keep Ohio families and their children safe, to ignoring the opioid crisis, and failing to protect their healthcare.

More money, more problems: Reporting from Politico revealed Vivek Ramaswamy’s company Roivant spent $70,000 lobbying the federal government for the development and approval of COVID-19 drugs. Ramaswamy wanted to “segregate” Americans based on immunity status and made more than two billion dollars off of the COVID-19 pandemic. Ohioans can’t believe a word Ramaswamy says after he scrubbed his record on the pandemic and lied to Ohioans all while lining his own pockets.

Bodyguard blues: New reporting from TiffinOhio.net revealed that Vivek Ramaswamy’s campaign continued paying his security firm even after his personal bodyguard was arrested with enough fentanyl to kill 132,000 Ohioans. Ramaswamy giving a pass to criminal drug traffickers isn’t just dangerous; it’s disqualifying.

Start spreading the news: Longtime New Yorker Vivek Ramaswamy had a great time watching the Knicks game from his private jet. Donation records listed Ramaswamy as a New York resident as recently as 2019, and his company’s executives are still based there. He allegedly attempted to celebrate with the Knicks in their locker room following their win over the Cleveland Cavaliers, but was denied in humiliating fashion.

Ramaswamy’s running mate “gave in” on child marriage: Legislation banning child marriage failed to advance in the Ohio Senate thanks to the opposition of Ramaswamy running mate Senate President Rob McColley. After McColley said legislation to end child marriage in Ohio needed “further exploration,” he “gave in” to arguments against the bill made by members of his caucus. Ohio families can’t trust Ramaswamy and McColley to keep their kids safe.

With Friends Like These: Vivek Ramaswamy and his best friend Dr. Oz are both known for their focus on making healthcare more expensive and less accessible for working families. After Ramaswamy called Medicaid and Medicare “mistakes,” Oz called Medicaid expansion, which has allowed millions more hardworking Ohioans to afford health insurance, a “program with great danger.” Does Ramaswamy agree?

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NEW INTERVIEW: Jon Husted Says Iran War Going ‘Very Well’ While Ohioans Get Crushed With Skyrocketing Costs

Husted has voted eight times to back expensive and unnecessary Iran war

COLUMBUS, OHIO — In a new interview this week, Jon Husted doubled down on his support of the Iran war that is crushing Ohioans with skyrocketing food and energy prices. 

  • Husted claimed the military aspect of the war “went very well,” even though the Strait of Hormuz remains shut down and gas prices have soared.
  • Husted admitted the conflict that he has voted to support eight times has caused gas prices in Ohio to skyrocket.
  • Husted refused to answer what his red line would be to support ending the war, including if he supported sending in American ground troops.

Ohio Democratic Party Senior Communications Advisor Tony Wen released the following statement:

“Jon Husted could not be more out of touch with Ohioans who are getting crushed by soaring gas and diesel prices because of the endless war he supports. Instead of actually working to lower costs, Husted is backing more money for war overseas while insulting his constituents and lecturing Ohioans to work harder.”

Husted’s comments continue his long trend of insulting hardworking Ohioans who are getting crushed by soaring costs caused by policies he supports:

  • When asked what he was doing to address rising gas prices for his constituents, Husted responded: “What do you want me to do?” 
  • When a truck driver asked about soaring diesel costs, Husted brushed him off and responded by asking if he was comfortable with Iran being a nuclear power. 
  • When asked about the pain that Ohio families are feeling at the pump, Jon Husted’s campaign “declined to comment.”
  • Husted promised that higher prices would be “returned” as soon as the U.S. was “done” with the war in Iran, even though experts have asserted that gas “won’t return to pre-war levels any time soon.”
  • Jon Husted has voted eight times to continue the war in Iran while costs continue to skyrocket.

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Ohio Democratic Party Chair Kathleen Clyde Issues Statement on Reported FBI Raids on Ohio Voting Rights Organization

COLUMBUS, OH – Ohio Democratic Party Chair Kathleen Clyde issued the following statement on reports of FBI raids on an Ohio voting rights organization:

“The reports of FBI raids involving civil rights leaders and their staff are deeply concerning. Organizations that help eligible Ohioans register to vote and participate in our democracy play an important role in our communities.

“With Election Day approaching, it is critical that eligible voters feel confident that they can register, cast a ballot, and participate in our democratic process without fear or confusion. Ohio’s democracy is strongest when every eligible voter is able to make their voice heard.”

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NEW: Vivek Ramaswamy’s Company Spent Over $70,000 Lobbying the Federal Government for Development & Approval of COVID-19 Drugs

Columbus, Ohio- New reporting from Politico’s Influence newsletter revealed that Vivek Ramaswamy’s company spent more than $70,000 lobbying the federal government for the development and approval of COVID-19 drugs. Federal lobbying records show Ramaswamy’s company spent approximately $50,000 lobbying the National Institutes of Health and the Executive Office of the President as well as approximately $20,000 lobbying Congress.

This new reporting from Politico follows bombshell reporting from the Associated Press that revealed Ramaswamy pushed for a national COVID-19 registry to segregate Americans based on immunity status. Ramaswamy’s company profited over $2.2 billion from the COVID-19 vaccine. He served on Ohio’s COVID-19 response team, then paid a Wikipedia editor to scrub his involvement. 

“Scam artist Vivek Ramaswamy has given Ohioans yet another reason to not believe a word he says,” said Ohio Democratic Party spokeswoman Katie Seewer. “His extreme proposal to ‘segregate’ Americans based on immunity status, his billions in profit from the COVID-19 vaccine, and now his massive investment in lobbying the federal government are all more proof that the only person Vivek Ramaswamy is looking out for is Vivek Ramaswamy.”

READ: FIRST IN PI — RAMASWAMY’S COVID LOBBYING:

  • A biotech company founded by Vivek Ramaswamy spent more than $70,000 in 2020 and 2021 to lobby the federal government for the development and approval of COVID-19 drugs, Jacob reports.
  • Acton’s campaign says Ramaswamy’s rhetoric contradicts his actions as a biotech executive at the time. Democrats have also criticized another one of Ramaswamy’s companies that pushed for a national COVID registry that would have segregated Americans based on COVID-19 vaccine status during the pandemic. Ramaswamy also reportedly paid to have his role on the state’s COVID response team scrubbed from his Wikipedia page.
  • Ramaswamy’s campaign and Roivant didn’t respond to requests for comment.

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SHOCKING REPORT: ‘Top Jon Husted Senate Aide Kept Working for Ohio Lobbying Firm’

COLUMBUS, OHIO — New reporting out today shows that Jon Husted’s senior advisor and general counsel has “maintained a paid consulting relationship” with an Ohio lobbying firm — receiving $22,652 in income in addition to his federal salary.

Previous reporting revealed that the same senior advisor in Husted’s office worked as an opioid and utilities lobbyist whose clients “made millions” off the FirstEnergy corruption scandal, which resulted in a billion dollar bailout for utilities that’s contributing to families paying thousands of dollars more on their energy bills.

Ohio Democratic Party Senior Communications Advisor Tony Wen released the following statement:

“We’ve always known Jon Husted was corrupt, but he’s not even trying to hide it anymore — his senior advisor is currently working as a consultant for a lobbying firm who helped pass the corrupt FirstEnergy bailout for utilities that’s contributing to families paying thousands of dollars more on their energy bills. Ohioans deserve better, and they will vote Jon Husted out in November.”

READ MORE: 

NOTUS: Top Jon Husted Senate Aide Kept Working for Ohio Lobbying Firm

  • A top aide to Republican Sen. Jon Husted of Ohio maintained a paid consulting relationship with an Ohio lobbying firm while serving as the senator’s senior adviser, according to a federal financial disclosure filing.
  • Sean Dunn, who has served as Husted’s senior adviser and counsel since February 2025, disclosed working as a consultant for Statehouse Impact Group — a Columbus-based government relations and lobbying firm.
  • The disclosure — part of Dunn’s certified personal financial report covering calendar year 2025 and submitted to Congress on May 14 — shows Dunn received $22,652 from the firm while he also worked in Husted’s office.
  • Husted’s office did not respond to questions about the nature of Dunn’s work with Statehouse Impact Group.
  • Anne Griffin of Columbus, Ohio, filed a formal complaint on May 29 with the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Ethics, asking for it to investigate both Dunn and Husted, according to a copy of the complaint obtained by NOTUS.
  • The complaint also implicates Husted directly, arguing that the senator bore primary responsibility under Senate rules to prevent conflicts of interest among his staff and appears to have failed in that duty. 
  • The complaint asks the committee to investigate both whether Dunn received improper compensation and whether Husted was aware of the arrangement and failed to act.

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