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Columbus, OH – On the anniversary of the formal signing of the Declaration of Independence, Ohioans are being reminded that Bernie Moreno thinks the Declaration of Independence was signed by…. Abraham Lincoln? Moreno also incorrectly claims George Washington and Alexander Hamilton signed the Declaration.

WATCH HERE

This is not the only time Moreno has made a claim on the campaign trail that “do[es] not withstand historical scrutiny”:

• Bernie Moreno claims that he moved to the United States to “escape” socialism, but reporting from The Guardian found that his statements “do not withstand historical scrutiny.”

• Bernie Moreno repeatedly claimed that he “learned English from watching Ronald Reagan’s speeches” at five years old, but reporting found that the timeline “doesn’t make sense.”

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Columbus, OH – In the month following the two-year anniversary of the Dobbs decision, Bernie Moreno quadrupled down in support for a national abortion ban that would overturn the will of Ohioans who voted overwhelmingly to protect abortion rights last year.

Moreno has made it clear “he still believes in national legislation” to ban abortion, and affirmed his stance on abortion is “crystal, crystal clear” and “has not changed.” Moreno has previously said he is “100% pro-life with no exceptions” and “absolute pro-life, no exceptions.”

Four Times In One Month, Moreno Says He Supports A National Abortion Ban:

On July 10th, Moreno confirmed “he still believes in national legislation” to ban abortion.

The next day on July 11th, Moreno said his stance on abortion is “crystal, crystal clear” and “has not changed.” Moreno has previously said he is “100% pro-life with no exceptions” and “absolute pro-life, no exceptions.” 

WATCH HERE

On July 16th, Moreno said “there’s some things we can do federally” to ban abortion – marking the third time in under a week that Moreno has reiterated his support for a national abortion ban.

WATCH HERE

And on July 20th, reporting noted that when asked if he would vote for a national abortion ban, Moreno “left the door open to supporting further federal restrictions.”

Bottom line: Bernie Moreno would overturn the will of Ohio voters by voting for a national abortion ban.

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Columbus, Ohio- Today, Governor DeWine endorsed a redistricting plan similar to the one in Iowa, where politicians have the final say. 

It’s a sudden switch coming from a governor who previously said that he would be “very happy not to be involved in the future” and said today that we should remove politics from redistricting.

“Governor DeWine’s redistricting flip-flop reveals a man no longer in charge of his administration and it begs the question if he ever actually was,” said Ohio Democratic Party Chair Elizabeth Walters. “Either Governor DeWine suddenly believes politicians actually should be drawing maps for Ohioans despite countless examples of him professing the opposite position, or he knows that future administrations will have a harder time passing the extremist agenda we see coming out of Columbus with a balanced legislature.”

DeWine on Redistricting, in his own words: 

 I don’t think the legislature should be involved in redistricting. I don’t think the governor should be involved. I would be very happy not to be involved in that in the future… I think that the real question is — somebody’s gonna make these decisions, so how do you get people who are, in fact, impartial and who people can have trust in? And that, to me, is the real concern. –  ABC5 Cleveland, 01/07/2024

I’ve been very clear in saying that I don’t think the governor should be involved. I don’t want to be involved. I don’t think the legislature should be involved. And we need to come up with a new way.”- WTAP, 01/07/2024.

“It’s my personal choice to never be involved in that again, so maybe I have a little bias and don’t want elected officials involved, because I sure don’t want to be involved in it again. And we need not to have elected officials directly involved in it,” he said. Ohio Capital Journal, 5/13/2024

 “The system we have today doesn’t work very well,” the governor said “[It’s] no great revelation to anyone in this room who watched this unfold — it just didn’t work very well.” Ohio Capitol Journal– 8/23/2023

Columbus, OH – New reporting from the Associated Press found that Bernie Moreno is “heavily invested” in and profited off of a scheme with his brothers by funneling U.S. taxpayer money into banks that financed projects his family oversaw. This is the latest example of Moreno’s record using his “deep political connections” to enrich himself while taxpayers pay the price.

Bernie Moreno’s Family Enrichment Scheme Explained:

• From 2005 – 2020, Bernie Moreno’s brother Luis Alberto Moreno served as president of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), “the largest source for long-term financing in Latin America and the Caribbean” which is funded by U.S. taxpayer dollars.

• At the same time, Roberto Moreno, another Moreno brother, served as the President and Co-Founder of Amarilo Construction, “one of Colombia’s largest builders of affordable housing.”

• According to the AP, “corporate records show” that under Moreno’s brother’s leadership, the IDB “loaned or underwrote bonds totaling $360 million to two private Colombian banks” that then financed Amarilo development projects overseen by the Moreno family.

• Bernie Moreno’s personal financial disclosure shows he is “heavily invested” in Amarilo, has up to $1.5 million invested in two funds associated with the scheme, and is a “majority owner” of a parcel of land worth up to $5 million with ties to the scheme.

Following The AP’s Report, Moreno Must Answer:

1. How much money do you have invested in Amarilo and the two Yellowstone Capital Partners investment funds?

2. Will you make the details of your investments in Amarilo and Yellowstone Capital Partners available for Ohioans to see?

3. Have you profited off of U.S. taxpayer dollars being funneled towards the property you are a “majority owner” of in Costa Rica?

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Columbus, OH – Bernie Moreno owes Ohioans answers after an Associated Press report found that he is “heavily invested” in and profited off of a scheme with his brothers by funneling U.S. taxpayer money into banks that financed projects his family oversaw.

The AP found that, under Moreno’s brother’s leadership, the Inter-American Development Bank funneled U.S. taxpayer dollars to “banks that worked with Amarilo,” a company owned by a different brother. The report found that Moreno is “heavily invested” in Amarilo, has up to $1.5 million invested in two of the funds associated with the scheme, and is a “majority owner” of a parcel of land worth up to $5 million with ties to the scheme.

Following the AP’s report, here are three questions Moreno must answer about his enrichment scheme:

1. How much money do you have invested in Amarilo and the two Yellowstone Capital Partners investment funds?

2. Will you make the details of your investments in Amarilo and Yellowstone Capital Partners available for Ohioans to see?

3. Have you profited off of U.S. taxpayer dollars being funneled towards the property you are a “majority owner” of in Costa Rica?

Read More:

Associated Press: Senate candidate Bernie Moreno campaigns as an outsider. His wealthy family is politically connected
Julie Carr Smyth and Joshua Goodman
July 28, 2024

• Many of Luis Alberto Moreno’s connections in business stem from his time as president of the Washington-based Inter-American Development Bank, the largest source for long-term financing in Latin America and the Caribbean. During his tenure from 2005 to 2020, he oversaw the biggest capital increase in the international bank’s history. But he also drew criticism from U.S. lawmakers for the way the bank, whose mission is to fight poverty in the region, lost nearly $1 billion by plowing a large chunk of its cash reserves into mortgage-backed securities at a time Wall Street was fleeing toxic assets blamed for triggering the 2008 global financial crisis.

• Another brother, Roberto Moreno, is co-founder and president of Amarilo Construction, one of Colombia’s largest builders of affordable housing… corporate records show at least some of IDB’s funding going to banks that worked with Amarilo, and Bernie Moreno’s financial disclosures indicate he is heavily invested in a U.S. affiliate of the company.

• The IDB loaned or underwrote bonds totaling $360 million to two private Colombian banks to promote affordable housing through its private-sector lending arm. One of the banks, Banco Davivienda, financed Amarilo’s development of a Bogota apartment complex between 2019 and 2020, according to the mortgage lender’s 2021 annual report. Meanwhile the other financial institution, Bancolombia, signed an alliance in 2020 with Amarilo and Yellowstone Capital Partners, a private equity firm the construction giant created in 2009 to source institutional investment. It has operations in both Colombia and the U.S.

• According to Bernie Moreno’s 2023 personal financial disclosure, he is a majority owner of a Yellowstone-associated parcel of land in Costa Rica worth between $1 million and $5 million. He also has invested between $750,000 and $1.5 million in two of Yellowstone’s U.S. investment funds, one of which targets opportunities in the American housing market.

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