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The Entire Field Opposed November’s Issue 1, Which Would Have “Protect[ed] Access To In-Vitro Fertilization (IVF) Treatments”

Columbus, OH – Reminder: Bernie Moreno, Frank LaRose, and Matt Dolan are already on-the-record against protecting access to IVF by opposing November’s Issue 1, which would have “protect[ed] access to in-vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments, miscarriages and birth control.” 

BACKGROUND: 

Bernie Moreno, Frank LaRose, and Matt Dolan opposed Issue 1 – which contained protections for in-vitro fertilization treatments – and now support overruling Ohioans by passing a national abortion ban.

• Bernie Moreno opposed Issue 1 and donated $100,000 to Protect Women Ohio – the group leading the campaign to defeat November’s Issue 1 last year.

• Frank LaRose made himself the face of Issue 1 in August – saying it was “100%” about defeating the November amendment. LaRose later colluded with out-of-state special interests to try to ban abortion by rewriting the Issue 1 November ballot language to be intentionally misleading. 

• Matt Dolan said defeating the Issue 1 amendment was a “priority.”

Bernie Moreno and Frank LaRose said they believe life begins at conception. 

• Moreno said last night that he believes life begins at conception. Moreno: “Faith teaches you that life begins at conception, it’s not confusing to us.” [10:30, Bob Burney Live, 2/22/2024]

• Moreno: “I’m 100 percent pro-life with no exceptions.” [10/1/21]

• LaRose: “I personally believe that life begins at conception.” [8/9/23]

Bernie Moreno, Frank LaRose, and Matt Dolan all supported overturning Roe v. Wade, which made the Alabama Supreme Court’s decision possible.

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NBC News: Ohio GOP Senate Candidates Pitch Federal Abortion Bans Even After Voters Protected Reproductive Rights

Columbus, OH – Despite Ohioans voting resoundingly last November to protect abortion access – Bernie Moreno, Frank LaRose, and Matt Dolan continue to reaffirm that they think they know better than voters and would “overrul[e] them” by “supporting federal restrictions.”

Read more:

NBC News: Ohio GOP Senate candidates pitch federal abortion bans even after voters protected reproductive rights

Henry Gomez

February 23, 2024

• Ohioans voted decisively last year to enshrine abortion rights in the state’s constitution, but all three of the Republicans competing in a tough U.S. Senate primary here say they are open to overruling them and supporting federal restrictions.

• State Sen. Matt Dolan and Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose present themselves as better authorities on the matter, arguing that voters didn’t fully understand the 2023 ballot measure.

• Businessman Bernie Moreno favors a federal ban…

• ​​LaRose, who as a state senator supported a “heartbeat bill” to ban abortion at six weeks, is banking on name recognition and hoping the GOP base rewards him for his central role in opposing last year’s constitutional amendment.

• Moreno was also visible in the fight and donated money to the campaign to defeat the ballot measure, known as Issue 1. He drew scrutiny when he falsely claimed the measure would allow a rapist to “force” a woman to have an abortion.

• The amendment passed with 57% of the vote, indicating support from plenty of independents and Republicans. 

• Ohio Right to Life, an influential anti-abortion group in the state, issued a dual endorsement of Moreno and LaRose this month.

• “Bernie is proudly pro-life and believes we can unify this country around ending late term abortion once and for all,” Moreno spokesperson Reagan McCarthy said. “He doesn’t believe in letting the perfect be the enemy of the good and his goal is to protect as many babies as possible.”

• [LaRose and Moreno] both confirmed they would support a federal law that restricts access to abortion. 

• “No matter who emerges from this primary, Ohioans will know they would overrule them by voting for a national abortion ban,” Brown spokesperson Reeves Oyster said.

• In separate meetings with reporters after the Findlay debate, when asked how they reconciled their openness to federal abortion restrictions with last year’s vote, both LaRose and Dolan contended that the measure was more complicated than voters realized.

• Dolan was more direct. “What I have said is I don’t think Ohioans fully understood…”

• Moreno did not meet with reporters after the debate.

SEE ALSO: Bernie Moreno Claims Women Don’t Need Abortion Access, Just Someone To Lift Heavy Things; What They’re Saying: #OHSEN Field Supports Federal Abortion Ban, Would Overrule The Will Of Ohioans; Ohio OBGYN Spotlights #OHSEN Field’s Support for National Abortion Ban; REMINDER: As State Issue 1 Takes Effect, Entire #OHSEN Field Would Overrule Ohioans By Supporting National Abortion Ban; REMINDER: #OHSEN Field Would Overrule Ohioans By Passing National Abortion Ban; Frank LaRose, Bernie Moreno “Lying” To Ohioans, Doubling Down In Support of Dangerous Abortion Bans

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Columbus, OH – Between new reporting this week that revealed yet another lawsuit against Bernie Moreno and the continued scrutiny he faces for shredding evidence and refusing to pay his employees the overtime they earned, Moreno’s record continues to complicate the image he’s trying to sell Ohioans.

Read / watch / listen to what they’re saying about Bernie Moreno’s lawsuits:

• Frank LaRose: “Mr. Moreno has had a problem not even paying people the wages that they earned in his business and had to settle a lawsuit as a result of that.”

• Daily Beast: “Bernie Moreno is running for Senate largely based on his business success story. But a lawsuit from an old employee is bringing into question Moreno’s version of that story. Despres claimed he was pushed out by Moreno before the sale of any dealerships, not because of his performance but because his old friend did not want to pay him.”

• WCPN: “LaRose attacked Moreno over a wage theft lawsuit in Massachusetts… ‘Mr. Moreno has had a problem not even paying people the wages that they earned in his business and had to settle a lawsuit as a result of that.’”

• Statehouse News Bureau: “…LaRose brought up a lawsuit in which Moreno was ordered to pay $400,000 to some former employees who claimed he didn’t pay them earned overtime. More than a dozen similar cases were settled for undisclosed amounts.”

• WVXU: “When talking about the minimum wage, Frank LaRose got personal. ‘Mr. Moreno has had a problem not even paying people the wages that they earned in his business and had to settle a lawsuit as a result of that.’”

• Ohio Capital Journal: “[LaRose] criticized Moreno over a Massachusetts wage theft lawsuit […] In that case, a judge determined Moreno destroyed evidence despite a court order to preserve it.”

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Columbus, OH – Today, the Cleveland.com editorial board endorsed Judge Lisa Forbes for the Democratic Supreme Court primary election, noting: “It is hard to imagine a more qualified background than the one Forbes presents to voters.” The Ohio Democratic Party endorsed Judge Forbes after an impartial screening committee recommended Forbes for the party’s endorsement last month. Early voting begins today for the March 19 primary election. 

“In this head-to-head race, we believe it is Forbes whose background and wide-ranging experience would make her the best justice and the best choice for Democratic voters to challenge for that position in November,” writes the Cleveland.com editorial board. 

“For too long, the Ohio Supreme Court has put politics over people. This November, we’re restoring fairness, equality and justice back to the state’s highest court by electing Judge Forbes and re-electing Justices Stewart and Donnelly. Nothing short of our fundamental rights are on the ballot,” said Matt Keyes, spokesperson for the Ohio Democratic Party. 

Ohio is the only state in the nation with the opportunity to flip its Supreme Court this year, as the Court is set to take up key issues in the months and years ahead, including abortion rights, gerrymandering and voting rights. 

Read more from the Cleveland.com editorial board HERE and below: 

• In this head-to-head race, we believe it is Forbes whose background and wide-ranging experience would make her the best justice and the best choice for Democratic voters to challenge for that position in November.
  
• It is hard to imagine a more qualified background than the one Forbes presents to voters. She has a stellar academic record after winning scholarships to Cornell University and then Case Western Reserve University School of Law, where she graduated summa cum laude and was notes editor of the law review.
  
• That launched a 27-year career as an attorney in which Forbes was steeped in both trial and appellate law. She has practiced at all levels throughout Ohio, including the Ohio Supreme Court, with particular expertise in estate and probate work. She was a litigator and partner in the law firm of Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease until 2020, when she won election to the court of appeals. In that 2020 race, the local “Judge4Yourself” judicial ratings coalition gave Forbes four “Excellent” ratings and one “Good.” The coalition did not issue ratings in this primary, but Forbes has been endorsed by the Ohio Democratic Party.
  
• Forbes’ community involvement is also impressive. Besides volunteering her time in a host of civic organizations, she is board chair of The Centers, an affiliation of the Centers for Family and Children, Circle Health and the Cleveland Christian Home which provides vital services to vulnerable residents of Cuyahoga County.
  
• Forbes says she sees the Supreme Court as needing to be “an effective firewall” to protect democracy and the rule of law. But she added she worries about the erosion of public respect for the judiciary.
  
• “When questions arise about the political motivations behind judicial decisions, it weakens respect for all judges and courts in general,” she said.
  
• Democratic voters should nominate Lisa Forbes for the unexpired Dec. 31, 2026, term on the Ohio Supreme Court. Early voting begins today.

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Columbus, OH – As early voting begins today for Ohio’s March 19th primary, here’s what Ohioans need to know about the #OHSEN field as this “bruising,” “expensive,” “three-way brawl” of a Senate slugfest finally comes to a head.

Before heading to the polls, here’s what Ohioans need to know about the field:

• All three candidates support a national abortion ban which would overrule the will of Ohioans who overwhelmingly voted to protect reproductive rights last November. 

• All three candidates opposed the bipartisan border security bill that was backed by border patrol agents and would have curbed the flow of fentanyl across our southern border. 

• All three candidates “are willing to repeal” the Affordable Care Act.

• All three candidates don’t believe there should be a minimum wage.

• All three candidates are wealthy, out-of-touch, and using their massive personal fortunes, money from out-of-state billionaires, and parents’ cash to try to buy Ohio’s Senate seat. 

A glimpse at the headlines Ohioans have been reading about Bernie Moreno’s record of refusing to pay his employees and shredding key evidence to get out of it, Frank LaRose’s schemes to put his political ambitions ahead of Ohioans, and Matt Dolan’s attempts to buy Ohio’s Senate seat:

• Associated Press: Bernie Moreno running for Senate as outsider, but public entities he served boosted his business

• Business Insider: Trump-backed Ohio Senate candidate shredded documents as he faced a lawsuit accusing him of wage theft

• WCMH: Fact check: Did Senate candidate Bernie Moreno shred documents accusing him of wage theft?

• Mother Jones: A GOP Senate Candidate Blames “Liberal” Judges for His Labor Violations. Just One Problem With That.

• WKYC: No, Bernie Moreno’s claims that Massachusetts courts overturned federal law in wage theft lawsuits and made rulings retroactive are not true: VERIFY

• The Daily Beast: This GOP Senate Hopeful’s Self-Made Story Has a Darker Side

• Cleveland.com: Secretary of State Frank LaRose says abortion opponents helped craft ballot language to aid defeat of Issue 1

• Columbus Dispatch: As Frank LaRose eyes U.S. Senate, turnover plagues Ohio secretary of state’s office

• Ohio Capital Journal: Even before office move is complete, Ohio Sec. of State LaRose appears to blur ethical lines

• Mother Jones: Ohio GOP Senate Candidate Frank LaRose Just Blew Another Deadline to Disclose His Finances

• Axios: LaRose becomes political target after Issue 1 flop

• Cleveland.com: Moreno, Dolan sitting on multi-million dollar fortunes that could bankroll Senate campaigns, disclosures show

• Cleveland.com: How a multimillionaire U.S. Senate candidate financed his race with a cheap loan

• Columbus Dispatch: This 2024 Ohio Senate candidate pledged to help GOP with a new PAC. Did he deliver?

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