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Lt. Governor Candidate David Pepper Joins Family Members of Alzheimer’s Patients to Slam Ramaswamy’s “Pump-and-Dump” Scam

Columbus, Ohio- Today, candidate for lieutenant governor David Pepper joined families impacted by Alzheimer’s disease in Columbus to slam Vivek Ramaswamy’s alleged pump-and-dump scam that gave false hope to patients and their families and ripped off investors while Ramaswamy made millions of dollars. 

Ramaswamy served as “the frontman” for a “dubious pharmaceutical company” and “cashed out weeks before its dramatic crash.” He hired his own mother to manipulate data from failed clinical trials to make the drug look promising, despite her lack of clinical trial experience. Ramaswamy used his own mother’s analysis to scam his way into hundreds of millions of dollars.

“My wife and partner of 48 years has Alzheimer’s. It’s devastating to see her brilliant and quirky mind taken away from us,” said Ohio Alliance for Retired Americans President Norm Wernet. “There are good and dedicated scientists out there working to mitigate and resolve this disease, but Vivek Ramaswamy is not one of them. It’s clear Ramaswamy will exploit anyone, even Alzheimer’s patients and their families, in order to make money for himself.”

“In the past years, two of my brothers took the long dreadful walk into the darkness of Alzheimer’s,” said Cincinnati AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Brian Griffin. “The idea that people who are in these circumstances would be taken advantage of in this heinous manner is despicable. How could we make someone like this governor?”

“Vivek Ramaswamy’s record is one of false hope and false hype that never adds up. Instead, Ramaswamy exploits everyday people while he gets rich,” said candidate for lieutenant governor David Pepper. “This is a pattern in Vivek Ramaswamy’s campaign, whether it’s his property tax scam or alleged ‘pump-and-dump’ scam. Ohioans can’t trust Vivek Ramaswamy.”

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NEW REPORTING: Jon Husted Protected Nursing Homes Who Dumped Seniors At Homeless Shelters

TiffinOhio: Ohio nursing homes dumped residents at homeless shelters. Jon Husted helped make them harder to sue.

COLUMBUS, OHIO — New reporting reveals that Jon Husted protected abusive and neglectful nursing homes that dumped seniors at homeless shelters across Ohio. 

This follows previous reporting from NBC 4 Columbus showing Husted has taken “more than a million dollars from the nursing home industry, executives, and lobbyists” after he pushed for the passage of legislation that “shielded Ohio nursing homes from liability, even in wrongful death and abuse cases.” 

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

“Jon Husted said Ohioans’ work ethic is broken and championed legislation to slash Social Security and Medicare — and now reporting reveals he protected the abusive nursing home industry that kicked Ohio seniors to the curb after taking more than $1 million from the industry and its lobbyists. Jon Husted sided with special interests over Ohio seniors, and he can’t be trusted.”

Read more: 

TiffinOhio: Ohio nursing homes dumped residents at homeless shelters. Jon Husted helped make them harder to sue

  • Federal inspectors have faulted seven Ohio nursing homes in recent years for discharging residents to homeless shelters — people who could not manage their own medications, who used walkers, who in at least one case did not know who had dropped them off. 
  • The state’s largest long-term care lobby says the problem is bigger than any one facility and that Ohio needs to step in. The senator on Ohio’s ballot in November helped write the law that made those facilities harder to sue.
  • U.S. Sen. Jon Husted, R-Ohio, was one of 45 House members who cosponsored House Bill 412 in 2002, a measure that folded nursing homes and residential care facilities into Ohio’s legal definition of a “medical claim.” 
  • That change cut the window for filing suit against them from two years to one and barred state inspection findings from being introduced in court. Husted has since accepted more than $1 million in campaign contributions from the nursing home industry, its executives and lobbyists, NBC4 in Columbus reported this month.
  • Federal Election Commission records show the American Health Care Association’s political action committee — OHCA is that group’s only chartered Ohio affiliate — gave Husted for Senate $1,000 on Aug. 26, 2025 and another $1,000 on June 15, 2026. NBC4 reviewed Husted’s most recent campaign finance report and found more than a dozen nursing home PACs or lobbyists have given at least $34,000 to his Senate campaign so far.
  • The example was raised by Norm Wernet, president of the Ohio Alliance for Retired Americans, a labor-affiliated group that pushes for home- and community-based care and argues the nursing home industry lobbies against it.
  • “Wrong to see that somebody like Sen. Husted, when he was in the legislature, would co-sponsor a bill that, in fact, avoided the liability on the nursing homes,” Wernet told the station. “So that, that’s one example of how the politicians get continued support again and again.”

Jon Husted can’t be trusted to fight for Ohio seniors:

  • Jon Husted protected nursing homes facing lawsuits for wrongful death and elder abuse, pushing through an industry-backed bill when he served in the state legislature. 
  • Husted has taken more than $1 million from nursing home executives and lobbyists throughout his career, including more than $34,000 for his Senate campaign. 
  • Husted’s campaign took more than $60,000 from the Ohio Health Care Association PAC, executives, and lobbyists, while the organization lobbied on behalf of at least five nursing home facilities that left elderly patients at homeless shelters.
  • Husted championed legislation that would force massive cuts to Social Security and Medicare, which millions of Ohio seniors rely on. 

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Max Miller: “The Economy Is Actually Doing Very Well Right Now”

COLUMBUS, OH – In bold new comments on the Jake Underwood Show, Max Miller is showing just how out-of-touch he really is, claiming that “once you really put it into perspective, the economy is actually doing very well right now.” Miller’s comments come at a time when Ohioans are calling out Washington Republicans – like Max Miller, Mike Turner and Mike Carey – for their support for Trump and Washington Republicans’ devastating economic policies, like their tariffs, reckless war with Iran, and healthcare cuts.

“While Ohioans continue to call out Washington Republicans for their devastating economic policies that are raising Ohioans’ costs and ripping away their healthcare, Max Miller is apparently so deeply out-of-touch with his own constituents that he thinks the economy is ‘actually doing very well right now,’” said Ohio Democratic Party Communications Director Marisa Nahem. “Max Miller’s comments are an insult to every Ohio family who is struggling because Max Miller and Washington Republicans decided to give tax breaks to billionaires and corporate special interests while hardworking Ohioans foot the bill – and Ohioans are going to make him pay for it in November.”

While Ohio “has become one of the GOP’s biggest headaches for the midterms,” all three major nonpartisan race raters — Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, and Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball — shifted the OH07 congressional race in Democrat Brian Poindexter’s direction to “Toss-Up.” “Republicans now say they’ll spend tens of millions of dollars in Ohio races they once were heavily favored to win this fall,” with recent analysis also making clear that, Donald Trump’s disastrous economic policies and political problems could have “metastasized and spread to infect Republican candidates on the November ballot in swing states and districts.”

Read more about the actual reality for Ohio families as Miller claims that the economy is “actually doing very well right now,” and “overall, most people would acknowledge that… things are probably going a little bit better than they expected:”

Ohio Capital Journal: Regional businesses say Iran war, Trump tariffs are increasing prices, hurting the economy

Statehouse News Bureau: Report: more than half a million Ohioans could lose Medicaid coverage in next decade

Ohio Capital Journal: Ohio will lose 51,000 jobs, $5.3 billion due to Trump cuts by 2029, new analysis finds

Signal Ohio: Electric bills hit new highs across Ohio, state data shows

Cleveland.com: Trump policies have cost Ohio households thousands since January 2025, report finds

Ohio Capital Journal: Ohio ratepayers’ summer electric bills could top $800, report says

Cleveland.com: Gas prices jump 30 cents in Northeast Ohio, top $4 per gallon

Ohio Capital Journal: One year after biggest SNAP cuts ever, 100,000 Ohioans without help, state bracing for costs

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Retired Union Leader Slams Derek Merrin As Ohio Workers Continue To Stand With Rep. Kaptur

“We know who Marcy Kaptur works for and that’s the kind of representation worth fighting to keep”

COLUMBUS, OH – As Republican corruption in Columbus and Washington raises costs for Ohio families while billionaires and corporate special interests line their pockets, Ohioans are slamming Derek Merrin for failing repeatedly to stand up for workers. Last week, a retired union leader’s letter to the editor in the Toledo Bladehighlighted how Derek Merrin and Rep. Marcy Kaptur’s records could not be more different. Emphasizing that labor’s fight is “for every working person trying to build a decent life,” the author draws a sharp contrast between Rep. Kaptur, who “understands that,” and Merrin, who has given “little reason to believe he does.” The letter also calls out Merrin for supporting efforts to “take paid sick leave away from public employees” and backing legislation that “would have made it harder for workers to organize and bargain for fair wages and safer workplaces” – and makes clear that he is “not someone who’s a friend of working people.”

On the other hand, Ohio workers know that they have a leader “who will actually have your back” in Rep. Marcy Kaptur. As a lifelong fighter for Ohio workers, Rep. Kaptur has earned the largest coalition of labor support in this race. Unions are lining up alongside her including ACT Ohio, AFSCME Power in Action, Amalgamated Transit Union, Association of Flight Attendants, IAFF Local 92, Ohio AFL-CIO, Ohio Association of Plumbers and Pipefitters, Ohio Brotherhood of Carpenters, Ohio Conference of Teamsters, Ohio Federation of Teachers, Ohio Nurses Association, Painters & Allied Trades District Council No. 6 State of Ohio and Central Kentucky, Service Employees International Union, UA Local 50 Plumbers, Steamfitters & Service Mechanics, United Auto Workers, and United Steel Workers.

While Merrin gets slammed for his anti-worker record, read more from a retired union leader about how he has “never known anyone more committed to the working people of Ohio’s 9th District” than Marcy Kaptur.

Toledo Blade: To the editor: Retired union leader recalls Kaptur’s record

  • I had the privilege of working with Marcy during my time as business manager for IBEW Local 245, and in all those years, I’ve never known anyone more committed to the working people of Ohio’s 9th District.
  • The kind of public servant Marcy is has become increasingly rare. She understands that the job is about serving the people who sent her there. Marcy listens to all of us, she represents all of us, and she fights for all of us.
  • You can see that in what she has delivered for northwest Ohio. She’s fought to make sure our farmers have the resources they need to keep growing the food that feeds our communities and keep their family farms sustainable for future generations. She delivered funding to build the Veterans’ Glass City Skyway and strengthen the 180th Fighter Wing, one of our region’s greatest sources of pride. And after a local World War II veteran came to her with an idea for a national memorial, she turned that dream into a reality. That’s why it’s crucial to have a representative like Marcy in our corner.
  • While we’re getting crushed by this affordability crisis that just keeps getting worse and our workers are getting their hard-earned protections and labor power rolled back, we need someone who understands that the fight for good jobs, fair wages, and strong unions isn’t just labor’s fight — it’s a fight for every working person trying to build a decent life for themselves and their families. I know from working with Marcy that she understands that. Her opponent, Derek Merrin, gives me little reason to believe he does.
  • As mayor of Waterville and then again as a state representative, he supported efforts to take paid sick leave away from public employees. He backed legislation that would have made it harder for workers to organize and bargain for fair wages and safer workplaces. That’s not someone who’s a friend of working people.
  • After a lifetime in organized labor, I’ve seen plenty of politicians show up on a picket line with a camera crew during election season. You learn pretty quickly who is there for the photo op and who will actually have your back when something is on the line. Marcy is one of the few I’ve always known I could count on.
  • Washington already has enough politicians treating Congress like a fast pass into the VIP section — desperate for a key to a locked room filled with billionaires, corporate interests, and powerful donors who can bankroll their next campaign, no matter what strings come attached. Working people don’t need another politician begging to be let in. We need someone willing to break down the door, show the American people exactly who’s inside, and fight like hell to take our government back from the powerful elites rigging the system against us.
  • We know who Marcy Kaptur works for and that’s the kind of representation worth fighting to keep.

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WHAT OHIOANS ARE WATCHING: Jon Husted Begs For Billionaires And Corporations To Bail Out Failing Campaign

COLUMBUS, OHIO — In case you missed it, a new NRSC memo shows that Jon Husted — “the face of data centers” — is being crushed for leading the charge to bring hundreds of massive, power-hungry facilities to Ohio that have sent electricity rates skyrocketing.

The memo states that “Ohio is one of the leaders in building these AI factories,” largely due to Husted giving billions in out-of-control tax breaks to attract massive corporations to Ohio. The memo also claims that data centers are “the anchor hanging around Husted’s neck.”

See For Yourself: 

Fox News: Special Report with Bret Baier

  • Bret Baier, Fox News: A Republican campaign group is warning toxic views of [data centers] could harm the party’s chances of holding a vital senate seat.
  • Mark Meredith, Fox News: … will help him beat incumbent Republican Senator Jon Husted, who over the years strongly supported data center development in the state. 
  • Meredith: In a memo, the National Republican Senatorial Committee writes this has become a sleeper issue for the entire election cycle. Fox polling shows Husted trailing Brown by eight points.

WEWS: Leaked memo about data centers shows GOP worried about Ohio’s U.S. Senate race

  • Morgan Trau, WEWS: A leaked memo created by national Republican leaders shows their fears that Democrats, specifically in Ohio, are winning over voters on a very divisive issue: data centers.
  • Trau: Brown’s ads are accurate — that Husted did help bring a slew of data centers to Ohio, which his former running mate, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, defends.
  • Trau: After Brown’s ad started airing, Husted proposed a bill in congress to require states to require companies to pay for their own power. Brown says Husted could have put guardrails in place when he helped lead the state house.
  • Trau: Husted didn’t respond to comment for this story and neither did the national campaign committee.

MS NOW: The Briefing with Jen Psaki

  • Jen Psaki, MS NOW: Former Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown is mounting a strong challenge against Republican Senator Jon Husted. A recent Fox News poll found Sherrod Brown leading Husted by eight points in a head to head matchup.
  • Psaki: Sherrod Brown is making Jon Husted the face of unpopular AI data centers in Ohio, and all across the country, I should note, people are pushing back against AI companies building big data centers in their communities.
  • Psaki: Today, Axios actually obtained a new memo from the Senate Republicans’ campaign committee detailing how that anti data center messaging is hurting Jon Husted. And they write “more than any other thing in this race, data centers are the anchor hanging around Husted’s neck.” 

Cleveland Plain Dealer: Jon Husted is the face of data centers in Ohio, and Republicans nationwide fear what that means

  • As lieutenant governor, Jon Husted smiled as he trumpeted data center tax breaks to Ohioans, claiming the state would become a tech hub.
  • Now that Ohioans hate the energy sucking developments, Republican Sen. Husted is backing off — all while his Democratic opponent, Sherrod Brown, is calling Husted the face of data centers.

Signal Ohio: ‘The anchor around Husted’s neck’: Data centers are dominating Ohio politics

  • Republicans think data centers are killing Husted’s chances
  • Don’t just take it from us. Take it from the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the campaign arm of Senate Republicans. The group issued an extraordinary memo to AI companies this week that describes the situation facing Republican Sen. Jon Husted in dire terms.
  • “More than any other thing in this race, data centers are the anchor hanging around Husted’s neck,” states the memo, which was first reported by Axios and independently obtained by Signal Statewide.

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