Ohio Republican Senate hopeful compares rival to Liz Cheney in debate

When asked about January 6th during Monday night's Republican debate, Ohio Republican Senate candidate Bernie Moreno, a Trump supporter, called out rival state Sen. Matt Dolan, a former Wyoming state senator. He identified himself with Trump critic Liz Cheney.

The hour-long program, hosted by Cleveland-based FOX 8, features March party nominees as candidates clash over government funding, Mexican cartels and bombings in Ukraine while trading political blows. He gradually moved closer to winning the election, aiming to defeat incumbent Sen. Sherrod Brown, who is in his third term. (Ohio Democratic Party) It's November.

Brown and Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mt.) both hold one of the most vulnerable seats in the Senate, according to Cook Political Report's 2024 Senate races. evaluation. Both are targets of Republicans seeking to flip the Senate. Republicans' goal has become slightly easier with Sen. Joe Manchin (D-Va.) announcing his retirement from the Senate after his term ends, making the seat more likely to turn deep red. .

On the Jan. 6 broadcast, hosts Fox 8's Joe Toohey and NBC4's Colleen Marshall accused Moreno and Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose of flipping their rhetoric on the Capitol attack. At the time, both candidates condemned the destruction and violence that unfolded. Both men recently referred to some of those charged with the act as “political” prisoners.

Mr. Dolan pressed Mr. Moreno over his recent comments about Jan. 6, which he doubled down on as “a bad day.”

“We just heard a totally political bogus answer,” Dolan said. “He's trying to reinvent himself. January 6th was the worst day, so I said that then.”

Mr. Moreno, a former car dealer, has received big-name support from Mr. Trump, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), and the influential and well-funded anti-tax group Club for Growth, and Mr. Dolan He called her “Liz Cheney” and chased after her. And he accused him of promoting “liberal talking points.”

“So if you want Liz Cheney to represent you in the Senate from Ohio, this is your choice, because that's where his position comes from,” Moreno said. “In reality, Matt [Dolan], it's sad to see you repeating leftist, liberal talking points. ”

Mr. Dolan, who was aggressive throughout the night, continued to press Mr. Moreno, citing a lawsuit the auto dealership giant handled in 2015. Ohio and Massachusetts.

“And we found out this week Bernie, we don’t know if we can trust you,” Dolan said. “Your employees trusted you to comply with court orders and not destroy documents that would help the case against you. But what did you do? You shredded those documents because it was an employee This is a matter of trust.”

Funding for Ukraine was another area where candidates were divided.

Moreno said the United States should stop funding Ukraine, and LaRose vowed not to allow “another penny” to flow into Ukraine until the southern border is “secure.”

Dolan warned that if the United States does not provide ammunition, weapons and aid to Ukraine, “the boys and girls of Ohio will end up fighting Russia, Poland, Western Europe, or the Baltic states.”

Each candidate hinted that they were in favor of restrictions on abortion, but none directly answered whether they supported a federal ban on abortion.

On immigration, Mr. LaRose reiterated his position on “destroying cartels,” a slogan shared in recent ads supporting his campaign.

“These cartels are killing more than 200 Americans a day with the fentanyl they bring into this country,” LaRose said. “We know this is coming from China mixed in with Mexico. We define these cartels as foreign terrorist organizations and we are working with the U.S. military and the U.S. federal government to prevent them from killing our fellow citizens. You must kill them with all your might.”

Mr. Moreno denounced Mr. LaRose's response as “neoconservative rhetoric” and promised to urge the United States to cooperate with Mexico.

“We're going to work with Mexico to make sure they understand that it's in Mexico's best interest to help us fight drug cartels,” Moreno said.