Ohio Democratic Party

04/02/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 04/02/2024 10:50

TERRIBLE TWOS: What Ohioans Have Been Reading About Bernie Moreno 2 Weeks Into The General Election

TERRIBLE TWOS: What Ohioans Have Been Reading About Bernie Moreno 2 Weeks Into The General Election

April 2, 2024

Bernie Moreno Is Out For Himself, Not Ohioans

Columbus, OH - Bernie Moreno has spent the first two weeks of the #OHSEN general election showing Ohioans he's only out for himself. Whether it's his lies about escaping socialism that "do not withstand historical scrutiny," or his claims he built his business without "handouts" despite receiving an insider deal, Moreno's "dubious claims," "baggage," and "legal entanglements with underpaying his staff" prove he won't fight for anyone but himself.

What Ohioans have been reading / watching / hearing about Bernie Moreno:

  • The Guardian: "Bernie Moreno…says his family fled socialism when they came to the US from Colombia in 1971, when he was four years old. Though such statements formed a central part of Moreno's campaign message…they do not withstand historical scrutiny."
  • Politico: "Bernie Moreno's family history is under scrutiny."
  • Cleveland.com: "Although GOP Senate candidate Bernie Moreno says his family fled socialism when it came to the US from Colombia in 1971, the first leftwing Colombian government in modern times didn't come into power until 2022, the Guardian reports."
  • Roll Call: "Bernie Moreno, the Republican nominee in Ohio's hotly contested Senate race, has long said his family fled socialist Colombia and settled in the United States. ButThe Guardian examined Moreno's claim and found that the dates don't add up."
  • Raw Story: "Bernie Moreno…has long intimated that his family decided to immigrate to America from their native Colombia to escape the economic landscape created by 'socialism.'[…] at the time Moreno's family left Colombia in the early 1970s, there was nothing at all resembling socialism running the country."
  • Business Insider: "Moreno, an immigrant from Colombia, has frequently touted… his ability to do it all on his own […] yet when Moreno bought his first car dealership in 2005, he got some extra help…"
  • New York Times: "In Ohio, Mr. Moreno's Republican opponents…repeatedly went after him for a lawsuit filed by an employee of one of his car dealerships, who sued him in 2017 for failure to pay overtime. The judge in the case determined that Mr. Moreno "either did not retain or shredded" monthly reports on overtime hours…Mr. Moreno did lose the suit and was ordered to pay $416,160 to his employees."
  • NBC: "…characterizing Moreno as an unprincipled businessman who mistreats employees, citing past lawsuits over workplace discrimination and overtime pay against his companies."
  • Business Insider: "The former car dealership owner has also faced several lawsuits stemming from his time in the industry, including being sanctioned by a Massachusetts judge for shredding documents that may have been relevant to a wage theft lawsuit he was facing."
  • Columbus Dispatch: "[Moreno] was also dogged by legal trouble from his car dealership days, including over a dozen lawsuits in Massachusetts that accused him of not properly paying overtime to his employees."
  • Cincinnati Enquirer: "Moreno's campaign was sidetracked down the stretch when reports surfaced that he had settled a series of wage theft lawsuits and was once caught shredding documents."
  • WCPN: "Ohio Democrats have been pretty aggressive… and so I think Democrats do intend to use the baggage they see Moreno carries."

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