According to a new report from the American Independent, Ohio MAGA-Republican U.S. Senate candidate Bernie Moreno “said in an interview on Monday that he believes political candidates who fund their own campaigns are bad for democracy,” despite himself loaning his failed 2022 U.S. Senate campaign $3.8 million.
Moreno is in an ugly Republican primary with Matt Dolan, who has already donated $10.5 million to own campaign in an attempt to buy the U.S. Senate seat.
The American Independent: Ohio Republican complains of self-funding candidates after self-funding his own 2022 bid
By: Josh Israel | May 10, 2023
Key Points:
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“Bernie Moreno, a millionaire businessman and Republican Ohio Senate candidate, said in an interview on Monday that he believes political candidates who fund their own campaigns are bad for democracy. Moreno himself funded his own unsuccessful 2022 bid for Ohio’s other Senate seat, however, with millions of dollars he loaned to his own campaign.”
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“‘I don’t believe in writing a check to become a senator. I think it’s bad for democracy. So we’re going to build a grassroot campaign and win,’ he said during an appearance on the Bill Cunningham Show on Cincinnati radio station 700 WLW. ‘But I just don’t believe that people who have achieved wealth should buy themselves into public office. It’s very bad for democracy. And again, we won’t do that. We’re not doing that.’”
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“Moreno made a similar comment on April 19, telling the Saving Liberty podcast that Ohio state Sen. Matt Dolan, another millionaire running for the Republican Senate nomination who has donated $8 million to his 2024 campaign and loaned it another $2.5 million, could invest his family’s fortune into a primary.”
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“‘I don’t think it’s good for democracy, for wealthy people to write a big fat check and buy themselves a Senate seat. I will put in my resources, don’t get me wrong, but I am not going to write a check that allows me to buy a Senate seat. It’s not good for democracy,’ he said.”
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“In 2022, Moreno mounted an ultimately abandoned bid for the Republican nomination for the open seat of retiring Ohio Republican Sen. Rob Portman. Before dropping out, which former President Donald Trump had encouraged him to do, Moreno loaned his campaign $3.8 million — the majority of the $6.8 million his campaign took in.”
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“Moreno’s personal financial disclosure filings in that race indicated his household’s net worth was more than $20 million, according to a report published in August 2021 by Cleveland.com. His assets included a boat worth at least $500,000 and a home in the Bahamas worth more than $5 million.”
Read the full report here.
Published: May 10, 2023