Moreno talks immigration, police at campaign stop
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- Ohio’s U.S. Senate race is heating up as the November election edges closer.
Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) is being challenged by Republican businessman Bernie Moreno. Whoever wins the race Ohio will play a consequential role in determining which party holds control in the U.S. Senate.
Moreno made a stop in central Ohio Thursday with Congressman Jim Jordan on Thursday afternoon to encourage Ohioans to get out to the polls.
Watch: Amid tight Senate race, Moreno holds voter registration event
Moreno wanted voters to know that the four weeks of early voting in the state are safe, despite rhetoric from his party about early and absentee voting in the past.
“We have four weeks of early voting in Ohio,” he said. “It’s a safe election, it is a secure election."
Much of Moreno’s campaign has focused on law enforcement, the economy and immigration.
On Wednesday night, Trump said he’d revoke legal status of Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio. On Thursday, Moreno said immigrants are taking up too many resources — leaving people affected by Hurricane Helene, for example, without government assistance.
“You know why [the government is] out of money?” Moreno said. “FEMA this year alone has spent $650 million resettling immigrants, migrants. Don’t call them immigrants. Immigrant is what I was. These are migrants who came to this country illegally. And of course, the magic wand was waved, and it became legal.”
Moreno also said that overall, more money needs to be invested in building up communities both in Ohio and across the United States.
“When I got in that police car and drove through parts of Columbus, there was a time I did not think I was in the United States of America,” he said. “Isn’t it time we care for our own citizens?”
As far as law enforcement goes, Moreno has previously said he wants federal policy to halt federal funding to cities that “refuse to punish criminals.”
He also said he wants to ensure that no money is deducted from law enforcement’s social security because they receive pensions, something Brown has also worked on.
Overall, Moreno said there is one piece of priority legislation that he thinks will make a big difference.
“The minute I get sworn in, I am going to introduce legislation to cap income tax rates for law enforcement at 5%,” he said. “If you’re a law enforcement officer, if you wear the uniform and wear the badge and put your life at risk for the American people, the United States government is not going to tax you beyond 5%.”
Moreno did not take any questions from reporters after Thursday’s campaign event.
In a statement, Brown’s campaign said, "Bernie Moreno can't answer for the fact that he's facing scrutiny from both sides of the aisle after insulting Ohio women and called them 'a little crazy' for wanting to make their own healthcare decisions."