The GOP remains silent about damning domestic abuse accusations against a member of its own House conference, now corroborated by the victim’s father, a sitting U.S. senator.
And here’s another one. Chuck Edwards in Western NC.
“ The U.S. House Ethics Committee announced Monday afternoon that it is recommending censure for North Carolina’s 11th District Rep. Chuck Edwards, a Republican, who was under investigation for allegations of inappropriate conduct toward two young women who worked in his office.”
Ohio would do well to rid itself of both the foul-mouthed Moreno (I reference his appalling, unprofessional behavior toward Dr. Fauci) and the abusive Miller.
We Are Trying. Moreno is not up for re-election, but his co-Senator, Jon Husted is -- against popular former Senator Sherrod Brown, who is currently leading.
Moreno and Miller are not the only ones who need to go. Jim Jordan is so happily complacent with his ridiculously gerrymandered district . . . and he has his own scandals.
Jay's SK today is the first time I have been made aware that Moreno has a gay son whom he has thrown under the bus. Just when I thought my opinion of him could not go any lower.
I can't help but think of Rob Portman, whose vacated senate seat was won by- uggh- JD Vance when Rob decided to retire. I have always believed that it was honorable of Rob to come out strongly in support of marriage equality; I believe he was the first Republican to do so, and I defend him to this day to anyone who criticizes that he only did it because he has a gay son. Moreno is proof that it takes character to support one's own children in the face of political backlash. Rob was among the last of the decent and honorable Republicans, though I disagreed with him on several issues, I had nothing but respect for his integrity. He also memorably partnered up with his D colleague Sherrod Brown on numerous bills. So, it is that same seat, which was filled by Jon Husted when Vance became VP, which will be filled by Sherrod Brown next year if there is a God, or Karma, or whatever you happen to believe in.
But back to Miller Low Life, I seriously hope that he does not resign, and hope they don't kick him out before the deadline. It sounds like the Democrat has a far better chance of defeating him than whoever might replace him, who dare I say, could even be worse. I'm not familiar with either of those guys, as Miller's soon-to-be former District is about as far away from me as you can get in Ohio, just suspicious of anyone who would willingly join that MAGA club of deplorables.
Robbie was pretty spineless; we called him Rob "The Jellyfish" Portman. But he wasn't entirely deplorable. He did get some flak for being against same-sex marriage until his son came out, but hey, whatever it takes to get someone to do the right thing.
I am very familiar with the names mentioned and they are both laughable. Coughlin hasn't been in office for a decade and a half and he lives in Oh-13 (Em Sykes' district near Akron). I don't know if he can run from outside the district but it wouldn't be a good look, especially against an opponent firmly rooted in the district's inner ring suburbs as Brian Poindexter is.
Oh never mind, I looked more closely at your comment and realized you called him spineless, which I assume refers to his inability to say anything bad about his party going off the rails. I regrettably have to agree with you on that.
I've always been one who believes that it's important to welcome all allies, no matter how, or how long, it took them to get there!
Was the jellyfish characterization related just to that issue, or more broadly?
I worked closely with him and his staff, both in Cincinnati and in Washington, but only on issues that related to my industry. In my experience, he was a reliable supporter of affordable Housing and Community Development.
In the end, he was too timid to stand up to Trump, and I think that led to his retirement. That was/is the dilemma of the GOP: you go with Trump or get out.
Somehow Gymmie's scandal never seemed to graze him. How fast would a Democrat be out of office if they turned a blind eye to a serial sexual abuser and when told about him by a student said "That's just how Dr. Strauss is."
"the foul-mouthed Moreno," yes. I personally don't care if a senator is gay, or if a senator is bi. But if he is gay or bi AND attacks LGBQT people and laws and spews hate speech against them and says they should not hold responsible positions in society, then his being gay/bi counts against him in terms of hypocrisy, immorality, lying, and pure evil. For a straight senator to say or do this kind of hate speech would be 100% wrong. For a gay/bi senator to say or do it is 200% wrong.
Her father, Rep. Bernie Moreno, launched a rage- and epithet-filled attack on Dr. Fauci; I had to wonder if this daughter was used to being abused before her marriage.
You hit the nail on the head! Especially children who are raised by abusers grow up (trained) to be the target of abusers as adults! Trained not to have a healthy ego, not to speak up for themselves--used to just cowering and "taking" it. A lifetime of damage is done, until one day, with any luck, these people get sick of it and start kicking ass in their own defence.
To anyone who has ever survived living with an abusive person, Miller's rationalization is SO effing familiar. They count on the abused to blame it on themselves--they condition you to do that--there is something wrong with YOU. You're scared!! Of course you're NICE to them! He shouldn't be in any position of responsibility--he REFUSES to take responsibility!
I have several friends who are survivors of domestic abuse and this story does sound incredibly familiar.
Abusive partners are experts at gaslighting! This passage of Jay's post definitely set off alarm bells for me:
"Miller also used the livestream to directly question his ex‑wife’s credibility, saying she has struggled with “significant mental health challenges” that he suggested contributed to the allegations. He framed his attack as motivated by concern for their daughter rather than an attempt to discredit his ex-wife.
And the idea that her father knew about the allegations and did nothing absolutely disgusts me!
Oh these people are masters at putting blame on everyone but themselves. That daughter needs to be kept away from him before it's too late. I worry for her. You grow up with a father like that and you believe that you can do nothing right. Grow up afraid of everyone and thinking you are worthless. The grandfather should be ashamed of himself--the damage he's ignoring. (And I might add, per HIS story, two-year-olds don't or shouldn't wear seat-belts! So that's b-s!
Considering Ohio's track record, I certainly wouldn't want to bet on what line would need to be crossed before Ohio voters say "enough".
But if anyone wants to help elect Democrats in the state, here are some current postcard campaigns:
* Activate America (www.activateamerica.vote) has a statewide campaign in support of Sherrod Brown. The target audience is voters who often skip midterms with a special focus on younger and newly registered voters.
* Field Team 6 (https://postcards.fieldteam6.org/) is in the latter stages of a voter registration outreach campaign in OH. They do partisan voter registration and have a good track record of registering Democrats and left-leaning independents.
* Postcards to Swing States (https://turnoutpac.org/postcards/) has get-out-the-vote (GOTV) campaigns focused on low-propensity but progressive leaning voters in many swing states and districts including OH.
It depends. My district, on the other side of the Cuyahoga County region from this district, is so blue that a lot of our activists are heading crosstown help Brian Poindexter beat Max Miller. it's kind of a project of our women's caucus; a lot of them are working on this campaign. We are represented by the estimable progressive Shontel Brown who gets 80% of the vote in every election.
Thank you Jay. Here in Ohio there is a plethora of vile creatures who just so happen to be in this Rethuglican, MAGA cult occupying in both the Senate, House and just so close to the Oval.
We just don’t have Max Miller who seems to think that his wife and past girlfriends were his often punching bags, but his own daughter. Now his father n’ law who just so happens to recently make a name for himself even more by ripping into Dr. Fauci in the Senate committee hearing yelling “Who the f* do you think you were? Has his own possible closeted issues, but what’s on record and went through the courts is Moreno was ordered to pay approximately $416,000 to two former employees of his Massachusetts car dealership following a wage theft lawsuit. Allen the while he was shredding those overtime documents. Even better yet Moreno subsequently settled 14 other wage-related lawsuits brought forward by other former salespeople at his dealerships. The financial payout details for those 14 settlements remain undisclosed. All the while this information was known to the voters of Ohio, yet they voted for this Felon. Then we have the other Senator Jon Husted, who was selected by Governor DeWine by the promotion JD received. Now Jon Husted is up for election in November 2026 to keep that seat. Husted has his own nefarious background with the FirstEnergy bribery scandal which is the largest public corruption scheme in Ohio’s history. In exchange for nearly $60 million in bribes funneled to Ohio politicians, FirstEnergy secured a $1.3 billion taxpayer-funded bailout (House Bill 6) to rescue two failing nuclear power plants, while simultaneously gutting the state’s clean energy standards. You see Husted was the Lieutenant Governor of Ohio during the peak of the FirstEnergy bribery scandal. As Lieutenant Governor, Husted testified that he was heavily involved in vetting and gathering information on candidates to lead the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO). DeWine ultimately selected Sam Randazzo—who was secretly paid a $4.3 million bribe by FirstEnergy right before his appointment. Husted of course has denied over and over again that absolutely no knowledge of the bribe. Meanwhile FirstEnergy operated as a primary financial engine for Ohio Republicans, funneling more than $4 million to support the broader statewide ticket. This included over $2.5 million given to the Republican Governors Association's dark money arm to boost the Mike DeWine-Jon Husted ticket.
Then we have good ole Jim Jordan who is a central figure in the June 2025 HBO documentary film Surviving Ohio State.
The film examines the decades-long cover-up of Dr. Richard Strauss, a team doctor who sexually abused at least 177 male student-athletes at Ohio State University between 1979 and 1996. Now Gym was an assistant wrestling coach at Ohio State from 1987 to 1995 and it just so happens multiple former Ohio State wrestlers and referees appear in the documentary and flatly state that Jordan knew about the sexual abuse taking place in the locker rooms.
Not even going to go into JD he’s a real piece of shite… all on his own. He even readily admits he lies to get votes and rile up that MAGA cult by denigrating an entire community in Springfield Ohio with something so absurd, yet people attached their wagons to another “big lie”…
There are 92 days until Midterms, 2026. Send them all the message and vote them all out, all those Rethuglican incumbents .. and even the new ones running in that Rethuglican/MAGA cult .. We no longer in Ohio accept this BS.. We deserve so much better… Flip the State and Congress… also those local wackos, that are running..
So Moreno is a political carpetbagger from Massachusetts, just like Montana's GOP Senator Sheehy, also wealthy and an interloper from Minnesota. I guess they figured they'd be unelectable in blue or purple states, so moved to greener (er, redder) political pastures. Montana's GOP Governor Gianforte is from New Jersey...another wealthy transplanted businessman turned politician. I see a pattern here.
Bernie Moreno grew up in Florida, specifically in the Fort Lauderdale and Pompano Beach areas. Bogotá, Colombia, is where he was born before his family immigrated. They moved to the United States at age five. Moreno was born into a highly prominent, wealthy, and politically connected family in Bogotá, Colombia. Former U.S. diplomats and news investigations have noted that his family's considerable generational wealth goes back decades, providing deep connections to senior government roles in Latin America. Moreno expanded his automotive empire into Massachusetts after first establishing his dealerships in Ohio.
Let’s not negate that Ohio now hosts nearly 50 active white extremist and anti-government groups, placing it among the prominent regional hubs for organized extremist activity tracked on the Southern Poverty Law Center Hate Map. While specific numerical state-by-state rankings fluctuate in annual counts, tracking data places Ohio coming in at #4 to #5 of the states of the top tier nationally for white nationalist and anti-government group presence. What an achievement for Ohio.
All the while Ohio’s higher education ranking dropped significantly in 2026 to 41st in the nation, down from a previous rank of 25th, while its K-12 public school system fell over time from 5th down to 21st as funding was diverted to private schooling alternatives. An Ohio Education Scorecard evaluation lists Ohio at 24th in reading among states. Recent child well-being and education data highlights that roughly 68% of Ohio fourth graders test below proficient reading levels. Then there’s Ohio lost 161,385 residents from Affordable Care Act (ACA) healthcare coverage—marking a 32.4% drop in enrollment that led the nation in percentage decline. The “Highest percentage decline” of any state in the U.S. Ohio has also climbed up into #4 of the states of the people declaring bankruptcy in Quarter 1 in 2026. Wrong direction folks. Ohio is now just behind California, Florida and Texas. Damn the top 5 have what political party in the majority in those states….
It’s way past time to Flip the State and in the Federal government - We deserve so much better than the political party that has the mantra - Keep ‘em Dumb, Keep ‘em Poor, Keep ‘em Sick and Control the Women…
A lot of that is due to previous governor, Taxin' John "The Asshole" Kasich, who was a huge enemy of public education and a paid tool of the for-profit charter school industry. Ohio was ranked #5 in education when he took office from Democratic governor Ted Strickland and began its freewill.
I always say to those heralding THEIR state as the leader in the corruption category, "Once it is perfected in Ohio, it is then shared with the rest of the willing states."
Oh and forgot that Frank LaRose little hand in the mix to possibly clusterfu€k the 2026 Midterms.
Unlike Ohio, dozens of other states—both Democratic and Republican-led—either strictly resisted the DOJ's data demands or restricted their response to data that is already publicly accessible. In fact think the court cases are at 16 to 0 that the stars need to turn over their voter rolls.
Yet here in Ohio in February 2026, our Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose turned over the voter registration data of nearly 8 million Ohio residents to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). The data handed over by the Ohio Secretary of State's office consists of full statewide voter registration databases. The shared records include highly sensitive, typically protected information:
* Full names and home addresses
* Dates of birth
* Driver’s license and state ID numbers
* The last four digits of Social Security numbers
You know the information hackers just love so much…
We all know the federal government requested this extensive data from multiple states to audit and assess compliance with federal election laws, specifically focusing on how states maintain and purge their voter rolls… It’s that SAVE Act..
Frankie "Jim Crow" LaRose is my most depised Ohio politician, replacing former Secretary of Voter Suppress....I mean STATE ...Ken Blackwell, who created havoc in our 2004 election. Hey Frankie, what ever happened to all of those voter fraud cases you "referred" for investigation? I haven't heard of a single one panning out.
Unfortunately, the GOP candidate for SoS (Frankie is term limited) Robert Sprague is promising to be worse, limiting mail-in voting and abolishing drop boxes. if you're in Ohio tell all your friends to vote for Allison Russo!!! Also Annette Blackwell for auditor, the office poor Frankie has been forced to run for to stay in politics since all his attempts to be the U.S. Senate candidate or be appointed have flamed out, Ramaswamy didn't pick him as running mate, and he can't run for attorney general because he's not a lawyer. It's a big step down for him; Annette, currently the mayor of Cleveland inner ring suburb Maple Heights, is a CPA who took her town out of fiscal emergency and actually is excited about the job.
Larry Householder, Matt Huffman. And don't forget Sen. Jon Useless, who hopefully will be defeated by Sherrod Brown in November. While lieutenant governor, Useless was the conduit between First Energy and the governor's office, placing a First Energy lobbyist as the head of the utilities oversight commission. !!!!!
For non-Ohioans, the recent First Energy scandal was the largest corruption scandal in modern Ohio history, that ended up with Speaker Larry Householder in prison where he is to this day, and Sam Randazzo, the aforementioned lobbyist, committing suicide (two of the scandal's players did so.) Sen. Useless is so tainted the stain will never come out. Matt Huffman is the current Speaker of the Ohio House and he's a piece of work as well, leading a House that spends more time holding hearings over trans athletes than figuring out how to restore public school funding already allocated but arbitrarily cut.
It’s an extensive list here in The Most Corrupt State of Ohio. My state ‘Senator’, Jerry Cirino belongs on the list, and lest we forget, the Governor’s own son on the state Supreme Court. And to try and list all the less-than-qualified County Sheriffs would take up most of my day, and my sanity! Yep, as the saying goes, “Ohio, The Heart Of It All”
We see it time and again. Identity is more important to the Right than Values. If you fit a specific narrow definition of Identity, then no forgiveness, no self-reflection, no personal growth, is required according to the Right. They will protect anyone with that Identity no matter what. Whereas the Left is centered on Values; diversity welcomes all good people, no matter their identity and even allowing for people to choose their identity. The Right will never be convinced that a Good Person is better than the Correct Person.
Poindexter, about whom I know nothing, *sounds* pretty great! He’s taking the high road and sticking to issues. “Poindexter has largely avoided leading with the allegations against Miller, saying he entered the race over policy rather than Miller’s personal conduct.”
How refreshing! I think he should let his future democratic buddies in congress take the lead in being loud and condemning Miller (and the flaccid Moreno), and he should maintain his focus on issues pertaining to the nation and OH.
As much as America loves lurid details, we’ve got to start electing people based on their character, their actions, their stances on issues.
Poindexter was pretty impressive when I heard him speak last winter before the primary. he got 37% of the vote in an eight-candidate field which included a former county executive who came in second, and one noted asshole who came in dead last with 1% of the vote.
See, if a republican does something that’s illegal I.e. 30+ felons, or unethical, or nasty say a republican beats up his wife, etc., that’s perfectly acceptable. It’s only reeeaaaly bad if a Democrat does something terrible like wearing a tan suit, for example, now that’s reeeaaally terrible…./S
Thank you once more for laying this all out for us. I am surprised that you still have to explain the pattern of an abuser and the reactions of an abused partner. It should be common knowledge!
Somehow the scandalous is now normalized by Republicans desperate to hold on to power. Power at any price seems to be the watchword.
Mark, you can scratch "seems to be" and insert "is". It's their modus operandi.
And here’s another one. Chuck Edwards in Western NC.
“ The U.S. House Ethics Committee announced Monday afternoon that it is recommending censure for North Carolina’s 11th District Rep. Chuck Edwards, a Republican, who was under investigation for allegations of inappropriate conduct toward two young women who worked in his office.”
https://cardinalpine.com/news/nc-chuck-edwards-censure-investigation/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Cardinal%208.3.26&utm_term=Cardinal%20and%20Pine%20-%20Most%20Engaged%20Audience
Only the best people for the "Christian" party!
The whole MAGA Republican Party is just disgusting from top to the bottom-They’ll justify anything to keep control, no matter who gets hurt.
Ohio would do well to rid itself of both the foul-mouthed Moreno (I reference his appalling, unprofessional behavior toward Dr. Fauci) and the abusive Miller.
We Are Trying. Moreno is not up for re-election, but his co-Senator, Jon Husted is -- against popular former Senator Sherrod Brown, who is currently leading.
Moreno and Miller are not the only ones who need to go. Jim Jordan is so happily complacent with his ridiculously gerrymandered district . . . and he has his own scandals.
Rooting for former Senator Sherrod Brown, and that'll send a message to Moreno: "You're next." Indeed, Jordan is a real stain on the Ohio delegation.
Jay's SK today is the first time I have been made aware that Moreno has a gay son whom he has thrown under the bus. Just when I thought my opinion of him could not go any lower.
I can't help but think of Rob Portman, whose vacated senate seat was won by- uggh- JD Vance when Rob decided to retire. I have always believed that it was honorable of Rob to come out strongly in support of marriage equality; I believe he was the first Republican to do so, and I defend him to this day to anyone who criticizes that he only did it because he has a gay son. Moreno is proof that it takes character to support one's own children in the face of political backlash. Rob was among the last of the decent and honorable Republicans, though I disagreed with him on several issues, I had nothing but respect for his integrity. He also memorably partnered up with his D colleague Sherrod Brown on numerous bills. So, it is that same seat, which was filled by Jon Husted when Vance became VP, which will be filled by Sherrod Brown next year if there is a God, or Karma, or whatever you happen to believe in.
But back to Miller Low Life, I seriously hope that he does not resign, and hope they don't kick him out before the deadline. It sounds like the Democrat has a far better chance of defeating him than whoever might replace him, who dare I say, could even be worse. I'm not familiar with either of those guys, as Miller's soon-to-be former District is about as far away from me as you can get in Ohio, just suspicious of anyone who would willingly join that MAGA club of deplorables.
Robbie was pretty spineless; we called him Rob "The Jellyfish" Portman. But he wasn't entirely deplorable. He did get some flak for being against same-sex marriage until his son came out, but hey, whatever it takes to get someone to do the right thing.
I am very familiar with the names mentioned and they are both laughable. Coughlin hasn't been in office for a decade and a half and he lives in Oh-13 (Em Sykes' district near Akron). I don't know if he can run from outside the district but it wouldn't be a good look, especially against an opponent firmly rooted in the district's inner ring suburbs as Brian Poindexter is.
Oh never mind, I looked more closely at your comment and realized you called him spineless, which I assume refers to his inability to say anything bad about his party going off the rails. I regrettably have to agree with you on that.
I've always been one who believes that it's important to welcome all allies, no matter how, or how long, it took them to get there!
Was the jellyfish characterization related just to that issue, or more broadly?
I worked closely with him and his staff, both in Cincinnati and in Washington, but only on issues that related to my industry. In my experience, he was a reliable supporter of affordable Housing and Community Development.
In the end, he was too timid to stand up to Trump, and I think that led to his retirement. That was/is the dilemma of the GOP: you go with Trump or get out.
100% agree.
Amen, Christina!!
Somehow Gymmie's scandal never seemed to graze him. How fast would a Democrat be out of office if they turned a blind eye to a serial sexual abuser and when told about him by a student said "That's just how Dr. Strauss is."
"the foul-mouthed Moreno," yes. I personally don't care if a senator is gay, or if a senator is bi. But if he is gay or bi AND attacks LGBQT people and laws and spews hate speech against them and says they should not hold responsible positions in society, then his being gay/bi counts against him in terms of hypocrisy, immorality, lying, and pure evil. For a straight senator to say or do this kind of hate speech would be 100% wrong. For a gay/bi senator to say or do it is 200% wrong.
Her father, Rep. Bernie Moreno, launched a rage- and epithet-filled attack on Dr. Fauci; I had to wonder if this daughter was used to being abused before her marriage.
Same thing crossed my mind. His attack on Fauci was just vile. Tempers like that don’t stay contained.
You hit the nail on the head! Especially children who are raised by abusers grow up (trained) to be the target of abusers as adults! Trained not to have a healthy ego, not to speak up for themselves--used to just cowering and "taking" it. A lifetime of damage is done, until one day, with any luck, these people get sick of it and start kicking ass in their own defence.
To anyone who has ever survived living with an abusive person, Miller's rationalization is SO effing familiar. They count on the abused to blame it on themselves--they condition you to do that--there is something wrong with YOU. You're scared!! Of course you're NICE to them! He shouldn't be in any position of responsibility--he REFUSES to take responsibility!
Great article, Jay.
I have several friends who are survivors of domestic abuse and this story does sound incredibly familiar.
Abusive partners are experts at gaslighting! This passage of Jay's post definitely set off alarm bells for me:
"Miller also used the livestream to directly question his ex‑wife’s credibility, saying she has struggled with “significant mental health challenges” that he suggested contributed to the allegations. He framed his attack as motivated by concern for their daughter rather than an attempt to discredit his ex-wife.
And the idea that her father knew about the allegations and did nothing absolutely disgusts me!
Oh these people are masters at putting blame on everyone but themselves. That daughter needs to be kept away from him before it's too late. I worry for her. You grow up with a father like that and you believe that you can do nothing right. Grow up afraid of everyone and thinking you are worthless. The grandfather should be ashamed of himself--the damage he's ignoring. (And I might add, per HIS story, two-year-olds don't or shouldn't wear seat-belts! So that's b-s!
Saying his wife has mental health issues ("She's crazy") is so predictable and cliched for abusers.
Nice title there Jay.
😁
OH my! I read the headline and thought you were writing about Stephen Miller but now there’s TWO Hell-is-not-good enough-for-them Millers!
Just make it stop!!!
lol
It is not a laughing matter IMO
The way ifixartwork phrased their angst was funny, to me. Both Millers are horrible; I’m not laughing at that. Chill.
Same.
I hope Miller refuses to bow out, and then gets his ass ROYALLY kicked.
It wouldn't bother me to hear that a baby beater got his ass physically kicked, either.
Of course he won't bow out. These sociopaths are oblivious to everyone and everything other than themselves.
Considering Ohio's track record, I certainly wouldn't want to bet on what line would need to be crossed before Ohio voters say "enough".
But if anyone wants to help elect Democrats in the state, here are some current postcard campaigns:
* Activate America (www.activateamerica.vote) has a statewide campaign in support of Sherrod Brown. The target audience is voters who often skip midterms with a special focus on younger and newly registered voters.
* Field Team 6 (https://postcards.fieldteam6.org/) is in the latter stages of a voter registration outreach campaign in OH. They do partisan voter registration and have a good track record of registering Democrats and left-leaning independents.
* Postcards to Swing States (https://turnoutpac.org/postcards/) has get-out-the-vote (GOTV) campaigns focused on low-propensity but progressive leaning voters in many swing states and districts including OH.
It depends. My district, on the other side of the Cuyahoga County region from this district, is so blue that a lot of our activists are heading crosstown help Brian Poindexter beat Max Miller. it's kind of a project of our women's caucus; a lot of them are working on this campaign. We are represented by the estimable progressive Shontel Brown who gets 80% of the vote in every election.
Thank you Jay. Here in Ohio there is a plethora of vile creatures who just so happen to be in this Rethuglican, MAGA cult occupying in both the Senate, House and just so close to the Oval.
We just don’t have Max Miller who seems to think that his wife and past girlfriends were his often punching bags, but his own daughter. Now his father n’ law who just so happens to recently make a name for himself even more by ripping into Dr. Fauci in the Senate committee hearing yelling “Who the f* do you think you were? Has his own possible closeted issues, but what’s on record and went through the courts is Moreno was ordered to pay approximately $416,000 to two former employees of his Massachusetts car dealership following a wage theft lawsuit. Allen the while he was shredding those overtime documents. Even better yet Moreno subsequently settled 14 other wage-related lawsuits brought forward by other former salespeople at his dealerships. The financial payout details for those 14 settlements remain undisclosed. All the while this information was known to the voters of Ohio, yet they voted for this Felon. Then we have the other Senator Jon Husted, who was selected by Governor DeWine by the promotion JD received. Now Jon Husted is up for election in November 2026 to keep that seat. Husted has his own nefarious background with the FirstEnergy bribery scandal which is the largest public corruption scheme in Ohio’s history. In exchange for nearly $60 million in bribes funneled to Ohio politicians, FirstEnergy secured a $1.3 billion taxpayer-funded bailout (House Bill 6) to rescue two failing nuclear power plants, while simultaneously gutting the state’s clean energy standards. You see Husted was the Lieutenant Governor of Ohio during the peak of the FirstEnergy bribery scandal. As Lieutenant Governor, Husted testified that he was heavily involved in vetting and gathering information on candidates to lead the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO). DeWine ultimately selected Sam Randazzo—who was secretly paid a $4.3 million bribe by FirstEnergy right before his appointment. Husted of course has denied over and over again that absolutely no knowledge of the bribe. Meanwhile FirstEnergy operated as a primary financial engine for Ohio Republicans, funneling more than $4 million to support the broader statewide ticket. This included over $2.5 million given to the Republican Governors Association's dark money arm to boost the Mike DeWine-Jon Husted ticket.
Then we have good ole Jim Jordan who is a central figure in the June 2025 HBO documentary film Surviving Ohio State.
The film examines the decades-long cover-up of Dr. Richard Strauss, a team doctor who sexually abused at least 177 male student-athletes at Ohio State University between 1979 and 1996. Now Gym was an assistant wrestling coach at Ohio State from 1987 to 1995 and it just so happens multiple former Ohio State wrestlers and referees appear in the documentary and flatly state that Jordan knew about the sexual abuse taking place in the locker rooms.
Not even going to go into JD he’s a real piece of shite… all on his own. He even readily admits he lies to get votes and rile up that MAGA cult by denigrating an entire community in Springfield Ohio with something so absurd, yet people attached their wagons to another “big lie”…
There are 92 days until Midterms, 2026. Send them all the message and vote them all out, all those Rethuglican incumbents .. and even the new ones running in that Rethuglican/MAGA cult .. We no longer in Ohio accept this BS.. We deserve so much better… Flip the State and Congress… also those local wackos, that are running..
So Moreno is a political carpetbagger from Massachusetts, just like Montana's GOP Senator Sheehy, also wealthy and an interloper from Minnesota. I guess they figured they'd be unelectable in blue or purple states, so moved to greener (er, redder) political pastures. Montana's GOP Governor Gianforte is from New Jersey...another wealthy transplanted businessman turned politician. I see a pattern here.
Bernie Moreno grew up in Florida, specifically in the Fort Lauderdale and Pompano Beach areas. Bogotá, Colombia, is where he was born before his family immigrated. They moved to the United States at age five. Moreno was born into a highly prominent, wealthy, and politically connected family in Bogotá, Colombia. Former U.S. diplomats and news investigations have noted that his family's considerable generational wealth goes back decades, providing deep connections to senior government roles in Latin America. Moreno expanded his automotive empire into Massachusetts after first establishing his dealerships in Ohio.
He’s a cesspool of corruption..
I have very much appreciated the education you have provided on Moreno and Ohio politics. Thank you.
Ken Paxton is a carpetbagger too, who didn't live in Texas until he was out of law school.
And, you left out all the miscreants holding 'office' in Columbus. As I always say, "Ohio, THE Most Corrupt State in the Union."
Ah yes Daniel Ohio is by far the most corrupt of the states.
https://snyder.substack.com/p/ethnic-cleansing-in-ohio-updated?r=viplr&utm_medium=ios
Let’s not negate that Ohio now hosts nearly 50 active white extremist and anti-government groups, placing it among the prominent regional hubs for organized extremist activity tracked on the Southern Poverty Law Center Hate Map. While specific numerical state-by-state rankings fluctuate in annual counts, tracking data places Ohio coming in at #4 to #5 of the states of the top tier nationally for white nationalist and anti-government group presence. What an achievement for Ohio.
All the while Ohio’s higher education ranking dropped significantly in 2026 to 41st in the nation, down from a previous rank of 25th, while its K-12 public school system fell over time from 5th down to 21st as funding was diverted to private schooling alternatives. An Ohio Education Scorecard evaluation lists Ohio at 24th in reading among states. Recent child well-being and education data highlights that roughly 68% of Ohio fourth graders test below proficient reading levels. Then there’s Ohio lost 161,385 residents from Affordable Care Act (ACA) healthcare coverage—marking a 32.4% drop in enrollment that led the nation in percentage decline. The “Highest percentage decline” of any state in the U.S. Ohio has also climbed up into #4 of the states of the people declaring bankruptcy in Quarter 1 in 2026. Wrong direction folks. Ohio is now just behind California, Florida and Texas. Damn the top 5 have what political party in the majority in those states….
https://www.statsamerica.org/sip/rank_list.aspx?rank_label=brupt3_2_a&item_in=7&ct=S18
Gotta just love Ohio the cesspool of a unified Republican Party in control since 2011. Such great success that they have as a track record…
https://www.splcenter.org/hate-map/
It’s way past time to Flip the State and in the Federal government - We deserve so much better than the political party that has the mantra - Keep ‘em Dumb, Keep ‘em Poor, Keep ‘em Sick and Control the Women…
A lot of that is due to previous governor, Taxin' John "The Asshole" Kasich, who was a huge enemy of public education and a paid tool of the for-profit charter school industry. Ohio was ranked #5 in education when he took office from Democratic governor Ted Strickland and began its freewill.
I always say to those heralding THEIR state as the leader in the corruption category, "Once it is perfected in Ohio, it is then shared with the rest of the willing states."
Oh and forgot that Frank LaRose little hand in the mix to possibly clusterfu€k the 2026 Midterms.
Unlike Ohio, dozens of other states—both Democratic and Republican-led—either strictly resisted the DOJ's data demands or restricted their response to data that is already publicly accessible. In fact think the court cases are at 16 to 0 that the stars need to turn over their voter rolls.
Yet here in Ohio in February 2026, our Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose turned over the voter registration data of nearly 8 million Ohio residents to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). The data handed over by the Ohio Secretary of State's office consists of full statewide voter registration databases. The shared records include highly sensitive, typically protected information:
* Full names and home addresses
* Dates of birth
* Driver’s license and state ID numbers
* The last four digits of Social Security numbers
You know the information hackers just love so much…
We all know the federal government requested this extensive data from multiple states to audit and assess compliance with federal election laws, specifically focusing on how states maintain and purge their voter rolls… It’s that SAVE Act..
Frankie "Jim Crow" LaRose is my most depised Ohio politician, replacing former Secretary of Voter Suppress....I mean STATE ...Ken Blackwell, who created havoc in our 2004 election. Hey Frankie, what ever happened to all of those voter fraud cases you "referred" for investigation? I haven't heard of a single one panning out.
Unfortunately, the GOP candidate for SoS (Frankie is term limited) Robert Sprague is promising to be worse, limiting mail-in voting and abolishing drop boxes. if you're in Ohio tell all your friends to vote for Allison Russo!!! Also Annette Blackwell for auditor, the office poor Frankie has been forced to run for to stay in politics since all his attempts to be the U.S. Senate candidate or be appointed have flamed out, Ramaswamy didn't pick him as running mate, and he can't run for attorney general because he's not a lawyer. It's a big step down for him; Annette, currently the mayor of Cleveland inner ring suburb Maple Heights, is a CPA who took her town out of fiscal emergency and actually is excited about the job.
I believe LaRose was first, and other states soon followed. With that, I rest my case.
Larry Householder, Matt Huffman. And don't forget Sen. Jon Useless, who hopefully will be defeated by Sherrod Brown in November. While lieutenant governor, Useless was the conduit between First Energy and the governor's office, placing a First Energy lobbyist as the head of the utilities oversight commission. !!!!!
For non-Ohioans, the recent First Energy scandal was the largest corruption scandal in modern Ohio history, that ended up with Speaker Larry Householder in prison where he is to this day, and Sam Randazzo, the aforementioned lobbyist, committing suicide (two of the scandal's players did so.) Sen. Useless is so tainted the stain will never come out. Matt Huffman is the current Speaker of the Ohio House and he's a piece of work as well, leading a House that spends more time holding hearings over trans athletes than figuring out how to restore public school funding already allocated but arbitrarily cut.
It’s an extensive list here in The Most Corrupt State of Ohio. My state ‘Senator’, Jerry Cirino belongs on the list, and lest we forget, the Governor’s own son on the state Supreme Court. And to try and list all the less-than-qualified County Sheriffs would take up most of my day, and my sanity! Yep, as the saying goes, “Ohio, The Heart Of It All”
We see it time and again. Identity is more important to the Right than Values. If you fit a specific narrow definition of Identity, then no forgiveness, no self-reflection, no personal growth, is required according to the Right. They will protect anyone with that Identity no matter what. Whereas the Left is centered on Values; diversity welcomes all good people, no matter their identity and even allowing for people to choose their identity. The Right will never be convinced that a Good Person is better than the Correct Person.
Daughter: "Daddy, Billy is beating me up on the playground every day!"
Father [two years later]: "Billy needs help. I'm going to talk to the teacher."
These people continue to disgust me.
Poindexter, about whom I know nothing, *sounds* pretty great! He’s taking the high road and sticking to issues. “Poindexter has largely avoided leading with the allegations against Miller, saying he entered the race over policy rather than Miller’s personal conduct.”
How refreshing! I think he should let his future democratic buddies in congress take the lead in being loud and condemning Miller (and the flaccid Moreno), and he should maintain his focus on issues pertaining to the nation and OH.
As much as America loves lurid details, we’ve got to start electing people based on their character, their actions, their stances on issues.
If we did, Poindexter would be a shoe-in.
A PAC is running anti-Miller ads right now on local Cleveland television
We are drowning in lurid details. More like quicksand.
You said it! And there are so many. It’s like the nation lives inside a tabloid magazine.
(Murdoch *does* run unwitting, unthinking Americans’ minds, come to think of it)
Poindexter was pretty impressive when I heard him speak last winter before the primary. he got 37% of the vote in an eight-candidate field which included a former county executive who came in second, and one noted asshole who came in dead last with 1% of the vote.
See, if a republican does something that’s illegal I.e. 30+ felons, or unethical, or nasty say a republican beats up his wife, etc., that’s perfectly acceptable. It’s only reeeaaaly bad if a Democrat does something terrible like wearing a tan suit, for example, now that’s reeeaaally terrible…./S
Thank you once more for laying this all out for us. I am surprised that you still have to explain the pattern of an abuser and the reactions of an abused partner. It should be common knowledge!
I know I shouldn’t be shocked by any of this but my reaction was-Wow, just Wow! Anger and disgust.
Thanks, Jay for your excellent reporting.