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>> three republicans running in the ohio senate race took part in a candidate forum. matt dolan, bernie marino, an ohio's secretary of state frank larose talked about immigration, reproductive rights, and the u.s. economy. spectrum news 1 ohio is the hos t of this forum. ♪ >> hello, and welcome to the republican u.s. senate candidate forum. i am your host of "in focus" and your host tonight, mike kallmeyer. we are sitting down whether three candidates at the university of findlay on where they stand on the issues that are important to ohio voters. we put together this hour-long forum instead of a debate to give candidates an opportunity to share their ideas with voters. we want to thank the ohio republican party, of course, and

the university of findlay for making this possible. i want to introduce the candidates, and a reminder to the audience, this is now your chance to applaud as we introduce the candidates. we kindly ask that you hold off on applause for the rest of the forum. state senator matt dolan is from cuyahoga county. he has served in the ohio house and ohio senate. while in office he was chair of the finance appropriations committee, working with the legislature to establish the state budget. we appreciate you being here. sen. dolan: good to be here. [applause] mike: secretary of state frank larose also joins us. prior to becoming secretary of state in 2018, larose served in the u.s. army and earned the army green beret. since becoming secretary, larose has made election integrity one of his top priorities. secretary, thank you. sec. larose: thank you, mike. [applause]

mike: and finally, businessmen bernie marino from westlake, ohio. his family migrated from colombia when he was five years old. he's been an entrepreneur since 2005, when he purchased his first car dealership. start moreno -- mr. moreno, thank you so much. mr. moreno: thank you. [applause] mike: well done with the applause. before we begin the forum, i want to outline to the candidates that we will answer each question -- the person answering the first question has been selected through a random draw. throughout the form the person you answered first will go to the end of the line for the next question and then that rotation will continue. each candidate will have 90 seconds to answer the question directed to them. candidates should refrain from dropping one another, as follow-ups will be allowed. i will prompt all follow-ups come and the candidates will begin 45 seconds to respond.

we have selected candidates from the questions driven by topics that are of interest to ohio's republican voters let's get started. immigration and the border, they have defined the last few months of american politics. we should start right there. we are going to start with secretary of state frank larose. if you could prescribe a fix for a u.s. immigration system that by all accounts is broken, what are the big-ticket items you would propose? sec. larose: i've been very clear about this, mike. this comes from my experience. i've served on the border. it is not just a photo op or field trip for me. i spent time there in uniform. my client is very clear, three military divisions deployed to the border -- by the way, the president could do this immediately. three divisions of the 60,000 troops. that is the only entity in the federal government that can stop the invasion that is currently happening. they don't need to be there

long. it would be a temporary deployment until the wall could be completed. that is the second step, complete the wall from the gulf of mexico to the pacific ocean. walls are great but they are not enough. you need men with guns guarding the wall and victor the border patrol is resourced -- make sure the border patrol is resourced to do that work. we need to define these cartels as foreign terrorist organizations. we know exact what is happening, precursor chemicals with china that are mixed together in mexico and smuggled across the border. we have to be clear that we are willing to use any force that we need to use in order to stop these people from killing our fellow americans. we need to be clear about deportation. anybody that came here illegally should be deported. i've said we need to start with the biden surge and go on to the dangerous people and keep on working until we have deported everyone we possibly can. next, no amnesty. no citizenship, no birthright

citizenship, no access to the asylum process for anyone who comes illegally. mike: bernie moreno, a bipartisan group of u.s. senators recently brokered a deal that would impose tougher asylum and border laws. if you were in the senate, would you have supported that? tell us why or why not. mr. moreno: thank you, mike, for the question. i read the bill. this is the fun part of being a candidate's spouse, they get to watch me on sunday night reading 300 57 pages. it is absolutely crazy what was in that bill. it had nothing to do with border security. you had giveaways for other countries that would have been debilitating. the reality is what we should do is very simple, we need to reform our asylum laws. typically the career politician path is more money, more money. we need to reform our asylum laws which say that if you enter this country illegally, anything not through a port of entry, you are immediately returned. we return you immediately, and

you forfeit your right for asylum for life. the second piece is when you come through a designated port of entry, you have to stay in mexico or canada while your claim is being heard. i agree with frank, obviously finishing the wall. that is what the border patrol agents want, that is what we should do. and we should designate the cartels as foreign terrorist organizations. that allows us to seize their money. it is not a military issue, it is seizing their money issue. i'm happy to hear my opponent talking about no amnesty and not allowing anybody in this country to state illegally. that is different from what he said a few months ago, but it is important that we make certain that if you are in this country illegally, we remove anybody in this country illegally. that is what we need to have happen in d.c. mike: frank larose, you have 30 seconds to respond. sec. larose: i've been consistent that deportation is one of the things we need to use as a tool. if you come into this country illegally, you will be deported. promising you can do port 20 many people overnight or within

a few month or years is an unrealistic promise. but i've been clear that we will do for those who have come here illegally and have been clear about no amnesty. birthright citizenship, any of those things -- lifetime ban to anybody who comes into the country illegally. it is remarkable to hear him say this because he wrote a column a few years ago where he said there should be a path to citizenship. perhaps his opinion changed. mike: matt dolan, immigration plays a huge role in keeping our economy going. how would you balance the need for workers in so many industries from agriculture to computing with changes to immigration? sen. dolan: thanks, mike, and thanks, university of findlay and spectrum for hosting us tonight. you could have been asking that exact same question to all three of us for the past 30-plus years, because the border has been a problem in our country for that long. i've been crystal clear about what we need to do, because under president biden and sherrod brown, it's not a border problem, it is a border crisis,

and it's an invasion. we must secure and seal our border. that means we are temporary closing our border to immigration. while we are doing that, we are getting our security up, we are getting more border patrol with more wall, more technology, remain in mexico. i have already determined that the terrorists are foreign organizations. we have got to declare that fentanyl is weapon of mass destruction. that is not just a campaign slogan, that allows us to take those ships coming from china bringing a poison into mexico coming our way. we can do something about it. we need to secure the border. no more benefits to those who are here. when that happens, mike, when that happens, while we are temporarily closing the border, we will reopen it and remain in mexico, but i'm different from my opponents. if you committed a crime while you are here, you should be deported. if you're not willing to work, you should be deported. ohio farmers, ohio businessmen,

ohio tourist industry, they need workers. if you want h-1b one, h2b2 visa, you can stay. otherwise you will be deported. mike: we have time for a quick follow-up. 45 seconds teach, same order. frank larose, do you support finishing the border wall no matter the cost? we will talk about the economy next. everything has a big price tag. sec. larose: listen, a 2000-mile land border is a long border. we have assets we can use. when i was deployed to the border, part of our mission was building roads for the border patrol. i was down there with the corps of engineers. contractors can be part of that as well. finishing the wall is important. i want to follow-up up on that senate so-called porterville. that was a complete -- so-called border bill. that was a complete disaster. take a look at that built, it's an example of what is wrong with washington. it is called the border security

bill, but what it really did was fund sanctuary city and give the president the ability to continue this amnesty process he has been engaging with for the four years of his administration. it's a disaster, and it's a good thing it died. mike: mr. moreno, same question, support finishing the border wall moment of the cost? mr. moreno: the border wall was negotiated by president trump. biden went back to where we were with president trump -- border was secure with president trump, the lowest number of illegal crossings. to matt's point, they have already broken our laws. they broke our laws by being in this country illegally. as somebody who came into this country legally, to hear republicans talk about allowing illegals to skip the line when you have millions of people that want to come here the legal way, it's exactly what is wrong with our system. we need to stop rewarding people that break the line and reward people that are waiting and have taken time to follow our laws and process and allow those people to stay here who have broken the law already.

they are already lawbreakers by definition. it is completely wrong. mike: matt, final 45 seconds on the subject. do you support finishing the border wall at all cost? sen. dolan: let me refer to what just happened. bernie doesn't understand, the dilemma he has had amongst himself is the dilemma washington has had for 30 years. now he wants to deport children. that is the exact same argument we have had in washington for over 30 years. what happens in between? nothing. the border does not get secured. that is why i say seal the border. let's fix it. let's stop the bleeding. we have a patient that is bleeding out and you want to talk about cosmetic surgery. let's protect the border good look, the wall needs to be finished. there was more wall built under president obama than under president trump. that is not a knock on president trump, it just tells you how out

of step president biden is. give our border patrol legal authority to act as law enforcement officers. when i was down at the border, one guy said he felt like a walmart greeter. mike: let me give bernie moreno a chance to respond. mr. moreno: it is not complicated. the asylum laws are a loophole. we need to stop rewarding people who are here illegally. i've never called for a path to citizenship for illegals ever. president trump indoors to meet. he knows the -- president trump endorsed me. he knows the three of us. jim jordan endorsed me. j.d. vance endorsed me. he knows the three of us. he knows i will be the strictest and toughest on illegal immigration. this is nonsense conversation from these two guys. the reality is nobody is going to be tougher on illegal immigration than me. i'm the guy who followed the law to come here. you ask any legal immigrant to

this country, and when you hear things like "you are going to give them visa preferences," etc., we need to deport anybody in this country illegally, no matter what it takes to make that happen. that is the answer to this, plus changing our asylum laws. [applause] mike: hold the applause, please, if you could. he did say "you two guys." sec. larose: this is why you can't trust this guy. three years ago when he wanted to be popular with his fellow corporate elites, he wrote an article saying there should be a path to citizenship. my people share it, it is his own words. now that he wants to convince people he is a conservative, he has changed his tune. which bernie are we going to get in washington should he have the chance to go there? mike: let's turn our attention to the economy. you're first. >> mentioned the two of us -- mike: you go first.

[laughter] key keep it short. sen. dolan: both of you guys are reinventing yourself on immigration. frank, you were with no labels, which had a clear path to citizenship. bernie, you were quoted on a path to residency and all illegals becoming u.s. citizens. 0 bernie moreno, you are -- mike: bernie moreno, you are first on the next one. the second big topic these days, the economy. unemployment is at record lows in the stock market is at record highs, and yet people still feel the economy is headed in the wrong direction. what is your take on where the economy is? you can comment on the other things as well. mr. moreno: working-class americans and seniors are getting crushed, crushed by a government that wants to tell them the money they didn't confiscate from them, they want to know how to spend it. pushing electric pickles, solar

panels -- electric vehicles, solar panels. grocery prices out of control, given by government spending and an attack on american energy. this is findlay, ohio. we should be unleashing american energy and being an energy-dominant country. instead we have this move towards windmills, solar panels. we need coal, when he natural gas, we need oil. we need massively cut government spending. you know is not going to cut government spending, career politicians. there is not one career politician i can point to at a time where they cut spending. we need outsiders and businesspeople in washington, d.c. who's the less outsider who went to d.c. and got stuff done? -- last outsider who went to d.c. and got stuff done? president trump. that is why people want to stop electing people who look at it as a job, look at it as a career. elected office in d.c. was never

meant to be a jobs program for people who couldn't make it in the private sector. [applause] that is what we need more than anything else to solve these problems, people who know how to make those things happen. that is the difference in this campaign between me and my opponents. mike: matt dolan, you have been in state government for many years, and states have to balance their budgets. what would you do to fix the process in washington, the budget process? what are some the things you advocate for to balance the budget? sen. dolan: you said it, the first thing we have to do is what i've done my entire professional life, whether it be the private sector of public sector. let's talk the public sector. i have balanced budgets. the reason we don't spend in ohio more than our revenues, that is what we need to start in washington. not only that can we create economic activity so our revenues increase. i've cut her taxes, given parents the right to choose how and where the child gets educated. we have invested in infrastructure so we can create a growing economy.

those of the same things we need to do in washington. make sure we do not spend more than we bring in. create economic growth, create an economic engine. it is not happening under president biden and sherrod brown. it costs ohio families $11,000 more a year. you know it when you pump your gas, you know it when you turn the television on. people don't feel secure. you talk to a small businessman and they don't know whether they should expand or not. this is what we need to do in washington, make sure we understand that we have to make very difficult choices. i've made the difficult choices in my career. not everyone always agrees with what i've got in my career. but you know you understand because i listen to ohio republicans all over the state, you know i am acting in the best interest of ohio, that i'm working each and every day to make ohioans' lives better. i'm not worried about my political career, i'm worried about you. that is how i'm going to

approach the problems we are facing in washington. mike: flank larose, -- frank larose, america has a debt problem. it is going. how should congress address the long-term fiscal challenge? what policies would you advocate for? sec. larose: $34 trillion is not sustainable, it is generational theft. we have a spending problem. federal revenues are near an all-time high. the problem is it seems like one thing that democratic and republican elites in washington agree on, spending more of your money. cutting taxes and controlling the growth of government, cutting the growth of government, streamlining regulations can that is the solution. the premise of your initial question to bernie is economic statistics look right. -after this question a number -- i have been asked this question a number of times for people, why do you say the economy is bad. if you live off stock portfolio or trust fund, may be the economy is doing well for you.

if you are a normal ohio when working in hourly job, everything costs more but wages have not kept up. normal ohioans is it our kitchen table and figure out how we are going to pay the bills at the end of the month. the path to prosperity is the old engine of human prosperity, the free market. the trump tax cuts should be made permanent. streamline regulations to get bureaucrats out of the way. in doing energy explosion. findlay, ohio, has been a great source of american pride as an energy city. we need to drill for oil, drill for gas, mine for coal. it is remarkable to hear mr. moreno say this because he wrote a column a few years ago, an op-ed column where he said there should be more government subsidies for wind and solar. that is what biden and brown want to do. mike: you are first anyway, but if you could respond to that as well. mr. moreno: i was against hb 6. these guys weren't.

they are going to have to answer for their involvement in that schedule, different audience than the one here tonight. mike: let me follow-up up on the economy question -- [applause] can you please hold the applause, please? thank you so much. bernie moreno, quick answer on these for each of you three. what should the minimum wage for workers be? should there even be one? mr. moreno: the markets of the best way to determine what wages should be. someone who has employed thousands of people in ohio, a good business owner knows that you pay good benefits, you pay good wages, you get good people. at the end of the day, the markets will flush that out and make certain that you get workers that get a good job. what government's role in that should be is make certain we have the lowest possible regulation don't impede business growth, that we have good schools that are not indoctrinating our kids, make sure they are graduating with

good jobs that pay well, trade schools, not always pushing people to ecology majors, but things that make a good career. those of the types of things that when we invest our government in good education, we solve a lot that problem. minimum wage is not intended to be a livable wage. we want to make sure everybody has the opportunity to grow their wages as much as possible. mike: use your 45 seconds with the minimum wage question as well. sen. dolan: i'm glad to hear my opponents have been talking about all the things we need to do in ohio at the washington level. look, minimum wage is not intended to be a livable wage. i've employed people. we started some people at a wage. the purpose of doing that was to inspire them to work harder. if you want to earn a higher wage, work harder and make a living out of it. the democrats under sherrod

brown want to turn minimum wage into a livable wage. he has no idea how that works. you know what that means? if we continuously raise the minimum wage, all that means is everything becomes more expensive for you. because if you raise the minimum wage, you want to raise -- you have to raise everything else, you gotta cover your costs. mike: frank larose, minimum wage, should there be one? sec. larose: it is well-known that the american path to prosperity's three things, hard-working, ingenuity, access to resources, and the freedom to make those to work together. part of the challenge with these government interventions like so-called minimum wage is it has a distorting effect on the market. the market is the best way to set wages. this is one of those things that we need to be on the lookout for an ohio, because you have heard me warning about this. there is an effort to amend into our constitution a massive increase in minimum wage that

would result in unemployment and loss of businesses. all of us seem to agree that there shouldn't be a rise in the minimum wage and the market should do this. mr. moreno has had a problem not even paying people the wages that they have earned in his business and had to settle a lawsuit as a result of this. mike: let's move on, but i gotta give you -- [applause] please hold the applause. mr. moreno: you think that with career politics you would have somebody with a record -- this is what they do. this is what career politicians do. this is why they don't want businesspeople and outsiders in their camp this is why guys like this get continually reelected, because they have taken a business person and they try to make the worst part of their business -- i am proud of the business i built, frank. i'm proud i took a business from nothing and built a great company. for you to disparage me -- talk

about that instead of trying to take shots at me. i expect that from the liberal media, i expect those kinds of attacks. i don't expect it from republicans, to use liberal media talking points against republicans. mike: thank you so much. fentanyl, next subject. tens of thousands of ohioans have died in the last decade from opioid overdoses. matt dolan, what policies would you advocate for to crack down on overdoses and the use of opioids? sen. dolan: once again, it is not what i'm advocating for, it is what i've been able to accomplish and do, and what i want to continue to do as a u.s. senator. this is real, folks. people are dying. i met joe. he lost his son adam because adam was trying to study for an exam so he took a drug he probably shouldn't have taken, but he found out it was laced with fentanyl, and he died. we have got to stop this.

it starts at what i talked about before. fentanyl needs to be declared a weapon of mass destruction. i've done it in the state and we need to do it at the federal level. that allows us to recognize who's to blame here. it is china and the cartels. china is providing the ingredients to make this attentional, and fentanyl -- to make this fentanyl, and fentanyl is coming to us from the cartels. we have got to stop that. we must secure until the border. that's what i mean, you stop it. no one is getting across until we know we are ready to interdict all those folks who bring it here. and it is also human. we have to recognize this addiction can be overcome. and so when you don't spend more than your revenues, but you create an economic environment to increase your revenues, you have the ability to do what people are crying for, and that is to provide more substance-abuse treatment throughout the state.

because of my work, we are going to have that now so people can get treated, about to sober living, and defeat this addiction from fentanyl. mike: frank larose, fentanyl, how do you attack it, how do you best work with law enforcement? sec. larose: when i was serving on the u.s.-mexico border, we would go with boarded patrol at night and find families who were groups of people that claim to be families crossing the desert and holding precious children in their arms. we would search them, and we would find bags of cocaine in the diapers of these children. they thought we wouldn't look there. it is worse now. -- that was 24 years ago. anyone who would jeopardize the life of a child that weighs the kind of person i can't understand. but these cartels are getting the chemicals from china. biden has not held xi responsible, he just took his word on this one they met in california. china needs to be held responsible. these cartels need to be defined as foreign terrorist organizations.

this is one thing where we differ. i was accused of being a responsible for saying we would use the military if needed to make sure they stop killing our families. this is 200 people a day in this country who are dying from federal overdoses. if mexico is willing to work with us, we will work with them. if they are not, we will use the full force of the federal government, sanctions, and lethal force if necessary to stop them from killing fellow americans. but also it means addiction treatment, help for families that have dealt with the scourge, and that is the three legged stool, making sure the people who need help get help, making sure we stop the flow of this into the country, and hold those accountable who are bringing it in. mike: bernie moreno, we are at the crossroads in ohio. what are the contributing factors to this opioid misuse? how do we tack this -- attack this? mr. moreno: you look at what happened during covid where we locked down people and close

businesses. that through kerosene on this. and with biden, you have people not too far from here who don't know the american dream of being able to own a home and raise her family and a safe community within their reach. we have to deal with depression issues and make sure we have mental-health treatment, but also make sure we have a vibrant economy where people feel like they have a shot at living the actual american dream of being able to afford a home. today in america, it takes $114,000 a year to afford a home. three years ago that was $60,000. an average car payment is $800 a month. this used to be $200 or $300 a month. we need to drive down the price of goods and services and make sure we provide people a path to a good working class life that they can advance from. that is the root cause. of course we have to make certain that we end the drug

trafficking that has been allowed to come across our border. we have to make certain we get very tough on china. nothing leaves china by accident. they know what they are doing. and yet we are not holding them accountable at all for the role in poisoning america. that is weakness from joe biden that we will change in january when we reelect president trump. mike: believe it or not, we have reached the halfway point. take a sip of water as well. if you are now just joining us, we want to welcome you to the university of findlay. they are our hosts for the republican u.s. senate candidate forum. we are joined by state senator frank: -- matt dolan, secretary of state frank larose, and businessman bernie moreno, each of them seeking the republican nomination to that challenge incumbent senator democrat sherrod brown. we thank you all for joining us. frank larose, first answer to the next topic. there is no more coveted

endorsement in the republican party that the former president donald trump-- than the former president donald trump. what is your message to voters who place significant value on the former president's endorsement? why should they overlook that to choose you? sec. larose: you want a proven, tested conservative. i'm the only one on the stage with a 100% pro-life voting record, endorsed by ohio right to life. i'm the only one with a 100% pro-second amendment voting record, endorsed by buckeye firearms and other gun rights groups throughout the state. on the one that doesn't just say it, i'm the one that has proven it, but i am also the one that can defeat sherrod brown. that is something that really matters. that is what this is about, we need to defeat sherrod brown and replace him with someone who shares our values. i'm the one who checks both of those boxes. i've been a longtime supporter of president trump's, supported him in 2016, went to work with him on his inaugural

committee, i endorsed him in this campaign. i will be a great ally of president trump's when he is in the white house and i'm serving in the senate. one of the first jobs of a senator is to work with the white house on who gets appointed and who gets confirmed to these cabinet positions. in that sense, in the first few months of the office is when you make some of your most weighty decisions. i will work with president trump to make her his appointees get through that process. it's interesting i keep hearing this phrase "career politician." i hope no one is doing a drinking game where you take a swig every time bernie mentions that. he keeps mentioning this when he is trying to claim he is an outsider. he is anything but an outsider. he's been involved in politics every bit as long as i have, he's been actively engaged in campaigns in politics for years. to call yourself an outsider is complete he falls.--completely false. mike: as luck would have it, you are next. much has been made about your less than flattering comments about president trump years ago.

how did you get past that and win's endorsement in this race? mr. moreno: i've been honest about president driven 2015 and 2016. -- president trump in 2015 and 2016 very happy i was wrong. he's been the greatest president of my lifetime. i built a relationship with him. in the last cycle it was clear he was going to endorse j.d. vance. i thought it was more important to put the good of the party ahead of my political aspirations. it didn't make sense for me to go into a fight where it was clear j.d. was going to win. i'm very happy j.d. won. yes endorsed me, --he has endorsed me, as has jim jordan, as has 14 other sitting senators. president trump follows this race very carefully. he knows i will have his back, he knows i must aligned on his policies. when push comes to shove,

what president trump needs to know is he has somebody in the senate who is going to advocate for the america first agenda. he looked at all three of us and at the end of the day chose me. frank said the endorsement was decisive. he lighted to everybody and said that president trump told him he wasn't going to endorse in this race. sec. larose: i did not lie. mr. moreno: you said president trump called you -- told you he was not going to endorse. sec. larose: and he changed his mind. mr. moreno: so president trump lighted -- sec. larose: i've never called him a liar. mr. moreno: i will have president trump's back and we will defeat sherrod brown and change this country the next four years in a deeply conservative way. [applause] mike: hold off, please. [crosstalk] sec. larose: i've never lied about this.

mike: matt, i'm sure you wouldn't mind an endorsement from the most popular figure in gop politics, but that never seems to be in the cards for you. sen. dolan: this is the most interesting question of the race because i'm the only one up here without hesitation or doubt who can say i voted for president trump in 2016 and 2020 and will vote for him in 2024. i didn't have to delete any tweets about president trump or change any positions. here is the rub. not only these guys were against president trump, because they didn't understand like i did what trump republican policies were going to meet. -- mean. not only did i understand it, i have done them. president trump cut your taxes, either cut -- i have cut your taxes tens of billions of dollars. president trump cut regulations, i have cut regulations. president trump understood what

was happening to our education system. i got universal school choice, so parents decide where and when and how their child gets educated. president trump is about ideas and policy and a movement. that's what i support. i'm seeking to go to washington to enact those policies, the very same policies we did here. my whole agenda has always been about ohio. what is best for ohio. how i'm going to make your lives better each and every day. enacting the trump policies will do that, get domestic energy strong. but i am not going to take my eye off the ball, what my responsibilities are in the u.s. senate, and that is to the great state of ohio and the united states of america. [applause] mike: our next topic is inspired by students right here at the university of findlay, abortion and reproductive rights, something they expressed interest in hearing more about from all three of the

candidates. bernie moreno, we will start with you. what changes would you support regarding reproductive rights or abortion as u.s. senator? mr. moreno: first of all, i am pro-life. i will do everything i can to protect the unborn. as a united states senator, i will make sure we have policies that make it less-expensive to have kids. my two daughters have three kids and it is real expensive to have kids. number two, make it less expensive to raise them. number three, make certain women have access to good health care. four, make sure we have adoption services that are readily available for women, make sure that women have access to contraception the same way that men do. we have to put those policies in place and have a pro-life culture in this country. my daughter took a flight to go back home to where she lives. mom carrying what looks like an f1 team worth of equipment. people helped her on that plane. helped to put the stroller away, helped her to her seat, gave up a seat.

those are the kinds of things we can do let's have pro-mom, profamily policy. after 15 weeks we have common sense restrictions so we are not a country that allows elective late-term abortions. i think that is a big victory. mike: matt dolan, what role if any should the federal government like in regulating abortion? sen. dolan: i'm very proud of my pro-life record. since i've been in the legislature, abortion has gone down 37%. the bills i passed became law and did what we wanted to do. bernie talks about what he wants to do. again, i've done it. my budgets created record funding for pregnancy crisis centers throughout the state of ohio. the chairman and i have redone our entire adoption program in ohio, so it is easier and less expensive to adopt a child. but let's face it, abortion wants to excuse me, sherrod

brown wants abortion to be the issue in 2024. i have been absolutely consistent in my position about abortion in my career. i think my opponents have been a little disingenuous, because they are both on tape with positions that maybe don't fly with the rest of ohio. frank, you said on national television there should be a six-week abortion ban and you are undecided on exceptions. bernie, you have said "i am 100% pro-life, no exceptions." guess what, sherrod brown only wins 16 of the 18 counties in the state to become u.s. senator, and 13 of those 16 counties, issue one outperformed sherrod brown. i have a pro-life record i am proud of, but i have a pro-life record that can beat sherrod brown. if sherrod brown makes it about abortion with me, i'm going to point to him and say that you are for late-term abortions, you want to use taxpayer money to fund abortion.

this race will not be about abortion on our side, it will be about abortion on his side if i am the senate candidate. mike: frank larose, he mentioned you. you can respond to that. also, what would you advocate for abortion laws as u.s. senator? sec. larose: it is well-known i have a history of standing for life, and this is something i don't run away from. it is one of the things that government must do, protect the vulnerable against the powerful. a lot of pro-life ohioans are getting behind me. i earned the right to life endorsement as i have in my other campaigns. bring pro-life is not just pro-birth. ouija make sure it is less costly to bring a child into the world -- we need to make sure it is less costly to bring a child into the world, make sure it is less bureaucratic in the adoption process, make sure there are options for contraceptive care if that is

what they choose to do so they don't find themselves in a situation where they feel their only choices abortion. we have to be compassion in the way we talk about this one thing i agree with matt on is sherrod brown wants to make every thing about abortion come because he can't talk about any other issue with a straight face. sherrod brown cannot talk about the economy or domestic security. of course they want to talk about abortion. it is sherrod brown that has the extreme's position on abortion, it is sherrod brown that supports late-term abortion further than any country in europe would allow, a fully formed 8-month child being aborted. that is abhorrent. he supports them being taken to a facility with no notification. that is abhorrent as well. mr. moreno: i was endorsed by ohio right to life also.

i'm the only person on the stage that is written a check for my own bank account for pro-life causes. when you take that action, when you are spending your own money, that tells you what you actually believe in. you can talk and spend taxpayer dollars to do things, but then where are you with your own financial resources? when push comes to shove, what you do with your own money? mike: let me move on to the next topic. matt dolan, culture wars, foreign wars, military. transgender issues i want to ask you about. turning our attention to this cultural issue that has sharply divided communities across the nation. you voted to override governor mike dewine's veto of house built 68, which blocks gender transition care for trends youth and-- trans youth and prevents transgender athletes from playing women sports tell us why you

cast your vote to override. sen. dolan: i think you just said, biological men should not be playing with biological women. that seems common sense. i voted for that multiple times in my career. transgender surgery for minors, transgender medicine for minors, that is what we are talking about. you talk to the medical community, they said they don't understand the ramifications of these medicines. these are some common sense proposals. but the culture wars are wider than that, and i've stood up for in my time as a public servant -- didn't like critical race theory, i voted to get rid of it. we don't like esg funding in the state, i got rid of the state funding. we have done the things necessary to protect our children, but we have also taken on our schools. everyone wants to beat their chest and talk about it. i've done something about it. we have universal school choice in this state, because our

school systems were failing our kids, some were failing in the sense that they were improperly educating kids, and some were failing because they had a woke agenda in the curriculum. the best way to take care of that is to put parents in charge. when the department of education at the state level wasn't chewing what you and we-- doing what you and we wanted it to do, we didn't cry about it, we took the power away from bureaucrats. this started, frank, because when you were in the state senate you had a chance to beat back president obama's common core, a gateway to woke ideological stances and you chose to stand with president obama. frank, read your own statements from 2014 and you will see what you said. mike: frank larose, you get a chance to answer that, and also how do you balance parental rights against the state' legislative authoritys? sec. larose: this is silly, i've always been an outspoken opponent of common core.

it's crazy that that is something he would bring up i've posed common core, always have. i'm the only one up here who has school-age children. they are at home watching tonight. we are not interested in coparenting with the government. we want them to be raised with our values. we have classrooms that are indoctrinating instead of educating our children, where they think it is ok to teach children to hate each other based on race, to hate this country based on some skewed version of american history. it's time that we stand up and reassert ourselves on parents' rights. when you talk about the transgender issue, the governor made a very bad decision. thank god our state legislature overturned that. what we are talking about his children. i-- is children. if a grown-up wants to change their body in some way, fine. i don't understand it, but it is up to them. but we are talking about protecting minor children. that is child abuse, and allowing somebody to do that to a child should not be permitted in any civilized society.

thank god it is not happening in ohio. interesting that mr. moreno here has been saying he is pro-life and all of these things, but he sat on the board that gave $2 million to planned parenthood. you have got to be able to answer for something like that. that is the kind of corporate elite mentality that just wants to go along and get along. same group, same board gave money to our radical tr-- a radical trans organization that supports gender blockers and surgeries. i would never be for anything like that. mike: you have said that the federal government has able to play in regulating standards for gender-transitioning care. what do you think that will should be? as a senator, would you advocate for federal law that mirrors ohio law? mr. moreno: absolutely. you have title ix, that should be enforced, making sure the biological men should not play women sports. that is common sense this is a distraction the left puts on

us while our border is being invaded, american energy is under attack, grocery prices are high. they distract us with what they know is nonsense issues. we have to do that at the federal level and make sure title ix is respected, we should not be giving children experimental hormonal drugs that will impact them the rest of their lives. i would like to make certain that these companies and institutions that are doing that can get sued by those kids when they become adults, because they cannot consent to these kinds of surgeries, and yet they're are doing it. we have to make certain that you cannot mutilate children. this is not something that even five years ago would have been lightly controversial. this is absolutely wacky stuff from the left. this is something we have to stand up and absolutely applaud what happen here in ohio. the governor was absolutely out of his mind in not vetoing that legislation. that was common sense to do that. thank you, matt, for making

certain overrode the veto. i appreciate that. mike: next topic, democracy itself free and fair elections, bedrock of democracy. but we find ourselves at a time when many americans question the system. you have overseen many elections. what would you do to restore confidence in the integrity of the actions? sec. larose: ohio is an example for the rest of the country to follow. this is why when i was reelected in 2022, i was the only secretary of state in america to earn president trump's endorsement running for election as secretary of state. we set an example in ohio. we do novel things that seem to drive the left nestle taking dead people off the voter rolls --drive the left nuts like taking dead people off the voter rolls. i won a lawsuit if humans go against hillary clinton's lawyer -- a few months ago against hillary clinton's lawyer. those are the things we do that other states are not doing it.

i've worked with members of congress to write a bill called american confidence in elections. it is going to pass the house. the problem is it is going to die in the senate because chuck schumer doesn't think election integrity is important. this is why it is crucial we defeat sherrod brown and we take back the senate majority and have somebody who understands election integrity, understands the bad things that people try to do to put their thumb on the scale, and fix those things. like we have been in ohio, we need to fix those things nationwide. that is something we can do if we have the courage to do just that. if people do get caught breaking the law in ohio, i referred them for prosecution. i have referred over 650 individual for prosecution because we caught them breaking the law, and that includes noncitizens attempting to register to vote. a law that is not enforced is not a law, it is a suggestion. we enforce the law and the secretary of state's office. [applause] mike: bernie moreno, does

the u.s. have a responsibility to support democracies around the world? how would it confront authoritarian regimes that seek to thwart democracies? mr. moreno: the best thing we can do to set an example for democracy around the world, that we don't have a president, which is what we have right now, persecuting his number one appointed, president trump -- his number one appointed, president trump, that we don't have an fbi going after catholics and calling them radical, an fbi going after months attending school board meetings. the best way for america to projected democracy around the world is to live by those standards ourselves. what we have seen with the radical left and joe biden is a country that is not living up to those democratic principles. i'll say this, is not our job to fix the rest of the world. we need to make certain we focus on taking care of our own home went first, because when we are homeland first, because went -- take care of our own homeland first, because when we are

strong at home, when we have good schools, advancement for middle-class, that we are growing and thriving, that is the best way we protect american strength. the reality is we are a failing country today because of joe biden and sherrod brown and the radical democrats. it hurts me to say that. mike, let me tell you, as somebody who came to this country by choice, where are we going to go if we lose democracy here? that may sound hyperbolic, but this is what this election is ultimately about, what kind of country are we going to leave our kids and grandkids. right now it is not heading in a very pretty direction. mike: matt dolan -- [applause] same theme, democracy, whether it is elections at home or around the world. what is the greatest threat to our democracy right now? sen. dolan: well, the most immediate threat to our democracy is giving joe biden four more years in the white house and sherrod brown six more years in the u.s. senate. that cannot happen.

let's look at sherrod brown. sherrod brown has advocated for getting rid of the filibuster for wanting to pack the supreme court. these are antidemocratic. the thing we have to understand is we are public servants. our job at its core is to be consistent, to be transparent, and to be honest about what we stand for. my responsibility to present to you what i want to go fight for. you decide whether you agree with it. when public servants look at that and understand who they are working for, we can regain democracy. president biden -- joe biden and sherrod brown, they are not working for us. they have their own political agendas. we see it on economics. we see it on the border. we see it on energy. they are trying to reshape this country. the only way we are going to stop it is for folks like you to

understand that the senator who is going to go to ohio and fight for you is someone like me, who has been consistent with his positions, that has always fought for ohio. i don't put my political career in front of what is best for ohio. and when you believe that and when you understand that, we the people get to regain control of our government. it starts in november 2024. mike: moving on to foreign policy out of ohio and on to funding wars overseas. ukraine, israel. bernie moreno, would you support continued funding for ukraine and israel? if so, how much? mr. moreno: they are completely different topics and it deserves a robust debate. israel is easy, they are the tip of the spear. the best thing we could be doing for israel is not telling them how to get rid of hamas.

biden was calling for a cease-fire while people were getting killed. the money for israel is typically research and develop them they improve our weaponry really well. when they are done with israel, they are coming after us. that is easy for me. we should actually not give any more money to fight a stalemate that is killing hundreds of thousands of ukrainians. we are not in the business to fund more endless wars. i would think that the last 50 years would have been instructive there, that this country should not be funding wars that don't have a clear path to victory, that aren't in our interest, and that have a situation where all you're going to do is encourage more bloodshed. mike: in the interest of time we will back these answers to one minute. matt dolan, how would you have handled funding the israel and ukraine was differently? sen. dolan: this is what i understand -- putin is our enemy. united states in 1994 convince

ukraine to get rid of nuclear weapons. you know what makes you safe? when our enemies and allies know america is going to keep its word. that is what we are fighting for. if we don't continue to provide ammunition and weaponry -- by the way, president trump provided weaponry to ukraine and that kept putin out. joe gave blankets. that allowed putin to come in. putin in ukraine is a threat to us. i don't want putin to have control of the world's wheat. i know want putin to have control of the lithium ukraine has. -- i this is a matter of american security. i don't want ohio boys and girls, i have two any ofos in the -- nephews in the armed services today, i don't want them to go to poland and the balance tans and have to fight putin if we roll over and withdraw from ukraine. >> to what extent should the u.s. fund wars in israel and ukraine?

one minute, please. >> i'm an army green pa ray and i'm in the army -- beret and i'm in the army today as an army revist. this is something i know something about. it's clear that it is american weakness that causes instability around the world, not american strength. biden has projected nothing but weakness from the withdrawal from afghanistan to the absolute invasion he's allowing to occur on the southern border, to the way that he's handled ukraine and the way that he's now mishandling the situation in israel. there's a contrast here because to my left, mr. moreno wants to wave the white flag of surrender and have nothing to do with ukraine, not our problem, and just let it burn. that's foolish. to my right is someone that wants to just continue pouring more money into a losing endeavor without changing strategy. for example, making the sanctions regime work the way it's supposed to. or actually holding russia accountable for the things that they're doing. it's important that we be clear about that understand on israel, mr. moreno said that they don't need our support. that was an absolutely foolish thing to say days after october

7 and he needs to answer for that. >> all right, guys. we have come to the end of our time and we have 30 seconds for each of you to close because we've had such a great time talking here. before we wrap up, i'm going to give each candidate 30 seconds why they should get your vote. matt dolan. >> thank you for having us tonight. politics is the only business where you don't have to take ownership of the issues, the challenges that you face and that's why nothing gets done. in my public and private sector career, i take ownership of challenges. and i've gotten results. i have done the things that matter. and, look, i've done it in a way that makes my wife, jessica, and my son, max and sam, proud of me. hear me. civility does not mean -- niceness and civility does not mean weakness. and strength is not a matter of how hard or loud you speak. it's a matter that you get results. i've gotten results that will help you. send he had to washington and --

send me to washington and i'll get results that will impact your life positively every day. [applause] >> frank larose. >> you've heard me use the phrase corporate elites to refer to both of my opponents and i didn't choose that lightly. s that type of person, that urban elite, that wants to rub elbows with their friends at the country club, that's how a baseball team becomes the cleveland guardians, that's how you sit on a corporate board that gives millions of dollars to planned parenthood, gives money to anti-israel groups, and then say, hey, that was just donor directed, i'm not responsible for that. that's not leadership. we need leadership in washington. there's one of us up here that can be sherrod brown and got washington and bring conservative values to save this country and that's exactly what i'll do. [applause] >> all right. thank you. bernie moreno. >> thank you for being here, thank you for listening. i hope you see here a very stark

contrast. we sent an outside to washington, d.c. in 2016. fundamentally changed this country and put us on a path to prosperity. we sent a perpetual career politician to washington, d.c., in 2021 with joe biden. i'm asking you to do the same thing did you in 2016, vote for the outsider, we have enough career politicians and all they want is a job. we need outsiders in d.c. that know how to get things done and make certain that we put the interests of america first. this is, for me, a very simple thing. if i have the honor of your vote, i will serve two terms and then come home. my opponents want to be there for the rest of their lives. we have too much of that in washington, d.c.. >> lot offer, thank you, gentlemen. [applause] that is -- all right, thank you, gentlemen. [applause] that is all. one month to go. that's all for our republican u.s. senate forum. we want to thank the candidates and our partners, the university of finley, thank you so much, and the ohio republican party, for helping to make this forum possible. thank you for joining us. we appreciate it. [captions copyright national

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