'Stark about face': Ohio Senate hopeful who once condemned Trump’s 'ignorance' now praises him

From Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-New York) to Senators Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina), Marco Rubio (R-Florida) and J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), a long list of Republicans who were once scathing critics of former President Donald Trump have flip-flopped and become passionate supporters. Another is businessman Bernie Moreno, who is seeking the GOP nomination in Ohio's 2024 U.S. Senate race and hopes to take on incumbent Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) in the general election.

According to CNN reporters Andrew Kaczynski and Em Steck, a comparison of past and recent comments shows how "stark" Moreno's "about face" is.

In "unreported audio clips and deleted tweets" that CNN has "uncovered," the journalists report, Moreno attacked Trump vehemently and said there was "no scenario" in which he would ever support him. Moreno denounced Trump as a "fake Republican" who promoted "ignorance and fear," but his rhetoric has since taken a stridently MAGA turn.

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Kaczynski and Steck note, "Moreno now attacks the 'wine-sipping country club Republicans' who are 'offended by President Trump's words.' He characterizes individuals imprisoned for Capitol riot-related offenses as 'political prisoners,' claims that the 2020 election was stolen, and alleges collaboration between 'big tech,' 'the swamp,' the corporate media, and Democrats to rig the election."

The CNN reporters add, "Despite this, he previously congratulated President Joe Biden on his 2020 presidential win. And after the attack on the Capitol in January 2021, Moreno posted, '(Trump) deserves lots and lots of blame for this,' adding, 'He didn't calm tensions; no one (and certainly not me) has excuses (sic) that behavior."

Kaczynski and Steck point out that after the 2020 election, Moreno "repeatedly criticized election deniers, urged Republicans to accept the results and even debunked fraud allegations." But now, he falsely claims the election was stolen from Trump."

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CNN's full report is available at this link.