Ohio GOP Senate debate: Where primary candidates stand on abortion, immigration, Trump

Republicans in Ohio's U.S. Senate race met on the debate stage for the first time Monday, lashing out at each other as they make their pitch to GOP voters.

Secretary of State Frank LaRose, businessman Bernie Moreno and state Sen. Matt Dolan, R-Chagrin Falls, will face off in the March 19 primary. The winner will take on Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown in a costly, nationally-watched race that could determine which party controls the U.S. Senate.

Watch the debate: LaRose, Dolan and Moreno face off in GOP Senate debate

The candidates kicked off their campaigns last year, but the August and November elections commanded voters' attention and sucked oxygen out of the Senate race. That means they have a tight window to differentiate themselves, with independent polls showing many Ohio Republicans are undecided.

Here are key takeaways from Monday's debate.

More: How Senate candidate Bernie Moreno got caught in court fight over employees' overtime pay

Tensions flare on immigration, border security

Moreno, LaRose and Dolan want to crack down on the U.S.-Mexico border. All three said they oppose birthright citizenship, a constitutional right that awards citizenship to most people born on U.S. soil. Former President Donald Trump pledged to scrap the practice for people born to undocumented immigrants.

Still, points of disagreement emerged. Moreno said he believes all undocumented immigrants should be deported, despite having said in 2016 that he supports a path to citizenship. And his opponents were quick to criticize the discrepancy.

Moreno, for his part, accused LaRose of "neo-con rhetoric" when LaRose said he supports utilizing the U.S. military to attack Mexican drug cartels.

"We're going to work with Mexico to make certain that they understand it's in their best interest to have us help them wipe out the drug cartels," Moreno said. "When we start acting like the ugly American going into Mexico ... we're going to lose all credibility with what needs to be our partner in wiping out the drug cartels."

Should there be a national abortion ban?

All three candidates said they would support a national abortion ban months after Ohio voters approved a constitutional right to abortion access.

Moreno supports a 15-week federal ban with "commonsense restrictions," which he previously said includes exceptions for rape and incest and to save the life of the pregnant person. LaRose advocated for a "bare minimum" nationally that allows states to go further, although he did not offer a specific timeframe.

"We're not a country that should allow a minor child to be hustled off to a Planned Parenthood facility without her parents knowing," LaRose said.

Dolan said he doesn't want abortion to be a federal issue, but he signaled that he'd support a 15-week federal ban with exceptions to prevent policies like Ohio's from becoming the norm.

Would candidates vote to shut down government?

Congress just approved a continuing resolution to temporarily fund the government while negotiations continue over border security and aid for Israel and Ukraine. The candidates all said they don't support temporary funding plans, but Moreno and LaRose went a step further and said they'd threaten a government shutdown if necessary.

"If the Democrats are unwilling to join us on border security, if they're unwilling to get the out-of-control spending under control, you bet I'm willing to shut down the government," LaRose said. "This isn't something we should relish, by the way. It's not a good thing to shut down the government. But when it comes to protecting this country, saving this country, absolutely a tool we have to be willing to use."

Moreno, Dolan exchange jabs

Near the end of the debate, Dolan attacked his opponents' credibility and accused them of waffling on past positions. He specifically took aim at lawsuits Moreno faced as the owner of a Massachusetts car dealership, which accused Moreno of failing to properly pay sales employees overtime.

In one case, a judge sanctioned Moreno for destroying records that flagged who worked overtime at the dealership. Moreno said the data were preserved and the reports weren't necessary, but Dolan seized on his opponent's court troubles.

"I don't know if we can trust you," Dolan said. "Your employees trusted you to follow a court order and to not destroy documents that helped their case against you."

In response, Moreno quipped, "That's what third place looks like."

The Trump factor

Trump endorsed Moreno in December, just one day after LaRose claimed that the former president likely wouldn't get involved in the race. When asked whether he'd tout the nod if Trump is convicted of a felony, Moreno called the charges "trumped up election interference."

"President Trump is aligned with me," Moreno said. "We have to deport illegal immigrants. We have to make certain that we don't fund another endless war. It's policies where Matt Dolan is consistent, I'll give him that. Consistently wrong."

Moreno and LaRose both got behind Trump in the presidential primary. Dolan declined to do so but said Monday that he'll back the Republican nominee, which is likely to be the former president.

"I'm the only one on this stage who's enacted Trump policies," Dolan said. "These two have spent a great deal of time deleting all their past comments, hateful comments on Trump. And now again, because it's in their political best interests, they're now saying something completely different."

Canton Repository reporter Grace Springer contributed.

Haley BeMiller is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.

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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio election: Matt Dolan, Frank LaRose, Bernie Moreno on the issues