COLUMBUS, Ohio ( WCMH ) — Early in his campaign, Republican Senate candidate Bernie Moreno encouraged people attending his rallies to record anything he said. But after a controversial moment at one of his events, recent videos appear to show him pivoting with technology that blocks audio recordings.
Moreno, a Cleveland-area businessman, is looking to unseat incumbent Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown in one of the country’s most expensive races. Since January, he has told crowds at multiple campaign events that he welcomes attendees to do two things.
“As you know, if you’ve heard me speak before, I have two rules,” Moreno said at a February campaign event in Powell. “Rule number one is you can videotape and record anything I say. What I say to you here is what I’ll say to the media, is what I say privately, is what I say to my own team. … Rule number two is please ask difficult questions.”
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But since the middle of October, Moreno’s campaign has been caught on camera twice using audio jamming technology to distort recordings of him being asked challenging questions. Videos provided by the Ohio Democratic Party show the device in action. The group confirmed to NBC4 that trackers — people who closely follow a politician to document things like their public appearances, speeches and other campaign activities — shot the recordings.