Brown’s Ohio Ad Seizes on Moreno’s Unwise Remark About Abortion Rights

Bernie Moreno, his Republican rival, said women older than 50 are “crazy” for caring about abortion rights. A series of Ohio women who fit that description have much to say in response.

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The re-election campaign of Senator Sherrod Brown, Democrat of Ohio, has been running this 30-second ad attacking his Republican opponent, Bernie Moreno, on television stations across his state at a cost of nearly $1.3 million so far, according to AdImpact.

Here’s a look at the ad, its accuracy and its major takeaway.

On the Screen

The ad opens with a view of the kind of suburban voter Mr. Moreno has criticized recently — and who could tip the scales in battleground races across the country: a woman who looks to be around 50, college educated and living comfortably. She sits behind a wooden coffee table on a plush leather couch in a spacious living room; tall windows with rich wood trim and leafy views serve as her backdrop. She is dressed casually, in a green button-down over a black shirt and jeans, and speaks directly into the camera over a light soundtrack of a quirky melodic line.

She utters only a few words before another woman appears in her place, then another and another — seven in all — each in the same spot, seamlessly taking turns delivering a broadside against Mr. Moreno over his remark at a recent town hall that older women who care about abortion rights are “a little crazy.”

A few headlines and the names of the publications in which they ran appear at the center of the screen, like reviews in a movie ad. “Bernie Moreno calls focus on abortion rights ‘a little crazy,’” reads one. “Moreno says abortion isn’t ‘an issue’ for women past 50,” says another. “Bernie Moreno has called for national legislation banning abortion,” warns a third.

Credit…Sherrod Brown

The Script

FIRST woman

“Bernie Moreno thinks I’m a little crazy.”

SECOND woman

“Because Bernie Moreno thinks it’s crazy that women care about abortion rights.”

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