The increasingly bitter Michigan Senate race has spilled across the border into Ohio, where Republican Sen. Bernie Moreno’s attack on Muslim Democrat Abdul El-Sayed has produced an uncomfortable question for another Republican on the very same rally bill: Vivek Ramaswamy.
El-Sayed is facing Republican Mike Rogers in Michigan, with Donald Trump repeatedly attacking the Democrat over his Muslim faith. Trump has called El-Sayed a “jihadist” and alleged ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, claims El-Sayed denies. Democrats who were divided over El-Sayed during the primary have increasingly rallied around him, including Barack Obama, Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
But as HuffPost reported, Moreno pushed the religious argument further during Wednesday’s Trump rally in Chillicothe, Ohio. Questioning whether El-Sayed belonged in Washington, Moreno asked whether he understood “that our rights come from God Almighty” and “that Jesus came here for our salvation,” before declaring that El-Sayed “should be nowhere near Washington, D.C.”
There was one rather conspicuous complication. Vivek Ramaswamy, the Republican candidate for governor of Ohio, is Hindu. He also spoke at the rally.
The ‘Awkward Moment for Vivek’ Ohio Spotted Immediately
Ohio’s left-leaning Reddit community didn’t miss that contradiction, where the story prompted hundreds of votes and a deeply hostile response toward Moreno and Republicans more broadly.
One commenter summed up the problem with a dry observation: “Technically he’s running to be in Columbus, but still an awkward moment for Vivek.” Another asked how Moreno could justify supporting Ramaswamy while arguing that belief in Jesus should matter for public office, concluding: “Bernie talks out of both sides of his mouth.”
Others widened their criticism beyond Moreno. One commenter asked simply: “Why are republicans so against the constitution?” Another accused Republicans of believing only in constitutional provisions that suit them. The thread is plainly left-leaning, but the legal point behind much of the anger is straightforward: Article VI of the Constitution says “no religious Test” may be required as a qualification for public office.
That is what makes Ramaswamy’s presence such an awkward detail. Moreno’s remarks were aimed at El-Sayed, and the broader Republican campaign has focused heavily on the Michigan Democrat’s Muslim identity. Yet the standard Moreno articulated did not mention Islam alone. Taken literally, it would also exclude Hindus such as Ramaswamy, along with Jews, Buddhists, Sikhs, atheists and other non-Christians.
For Ohio’s left-leaning contingent, that contradiction became the story inside the story. Republicans were attacking El-Sayed over religion while one of their own statewide candidates stood close enough to demonstrate exactly how much broader Moreno’s words could reach.
