Dayton Reporter

Donald Trump will speak at a Saturday rally in support of one of two pro-Trump candidates running in next Tuesday's GOP Ohio U.S. Senate primary. 

And he will rail against a third candidate, one openly outspoken against the former president.

The rally, at Dayton International Airport, starts at noon. Trump is expected to speak at 4 p.m.

Trump hopes to boost Westlake auto dealer Bernie Moreno, who won his endorsement over rival candidate Secretary of State Frank LaRose, himself endorsed by Trump when he ran statewide, just two years ago.

LaRose, of Akron, says he remains a stalwart supporter of the former president.

"The America First platform that President Trump has led on is the party platform,” LaRose said in an interview last month.

The race's third candidate, State Senator Matt Dolan of Chagrin Falls, is a "never-Trump" candidate who has vowed never to seek the former president's endorsement.

Moreno once did the same, telling Meghan McCain "there's no scenario in which I'd support Trump. I've come to that conclusion."

"If Trump is the nominee, I think the Republican party now is a different party and not a party that I want to be a part of," Moreno said.

He even compared Trump to Adolf Hitler and called him a "lunatic" and a "maniac," accusing Trump of "stoking hatred."

"I think they have to open their eyes a little bit more and see what Trump's message is really about," he said. "Is that the America that we really want... where...hatred is stoked and fears are what drive our decision making?," Moreno said.

But he has since changed his mind and has called Trump "the greatest president of my lifetime."

Moreno himself made news Thursday as the subject of an Associated Press story that said he had a profile on a "gay hook-up" web site called Adult Friend Finder. Moreno denies the AP report, claiming the profile was a "prank" made by an intern.

The murderer of Chief Wahoo

Dolan is a self-described "non-Trump Republican" who has been compared to Mitt Romney and John McCain.

He once described himself as "a never-Trump guy" who "never liked" the President, and will likely be the object of Trump scorn from the podium.

In 2022, Trump hammered Dolan for his family's changing the name of the Cleveland Indians.

“Anybody that changes the name of the once storied Cleveland Indians to the Cleveland Guardians should not be running for the United States Senate representing the Great People of Ohio,” Trump said. “In any event, I know of at least one person in the race who I won’t be endorsing. The Republican Party has too many RINOs!”

Dolan has attacked Trump over the Jan. 6, 2021 U.S. Capitol demonstrations, calling them "an attack on American democracy" and blaming Trump for a "failure of leadership."

He has also criticized Trump for questioning whether there was voter fraud in the 2020 elections.

Unlike the Ohio Secretary of State LaRose, who Trump lauded for being "committed to making it easy to vote and impossible to cheat."

In his position, La Rose spearheaded reforms that will allow voters to get complete access to Ohio election data, so as to do their own analysis post-election.

Election Day is Tuesday, March 19.