Republican lawmakers are maintaining a practiced silence in the face of new misconduct allegations against one of their own. Rep. Max Miller (R-Ohio) has been — not for the first time — in the crosshairs of domestic abuse allegations brought forth by
a former partner.
In June, police footage related to a child custody dispute between Miller and his ex-wife Emily Moreno — the daughter of Republican Ohio Senator Bernie Moreno — was obtained by CNN. The footage, which documents a February interview between Moreno and Bay Village, Ohio, police, includes allegations that Miller abused Moreno. Moreno claimed that Miller had once held a gun to her head during an argument, and of physical abuse.
The controversy around comes after a string of high-profile political misconduct scandals have roiled campaigns ahead of the 2026 midterms, resulting in the resignations of Reps. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) and Tony Gonzales (R-Texas) from the House, and the suspension of Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner’s campaign in Maine amid allegations of sexual assault.
Republican leadership, however, has so far deflected and ignored the allegations against Miller. Last week, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) was asked by a reporter about the allegations against both Miller and Rep. Cory Mills — who faces allegations of both campaign financial fraud and being involved in a physical altercation with a woman February 2025. Police were called but Mills was not arrested.
Johnson dismissed the question. “The key word there is ‘allegation,’” he said.
Earlier this month, during a Fox News segment discussing the allegations against Platner, political strategist and former Kamala Harris adviser Mike Nellis got into it with fellow guest, podcaster Rich Zeoli, about why the party held a separate standard for its own members.
“The topic today is Graham Platner,” said Zeoli, even though Miller is also a candidate up for reelection this November. “We’re talking about Graham Platner, if we want to do another segment on the congressman you’re bringing up or the candidate—”
Nellis cut him off. “You let me know when we’re going to book a segment on Max Miller, because I haven’t heard a lot about it through Republicans,” he said.
Even Senator Moreno, whose daughter is alleging the abuse by Miller, has been largely silent about the situation. In May, in response to Miller accusing Moreno’s daughter of defamation, the senator told reporters that the “only comment” he would make was that he loved his daughter, and that her and his granddaughter’s safety were his top priority. Senator Moreno has seemingly refrained from making any additional statements regarding the dispute between his daughter and his Republican colleague, and has not called for Miller to resign or be expelled from the House.
The allegations described by his daughter are incredibly disturbing. In the police interview, a tearful Moreno describes an incident in which she had been changing their then-infant daughter’s diaper at night. Miller allegedly became angry when she turned on the lights to better see, and yelled at her before pointing a gun at her head.
She described other incidents in which Miller had allegedly been physically abusive towards her, even while they were living separately. In one incident where Moreno came to Miller’s residence to pick up their daughter for a birthday party, she told police that Miller became upset and accused her of “taking away his parenting time.”
“He threw me into the wall and I fell on the ground,” she added.
In March of this year, Ohio Department of Children and Youth became suspicious as to how Miller’s then-two-year-old daughter had broken her collarbone. Per Mother Jones, both Miller and Moreno said they did not know how their daughter had been injured, but Miller theorized that it could have come from a seatbelt. Investigators weren’t sure. On a Zoom call between DCFS workers and a physician, one participant “advised the injury would have required a high degree of impact to occur.”
Ultimately, the county’s investigation didn’t turn up enough evidence to say the child had been neglected or abused. But one document reported by Mother Jones quoted Moreno as saying her daughter once told her: “Daddy’s house is scary.”
Moreno requested a restraining order against Miller earlier this year, after petitioning to have her custody agreement with the sitting member of Congress reevaluated by the court. Miller filed a defamation case against his ex-wife in May, alleging that she is mentally ill and suffers from bipolar disorder (a claim Moreno’s attorneys deny).
Miller’s chaotic personal life also extends beyond his relationship with his ex-wife. In early July, Miller’s ex-girlfriend, former White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham, accused Miller of breaking a confidentiality agreement they had made while settling an earlier defamation case. Grisham and Miller’s history is messy. They dated from 2019 to 2020, and first came into legal conflict when Miller sued Grisham for defamation after she published a book which alleged that an ex-boyfriend who worked in the White House (a description that fit Miller) was physically abusive.
The GOP has always been good at letting allegations like this slide. Politicians getting away with monstrous interpersonal behavior is nothing new, but as the GOP seeks to slam Democrats nationwide with the allegations against former Senate candidate Graham Platner, it’s particularly striking that they seem disinterested in credible abuse allegations within their own base.
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