Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) on Sunday said that fellow Republican and former son-in-law Rep. Max Miller (R-Ohio) should step down in the midst of abuse allegations that were lodged against him in court documents.
Emily Moreno, who was married to Miller until last year, has alleged in court papers that Miller burned her with hot water and physically abused her and their toddler daughter. Miller has denied the allegations.
In a post on social media Sunday, Bernie Moreno wrote that “it has been horrific to watch this play out in full public view, all while knowing an innocent two-year-old girl is caught in the middle.”
“Our priority has always been protecting our daughter and our granddaughter,” he added. “Out of concern for the safety of my family, I hoped to keep this matter private but Max Miller’s increasingly erratic and dangerous behavior has made that impossible.”
Miller, he wrote, “needs serious psychological help” and “is a danger to my daughter, and I hold my breath every minute he has custody of my granddaughter.”
“If there are any basic standards of character required to hold elected office, Max Miller fails them. He should not serve in the House of Representatives. I believe Max Miller needs to seek professional help to end the clear pattern of abuse he has left in his wake,” Bernie Moreno added. “I believe he should not be free to continue endangering others until he does.”
Last week, Bernie Moreno was asked by news outlet Notus about whether Miller should step down. He replied, “I don’t know.”
Miller has said the abuse allegations against him are false. In a social media post of his own on Sunday, Miller disputed his ex-wife’s allegations in a video recording and vowed to remain in his congressional race.
“Just want to be clear: no court, no agency has ever substantiated any allegation of abuse against me. No criminal charge has ever been filed against me,” Miller said Sunday. “Every single one of these allegations were already investigated, and I cooperated fully every single time because I had nothing to hide and I have nothing to hide now.”
Miller referenced the hot-water incident, attributing it to “horseplay in our kitchen.”
“I sprayed water at her from the sprayer attached to our kitchen sink tap water, which does not reach boiling temperature or scalding,” Miller said.
He also said that previous comments from Emily Moreno indicated that Miller never hurt their daughter, adding that his then-wife offered to cook for him and go to the playground after the alleged abuse is said to have occurred. Meanwhile, he alleged that Emily Moreno suffers from bipolar disorder.
“My former wife would not have been offering to cook me dinner and inviting me to playgrounds,” Miller said in the video. “And I certainly would not have joint custody of my daughter.”
He blamed media outlets for what he characterized as selective reporting, encouraging people to look at Dropbox links with documents.
Emily Moreno’s spokesperson Stefan Mychajliw denied Miller’s assertions, writing on X Sunday that it is “shameful” for the Ohio lawmaker to engage in a “bizarre and lie-filled rant about his ex-wife to desperately try to save his political career.”
“There is a documented trove of evidence that Miller has a history of violent and dangerous behavior and no amount of victim shaming will change that,” Mychajliw, who worked on former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy’s campaign, wrote on X. “It is despicable and abhorrent that Miller lied on an unhinged and humiliating video for their daughter to watch one day.”
He added: “No loving parent would have ever used their daughter as a PR pawn to save their own political career. Miller can lie and spin on X, but he cannot do so under oath in a court of law. We are confident that justice will prevail in court.”
Miller responded to his former father-in-law in a post on X Sunday, writing: “If my daughter said the same thing to me, I personally wouldn’t wait two years before holding him accountable.”
“You know this isn’t true and the only reason you are speaking out now is to hide from your own media circus,” Miller continued. “This is all political.”
Democrats only need to flip a handful of seats to regain control of the House of Representatives, where Republicans currently hold a 218 to 214 edge, with three seats vacant.
A representative for Miller’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
