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Unmoved by his former son-in-law’s X livestream denials Sunday, Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, called on Rep. Max Miller, R-Ohio, to resign from Congress and seek “serious psychological help.”
“If there are any basic standards of character required to hold elected office, Max Miller fails them,” Moreno wrote in a lengthy statement on X. “He should not serve in the House of Representatives.”
It was a call repeated by Miller’s Democratic challenger in Ohio’s 7th Congressional District.
“No one credibly accused of holding a gun to his wife’s head and breaking their 2-year-old daughter’s collarbone belongs in the halls of power,” Brian Poindexter, the union ironworker and Brook Park city councilman, wrote in a statement Sunday.
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Moreno delivered an even more blistering public rebuke an hour after Miller livestreamed a sweeping denial of domestic abuse allegations made by ex-wife Emily Moreno, the daughter of the senator.
“As he has admitted privately, Max Miller needs serious psychological help,” Moreno wrote. “He is a danger to my daughter, and I hold my breath every minute he has custody of my granddaughter.”
The aftermath of the couple’s divorce had been “pure hell” for his family, Moreno began.
“As a father and husband, I can tell you the last two years have been pure hell for my wife Bridget, our daughter Emily, me, and our entire family in the aftermath of Emily’s divorce,” Moreno wrote.
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“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.
“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 has categorically denied abusing Emily Moreno or their daughter. In the livestream, he said no court or government agency had substantiated an allegation of abuse against him and that he had never faced a criminal charge related to the claims.
The congressman said child welfare investigations involving his daughter had been closed without findings against him. He also argued that the allegations emerged as the former couple’s custody battle intensified and accused his former wife of using them as leverage.
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Emily Moreno has accused Miller of physically assaulting and threatening her during their marriage, including allegedly holding a gun to her head. Questions have also been raised about how the couple’s daughter suffered a broken collarbone. Miller denies causing the injury and said his daughter was no longer in his care when it was discovered.
Miller also denied an allegation that he threw boiling water on his former wife, saying he sprayed her with water from a kitchen sink during what he described as horseplay.
“It is shameful that Max Miller decided to go on a bizarre and lie-filled rant about his ex-wife to desperately try to save his political career,” Emily Moreno spokesman Stefan Mychajliw wrote in a statement Sunday.
“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.
“It is despicable and abhorrent that Miller lied on an unhinged and humiliating video for their daughter to watch one day.
“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.”
The extraordinary intervention from a sitting Republican senator adds pressure on Miller as a Wednesday deadline approaches for the party to replace him on the November ballot. Democrats have increasingly viewed the northeast Ohio district as a possible pickup opportunity amid the controversy.
Miller, a former advisor in President Donald Trump’s first administration who had Trump’s endorsement, insisted Sunday that he would remain the Republican nominee.
“I’m not dropping out of this race,” Miller said. “And I’ll win in November.”
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