House Ethics Committee Launches Investigation Into Abuse Allegations Against Ohio Rep. Miller

Republican Rep. Max Miller of Ohio wants the House Ethics Committee to probe allegations of domestic abuse lodged against him by his ex-wife, and the committee is doing just that.

“In light of all the renewed interest in my family affairs I am going to file my own paperwork for an ethics investigation into myself to clear my name from these horrific attacks on myself and family,” Miller said in an X post on Tuesday. “I have absolutely nothing to hide.”

Within hours, the committee announced in a statement that it will investigate whether “Miller may have engaged in domestic violence and abuse or illegal drug use in violation of the Code of Official Conduct or any other applicable standard of conduct.”

Miller also defended himself in a fiery interview with CNN on Tuesday that may not have helped his case.

Allegations of Abuse

Emily Moreno, Miller’s ex-wife and the daughter of Ohio Republican Sen. Bernie Moreno, has accused the congressman of domestic and child abuse, including holding a gun to her head, throwing scalding hot water at her, and breaking their 2-year-old daughter’s collarbone. Last week, she filed a restraining order after Miller allegedly grabbed her lawyer, Andrew Zashin.

Miller has strenuously denied all allegations. The congressman defended himself on Sunday in a livestreamed monologue, publishing documents related to the couple’s divorce.

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“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 on the livestream. “Every single one of these allegations was already investigated, and I cooperated fully every single time because I had nothing to hide and I have nothing to hide now.”

As for the claim that he put a gun to Emily Moreno’s head in front of their daughter, Miller said, “That never happened and is absolutely outrageous.”

“And two days after that allegedly occurred, ladies and gentlemen, she asked me to come over for dinner and to stay the night.”

He claims Emily Moreno’s “significant mental health challenges” have “contributed” to the allegations against him.

Meanwhile, an ex-girlfriend of Miller’s, former White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham, filed a restraining order against the congressman on Monday. The two dated in 2020.

In her 2021 memoir, Grisham accused a man whom she later identified as Miller of physically abusing her. Miller sued for defamation, but he voluntarily dropped the suit as the matter was settled in 2023 shortly before trial. Now, however, Grisham’s lawyers are accusing the congressman of breaching that settlement by denying her allegations publicly.

Tapper Takes Miller to Task

During a heated 20-minute interview on Tuesday, CNN’s Jake Tapper brought up a third alleged incident reported by Politico in which Miller, while in high school, was accused of shoving a female classmate down a set of stairs. At first, Miller questioned why he should be discussing incidents from so long ago, but when pressed by Tapper, he denied it happened and noted that the alleged victim has not come forward.

Miller also pushed back against the claim that he’d injured his daughter and that his daughter had told his ex-wife, “daddy kill you,” and “daddy angry and daddy’s house is scary.”

“She can’t string together sentences like that,” Miller said. “She’s two and a half years old. She doesn’t have the ability to articulate any of what you just said.”

Tapper replied to Miller, “You just told me that she had said that she was scared to go to mommy’s house.”

“But now you’re saying that she’s not capable of saying, daddy kill you? I mean, it seems like she’s either able to say one, but not the other. That doesn’t make sense,” Tapper said.

“To be very direct, this is incredibly disturbing. I am not going to my child to say, daddy kill you. Look at the timing of everything that is taking place. What about due process? I have already been through these investigations,” Miller responded. “But these are individuals who do their jobs to protect kids, and the main job of the court and the main job of family protective services and the main job of our judge, who has been appointed to our divorce, is to make sure that our daughter is safe. And every single one of those individuals has agreed with me.”

Senator Breaks His Silence

Sen. Moreno spoke out Sunday about the “seventh level of hell” his family has endured and what he calls Miller’s “increasingly erratic and dangerous behavior.”

“If there are any basic standards of character required to hold elected office, Max Miller fails them,” Moreno posted on X. “He should not serve in the House of Representatives.”

Moreno suggested that Miller needs to “seek professional help to end the clear pattern of abuse he has left in his wake.”

Miller responded to Moreno’s call for him to resign.

“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. This is all political,” Miller stated to Moreno on X.

The Politics

Miller is running for reelection in Ohio’s 7th District, where he faces a tough fight against Democratic nominee Brian Poindexter. Despite calls to step down from the race, Miller insisted to Tapper that he will not drop out, taking shots at his ex-wife and father-in-law in the process.

“What you’re going to see here, Jake, is that I am going to be successful in this November because my constituents know who I am, and they also know who my ex-father-in-law is, and they also know who my ex-wife is, and that’s why you’ve seen people aren’t running from me,” he said.

According to PollingSource, Miller’s support is in steady decline. Miller averaged a one-point lead over Poindexter on June 21. By the end of the month—and before the abuse allegations went national—polls showed Miller losing to Poindexter 44% to 39%.

House Speaker Mike Johnson on Wednesday called the Miller allegations “serious” but did not call for the congressman to drop out, stating his desire to first see the ethics investigation conclude.

Miller would have to drop out by 4 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 10 in order for the Republican party to replace him on the ballot.