Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) said Sunday that his former son-in-law, Rep. Max Miller (R-Ohio), is “a danger” and should not serve in Congress in the wake of his daughter Emily Moreno’s domestic abuse allegations against Miller.
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Emily Moreno has accused the congressman of abusing her, including throwing hot water on her and holding a gun to her head. She has also accused him of harming their 2-year-old daughter.
Sen. Moreno’s comments came about 90 minutes after Miller, in a lengthy live-streamed video, denied the allegations of domestic abuse and said he would not drop his reelection bid.
In a post on X, Moreno described the congressman’s behavior as erratic and said he feared for his family’s safety.
“He is a danger to my daughter, and I hold my breath every minute he has custody of my granddaughter,” Moreno wrote. “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.”
Moreno also wrote that Miller should “seek professional help to end the clear pattern of abuse he has left in his wake.” Moreno said that while he wanted to keep “this matter private,” Miller’s “increasingly erratic and dangerous behavior” has made that “impossible.”
“It has been horrific to watch this play out in full public view, all while knowing an innocent 2-year-old girl is caught in the middle,” Moreno said in his post.
Moreno’s post marked the first time the senator publicly called on Miller to leave the House since his daughter’s allegations against him first became public. On Thursday, after Emily Moreno filed for a new restraining order against Miller, the senator’s office said in a statement to The Washington Post that his “top priority is the safety and well-being of his daughter and granddaughter.”
Earlier Sunday, Miller vowed in a live-streamed video on X that he would not drop out of the Ohio congressional race. Miller also called the allegations of abuse false, saying the couple had a respectful relationship before they became involved in a custody battle.
“If I had assaulted her, would she had offered to cook me dinner six days later?” Miller said of his former wife.
“Would she have invited me to spend an afternoon at the playground with her and our daughter? Would she have written that we were in a friendlier place?” the congressman asked as he faced the camera in what appeared to be his home kitchen.
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In court filings, Emily Moreno has accused the congressman of physically abusing their daughter, who in February suffered a fractured collarbone.
Miller has repeatedly said the abuse allegations are false. In the Sunday live stream, he said his ex-wife was making up the accusations because she is mentally unstable. Emily Moreno’s attorney has denied she is mentally ill.
Miller and Emily Moreno married in August 2022, had a daughter in November 2023 and divorced in June 2025. Miller, 37, is running for a third term representing Ohio’s 7th Congressional District.
In court filings, Emily Moreno accused Miller of once holding a gun to her head and being physically abusive to her in front of their daughter. Moreno also accused Miller of throwing hot water on her from a pan of eggs he had just cooked in June 2024, on the day she said she planned to leave him. She said that caused her to fall to the floor, and Miller afterward sprayed her with the sink hose.
On Sunday, Miller dismissed that incident as “horseplay.”
“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.
Miller has also accused his ex-wife of domestic violence, but a judge formally dismissed Miller’s case against Moreno last week.
Near the end of the Sunday video, Miller said he would produce evidence of his claims on the file-hosting service Dropbox, which his office published online after his live stream.
Looking directly into the camera, Miller vowed to continue his campaign for reelection.
“I’m not getting out of this race, and I’m winning in November, and I’ll be back in the 120th” Congress, he said
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