Rep. Max Miller (R-OH) refused to abandon his reelection campaign Sunday and denied allegations he physically abused his ex-wife by holding a gun to her head, throwing boiling water at her, and breaking his 2-year-old daughter's collarbone.
“Every one of these allegations traces back to a single source: my former wife,” Miller said in a lengthy livestream broadcast. “I'm not getting out of this race, and I'm winning in November.”
Miller's campaign has been plagued by abuse allegations made by his ex-wife Emily Moreno, daughter of Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-OH), in court records tied to their divorce.
Miller noted that no criminal charges have been filed against him, and that Child Protective Services had found all accusations leveled against him to be unsubstantiated. He also shared a trove of documents that he argued supported his denials.
The nearly 20-minute video went live just days after Moreno filed a new restraining order, alleging Miller physically grabbed one of her attorneys during a hearing and spurring her to demand, “Get your hands off of him," the Washington Post reported.
Stated the report, "She also alleged that Miller used a profane slur to insult Zashin’s fiancée as they were leaving the courtroom."
Miller on Sunday addressed several specific allegations leveled against him by his ex-wife, including an accusation that he threw boiling water on her.
“It was horseplay in our kitchen” Miller said. "I sprayed water at her from the sprayer attached to our kitchen sink tapwater, which does not reach boiling temperature."
Miller added, “Our court-appointed parent coordinator testified, under oath, that the single photo she was shown of this supposed injury looked a little red and that there was no physician's report – none.”
Miller also addressed an allegation that he had “thrown” his ex-wife “against the wall” in February.
“She came to my home in a good mood – and we have text messages to prove it – to pick up our daughter early for a friend's birthday party,” Miller said.
“The video shows her walking out, carrying our daughter calm, in the same good mood, showing no distress whatsoever. As they left, you could hear me say 'goodbye, I love you,' literally telling my ex-wife that I still cared for her.”
Miller continued, posing a rhetorical question: “Does that sound like somebody who would just walk out and who have [sic] been violently thrown against a wall?”
The Ohio Republican argued Moreno's decision not to seek out law enforcement or medical help proved she had not been attacked.
“She didn't go to the hospital, ladies and gentlemen," said Miller. "She went straight to a child's birthday party."
Miller claimed the pair later had a friendly talk on the phone and she offered to cook empanadas.
“If I had assaulted her," Miller said, "would she have offered to cook me dinner six days later?”
Finally, Miller refuted allegations that he had broken his 2-year-old daughter’s collarbone, claiming she was not in his care at the time.
He also argued that the time he'd spent with his ex-wife and daughter since the divorce was further evidence of his innocence, boasting, "I actually have more time with her and our daughter than the average divorced father in Ohio!"
UPDATE [1:30 p.m. EST]: Emily Moreno's spokesperson Stefan Mychajliw responded to Miller's video with the following comment:
“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. 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.”