Embattled MAGA congressman accused of withholding his two-year-old daughter's favorite blue bunny refuses to drop out of race despite overwhelming pressure

Troubled Republican congressman Max Miller confirmed he will still run to keep his Ohio seat despite accusations of spousal and child abuse in a race that Democrats now believe they can win.

Emily Moreno, the daughter of Ohio Republican Senator Bernie Moreno, has accused ex-husband Miller in court filings of throwing boiling water at her, holding a gun to her head, shoving her against a wall and fracturing their daughter's collarbone. He has denied all of her allegations. 

Despite calls from Ohio's other Republican Senator Jon Husted and several other Republicans to drop out of the race, a spokesperson for Miller told The New York Times he's staying in.   

Under Ohio law, Miller would need to withdraw by Saturday to allow enough time for the replacement process to play out before the 4pm Monday deadline. 

Miller will face off against Democrat Brian Poindexter, a local city councilmember and union ironworker, as the left is licking their chops at the chance to flip a seat Donald Trump won by double digits in 2024.

A recent poll showed Poindexter leading Miller by 14 points, with respondents showing high levels of awareness of the allegations against Miller.  

The Daily Mail has reached out to both Miller and Poindexter for comment.

In a post on X, Husted said he knows Miller, his ex-wife, Emily Moreno, the daughter of Sen. Bernie Moreno, and their daughter, and 'I do not see how a campaign for Congress benefits any of them.'

'I believe Max would be making the right decision to step aside as a candidate and resign from Congress to focus on what is in the best interest of his daughter,' he wrote. 

'Years from now, I believe he will look back and know it was the right choice for her.'

Fueling the panic is brutal electoral math, because a northeast Ohio district that Donald Trump carried by 11 points in 2024 is suddenly in danger of tumbling to the Democrats, who smell blood in the seat, according to two Ohio insiders. 

Party chiefs were said to be already war-gaming substitutes behind his back as the August 10 deadline nears, with names including former congressman Jim Renacci and state representative Mike Dovilla in the mix. 

Miller has steadfastly refused to budge, vowing this week, 'I'm not dropping out of this race, and I'll win in November,' and even comparing his ordeal on CNN to Trump toughing out the storm of allegations that battered him in 2016. 

Trump himself sounds far less bullish, with Miller admitting the President warned him 'Maxi, it's going to be a tough race' and said he did not know if he could 'pull this one out.'

The President told reporters in the Oval Office on Thursday that he's 'not going to get involved' with getting Miller out of his congressional race.

The Daily Mail first reported Emily Moreno's abuse allegations against Miller in May, and this week revealed photos of what a source said shows a syringe in Miller's bedroom and another picture of him holding up a bag of high-potency marijuana gummies.

The House Ethics Committee has now formally opened an investigation into the domestic violence and drug abuse accusations as he demanded to clear his name. Miller himself called for the investigation into the allegations. 

Most recently, a new element to the saga has shocked members of the public and DC insiders alike. Miller's ex-father-in-law, Senator Bernie Moreno, told reporters that his granddaughter, Miller and Emily Moreno's daughter, 'has a little blue bunny that she sleeps with. Max would not hand over the little blue bunny. Literally held it hostage for 48 hours.

'This girl is crying at night because she can't sleep without her little blue bunny. And his answer is, "I'm just not going to give it to you,"' he added. 'This is the level of total and complete depravity.'

An Ohio political insider predicted to the Daily Mail that it is 'only going to get uglier if he doesn't step aside,' adding: 'The American public shouldn't know about a child's blue bunny.' 

Miller denies withholding the bunny, and insisted in a post on X that his daughter got the toy back within 14 hours, not 48.

On Wednesday, Miller posted screenshots of the purported text messages and emails on X, insisting they prove he never withheld his daughter's beloved blue bunny and that she got it back within 14 hours.

The messages appear to show he agreed to a pickup arranged by the couple's parenting coordinator, but refused to hand the toy over to a family friend who wasn't on the approved exchange list. Miller demanded that his father-in-law collect the stuffed animal himself.

In a gambit to clear his name from the nasty allegations lobbed at him, Miller also released a trove of files last weekend.

Among them are audio recordings of him arguing with his ex-wife over the syringes she claims to have found near his bed.

'I have gone into your backpack because I truly do believe you have a drug problem,' Emily said in one of the audio tapes.

A defiant Miller shot back: 'Okay, what drugs?'

'First it was weed, then I found needles next to your bed,' Moreno told Miller, according to the recording. 'I took a picture of it. You can try to deny it to me.' 

Miller repeatedly denied any drug use during the back and forth, promising so to his ex-wife by invoking his 'Jewish word of honor.'

Pressed by CNN host Jake Tapper this week on the last time he had illegal drugs, Miller responded that it was years ago, though exactly when, he said, he was unsure.

'I would have to say, the last time I had illegal drugs would have been, I don't know, several years ago. I mean I don't have a time frame on it, but I don't use illegal drugs.'

Miller, a former aide to Trump during the Republican's first term, has also been accused by his ex-girlfriend Stephanie Grisham, a former press secretary for the President during his first term, of domestic abuse. Miller denied the allegations. 

After he sued her for defamation over her claims, which first surfaced in 2021, the pair settled the case and signed a non-disclosure agreement to refrain from disparaging each other. They dated in 2019 and 2020.

This week, Grisham filed a petition for a restraining order against Miller.

'The settlement included certain promises that Congressman Miller made to our client Stephanie Grisham, and those promises were broken,' Grisham's lawyer, Marc Dann, told the Ohio Capital Journal.

Miller has not commented on the restraining order.

However, it's not just the Ohio delegation that have knives out for Miller.

Republican Kansas Senator Roger Marshall said Miller 'should resign.'

Miller 'shouldn't be in office,' Republican Senator Rick Scott of Florida said.

House and Senate GOP leadership have largely remained mum on the matter, likely in deference to Trump, who has not yet called on Miller to resign.

Still, Trump understands that the scandal could be damaging to Republicans.

The President spoke to Miller by phone about the ongoing scandal on Monday.

'Things aren't looking good,' Trump reportedly told the embattled Congressman, to which Miller responded that he would be staying in the race.

The President told reporters earlier that day that the allegations against Miller are just 'accusations,' adding that 'I'm going to let them figure that out.'

The White House did not respond to the Daily Mail's inquiries on whether the President has spoken to Miller since Monday, or whether he still stands by his endorsement of Miller.

The Congressman's conviction to stay in the race despite the allegations against him could imperil Republicans' larger hopes of maintaining control of Congress.

As the November midterm elections approach, and incumbent lawmakers increasingly focus on their campaigns to secure re-election, some GOP members of Congress have tried to avoid speaking out on Miller's scandal altogether.

'I have heard people are concerned and do not want to publicly support him as more comes out,' one Republican House member told the Daily Mail.

Prediction markets show Republicans are poised for a beatdown in November, with Kalshi projecting that Democrats have an 83 percent chance of controlling the House next year. The projections are similar on rival prediction platform Polymarket.

The Daily Mail has contacted Moreno and Miller's legal representatives for comment.