Topline
Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, told reporters Tuesday Rep. Max Miller, R-Ohio, refused to hand over his granddaughter’s beloved “little blue bunny” in a custody exchange on Sunday, elaborating on his daughter’s heated custody battle with Miller—who Moreno said doesn’t meet the “minimum basic standard” to serve in public office.
Key Facts
Moreno said the incident involving the stuffed animal happened when he picked his 2-year-old granddaughter up from Miller at a suburban Cleveland police station, “because that’s the place we have to go to meet, because I don’t know what this guy’s capable of,” adding that he participated in the custody exchange because he doesn’t want his daughter to interact with Miller.
Miller “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,’” Moreno said, telling reporters, “yesterday, he lets the little blue bunny go. This is the level of total and complete depravity.”
Moreno spoke out against Miller on Sunday for the first time since his daughter and Miller separated in 2024 after Miller published a video statement Sunday denying Emily Moreno’s abuse allegations against him.
Moreno on Tuesday repeated his calls for Miller to resign, telling reporters, “my daughter lives in constant fear of this man” and that he “fails to meet that minimum basic standard” to hold public office.
Moreno’s comments were among several public developments in the dispute on Tuesday—earlier in the day, Miller’s attorney took blame for an unclothed photo of Miller and Emily Moreno’s daughter published in a trove of documents Miller made public Sunday to support his claims of innocence.
The House Ethics Committee also announced an investigation into Miller after he requested the probe earlier in the day in an effort to clear his name.
Forbes has reached out to Miller’s office and his attorney.
This is a developing story and will be updated.