The House Ethics Committee refused to say whether it will investigate Ohio Republican Rep. Max Miller over domestic abuse allegations from his ex-wife, even as the panel has opened probes into two other GOP lawmakers on separate misconduct claims.

When the Daily Caller News Foundation asked the committee Friday whether it planned to look into the allegations against Miller, the response was two words: "No comment." Miller's office did not respond to a request for comment. Neither did House Speaker Mike Johnson's office.

The committee's silence arrives against a backdrop of escalating legal filings between Miller and his ex-wife, Emily Moreno, the daughter of Republican Ohio Sen. Bernie Moreno. Moreno has accused Miller of throwing hot water on her, holding a gun to her head, and injuring their two-year-old daughter. Miller has denied all the allegations, called them a smear campaign, and sued Moreno for defamation. He has never been charged with a crime.

Allegations span more than a year, from hot water to a gun

Moreno's accusations cover incidents she says took place over roughly a year. In June 2024, she alleged Miller threw hot water on her from a pan of eggs and then sprayed her with hot water from the kitchen sink hose. She said she fell into a fetal position on the floor. By March 2025, the allegations grew more severe: Moreno claimed Miller held a gun to her head and abused her in front of their daughter.

Moreno also alleged that Miller caused their two-year-old daughter to suffer a fractured collarbone, with a bruise that appeared to be in the shape of a handprint, CBS News reported. Ohio's Department of Children and Family Services, however, did not find evidence of abuse against the child, ABC News reported.

Miller has pushed back hard. After media outlets reported the hot water allegation in May, he sued Moreno for defamation, citing "considerable reputational and financial harm." His campaign spokeswoman, Abigail Angelos, pointed to the custody arrangement as evidence the claims lack merit.

Angelos told CBS News:

"The facts speak for themselves: the court has continued to permit him joint custody of his child. If there were credible evidence supporting these outrageous accusations, that simply would not be the case. Congressman Miller will continue to vigorously defend his reputation against false and reckless allegations designed to inflame public opinion rather than reflect reality. This narrative has gone on long enough."

The cross-accusations have not been one-directional. Miller filed his own domestic violence case against Moreno in February but moved to drop it in May. No public explanation for that reversal appeared in reporting on the matter.

A restraining order filing adds a new layer

On Thursday, the day before the Ethics Committee offered its non-answer, Moreno filed a restraining order against Miller. She alleged he physically grabbed one of her attorneys, Andrew Zashin, during a recent court hearing. Miller also allegedly made threatening statements against Moreno's father, Sen. Bernie Moreno.

Miller accused his former father-in-law of enabling his "daughter's malicious campaign to ruin [his] life." Sen. Moreno's spokesperson, Reagan McCarthy, responded through a statement to the Daily Caller News Foundation:

"Senator Moreno's top priority is the safety and well-being of his daughter and granddaughter. While he does not litigate these matters in the media or respond to baseless public attacks, he will do whatever it takes to ensure a just outcome for his family."

The situation puts two prominent Ohio Republicans, a congressman and a senator, on opposite sides of an increasingly bitter family dispute playing out in courtrooms and in the press. Congressional scandals involving personal misconduct by sitting lawmakers have tested both parties' willingness to police their own in recent years.

Johnson keeps his distance while Democrats press for action

Speaker Johnson has made clear he does not intend to intervene. In May, he told NBC News:

"I don't get involved in the personal lives of members and those things. You know, he's refuted some of these allegations, and he's got to work that out."

At a July 21 press conference, Johnson repeated that he did not involve himself with investigations. His office did not respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation's latest request for comment.

The Democratic Women's Caucus has called on the Ethics Committee to open a formal investigation into Miller. Whether the committee has received any formal referral or complaint remains unclear, the panel's "no comment" left every procedural question unanswered.

That stance stands in contrast to the committee's handling of other cases. The panel has opened investigations into Rep. Cory Mills of Florida over allegations of dating violence, sexual misconduct, and campaign finance violations, and into Rep. Chuck Edwards of North Carolina over allegations of sexual harassment. Both are Republicans. The committee's willingness to act in those cases makes its refusal to address the Miller situation all the more conspicuous.

Ethics probes, or the conspicuous absence of them, have become a recurring flashpoint on Capitol Hill. Rep. Jimmy Gomez admitted to infidelity only after an ethics probe and media pressure forced the issue. Similar questions about institutional accountability surfaced when a California Democrat faced an ethics probe over alleged unwanted advances toward interns.

Prior abuse accusations date back to 2021

The current allegations are not the first time Miller has faced accusations of abusive conduct. Former White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham accused Miller of abuse in a Washington Post op-ed published on October 5, 2021. The specific details of Grisham's claims were not described in the Daily Caller's reporting, but her public accusation preceded the Moreno allegations by several years.

Miller denied those earlier claims as well. No charges resulted from Grisham's accusations.

The pattern raises a straightforward question the Ethics Committee has so far declined to engage: at what point do accumulating allegations, from multiple women, across multiple years, now accompanied by restraining order filings and a defamation suit, warrant at least the transparency of a public statement about whether the committee is doing its job?

Broader questions about how Congress handles misconduct by its own members continue to dog both parties. Voters expect their representatives to be held to at least the same standards as any other citizen, and when the body charged with enforcement refuses even to acknowledge the question, it feeds the suspicion that the rules apply differently inside the Capitol.

Congressional ethics enforcement that works only when the political math is convenient isn't enforcement at all. The committee opened probes into Mills and Edwards. It owes the public a straight answer on Miller, or an honest explanation of why his case is different.