Former Trump White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham has filed a temporary restraining order against Rep. Max Miller of Ohio, escalating a legal and political crisis that now has fellow Republicans calling for his resignation.
Grisham's attorney, Mark S. Zaid, announced the filing on the social platform X, stating that his client had secured a temporary restraining order against the Republican congressman as part of an ongoing lawsuit. The restraining order was filed in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, on August 3, and accuses Miller of breaching a 2023 private settlement agreement that barred both parties from making disparaging public comments about one another.
The breach, according to the Washington Examiner, centers on a series of posts Miller made on X in which he accused Grisham of fabricating her domestic violence allegations against him. Those posts followed a Daily Mail article about similar abuse allegations from Miller's ex-wife, Emily Moreno.
Grisham's legal team laid out the case in blunt terms. Her attorneys wrote in the Monday filing:
"Once Miller chose to publicly accuse Plaintiff of fabricating her allegations and publicly reinsert her into an ongoing media controversy, the contractual benefit of peace and finality were eroded."
They went further, arguing that the damage is ongoing:
"These are not isolated breaches. Miller's offending publications remain publicly accessible, continue to be disseminated, and continue to inflict ongoing harm upon Grisham's professional reputation, credibility, and standing."
The dispute traces back to 2021, when Grisham published an op-ed in the Washington Post describing an abusive relationship with an unnamed man during her time in the Trump White House. Miller filed a defamation lawsuit against her shortly afterward. That suit was eventually dropped after both parties signed a nondisclosure agreement, the same agreement Grisham now alleges Miller violated.
The Hill reported that a new lawsuit was filed after Miller made statements in a June interview with Spectrum News. In that interview, Miller suggested the timing of the original allegations was suspicious, noting they "came out on the same day as somebody's book launch and the other part."
Miller also invoked his ex-wife in that interview, saying:
"My ex-wife was with me every single day during that time of my life in that election, and she, in her own words, will tell you that I never did any of those things."
That ex-wife, Emily Moreno, has since filed her own restraining order against Miller, and her allegations are far more severe than anything in the Grisham matter.
Emily Moreno, the daughter of Sen. Bernie Moreno of Ohio, has accused Miller in court documents of shoving her, hurling scalding hot water at her, holding a gun to her head, and breaking their daughter's collarbone. The couple is locked in a custody battle over their daughter. Miller has denied the allegations.
Sen. Moreno did not hold back about his former son-in-law. The New York Post reported that the senator publicly called for Miller to resign, saying:
"He is a danger to my daughter, and I hold my breath every minute he has custody of my granddaughter. If there are any basic standards of character required to hold elected office, Max Miller fails them."
Moreno is not alone among Senate Republicans. Sen. Rick Scott of Florida told MeidasTouch reporter Pablo Manríquez plainly: "First off, he shouldn't be in office, right." Sen. Roger Marshall of Kansas said that based on what he knows, Miller should resign. Marshall added that he knows the Moreno family and "can't imagine they would go through this process if there wasn't something there."
The growing number of Republicans willing to say publicly that Miller should leave Congress is notable. The House Ethics Committee has become a more active arena for addressing member conduct in recent months, an investigation into Rep. Chuck Edwards over harassment allegations opened earlier this year, and Miller has now invited that scrutiny onto himself.
Rather than step aside, Miller posted on X that he would file paperwork requesting an ethics investigation into his own conduct. His post read:
"In light of all the renewed interest in my family affairs I am going to file my own paperwork for an ethic investigation to clear my name from the horrific attacks on myself and my family."
He added: "The accusations continue to change, but my facts stay the same. I am looking forward to my colleagues reading everything for themselves." Whether Miller has actually filed that paperwork or merely announced his intention to do so remains unclear.
The move carries obvious political risk. Formal ethics proceedings can drag on for months and keep damaging headlines alive, a dynamic familiar from recent ethics filings that consumed weeks of political oxygen before reaching any conclusion. Miller is betting that sunlight will vindicate him. His critics are betting it will do the opposite.
President Trump, asked about the situation by reporters at the White House, kept his distance. "It's a very sad thing. I know Max. He's a good person," Trump said. "I'm going to let the families figure that out. It's accusations and I'm going to let them figure that out."
The political stakes extend beyond Miller's personal troubles. Trump carried Miller's Ohio congressional district by 11 points in 2024, but Democrats are now eyeing the seat as a potential upset opportunity. A deadline for Miller to withdraw from the ballot is approaching, and every day he stays in the race is a day Republicans cannot recruit a replacement candidate.
For a party defending a narrow House majority, the situation is exactly the kind of self-inflicted wound that turns safe seats into competitive ones. Analysts have already shifted several House races toward Democrats heading into the midterms, and a contested Ohio district would only add to that trend.
Just The News noted that the Grisham restraining order lands on top of the separate restraining order filed by Emily Moreno, meaning Miller now faces two active legal actions from two different women alleging patterns of abusive or harmful behavior. Miller has denied all allegations and has vowed to continue his reelection campaign.
The broader pattern of formal filings and misconduct allegations hitting Republican members has tested the party's ability to police its own ranks. House Republicans have shown willingness to act in other cases, but Miller's defiance, and Trump's hands-off posture, suggest this standoff will not resolve quietly.
When two separate women file restraining orders against the same sitting congressman, and members of his own party tell him to resign, the question stops being whether the accusations are fair. It becomes whether anyone in a position of authority is willing to act on them.