Max Miller

One detail has stood out among the domestic abuse accusations Rep. Max Miller’s (R-Ohio) ex-wife, Emily Moreno, and her father, Ohio Sen. Bernie Moreno (R), have made against the Congress member — that he withheld his 2-year-old daughter’s beloved blue stuffed bunny during custody exchanges.

“Max would not hand over the little blue bunny,” Bernie Moreno told reporters on Tuesday.

“Literally held it hostage for 48 hours,” the senator added. “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.’” Sen. Moreno’s team referred HuffPost to this statement when reached for further comment.

Miller denied the accusation on X Wednesday night and shared what he said were screenshots that proved he didn’t withhold the daughter’s toy during the recent custody exchange, but that the daughter “forgot it at my house” and he returned it to her within “14 hours” through the family’s parental coordinator. The coordinator did not respond to HuffPost’s request for comment as of publishing.

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Miller tagged his former father-in-law twice in the post, writing, “please stop the lies.”

Miller’s situation with the blue bunny was not a one-off incident, according to screenshots obtained by Mother Jones that purportedly show that the issue came up in March 2025, this May and earlier this week.

The daughter’s attachment to this blue bunny is a security and comfort symbol for toddlers called a transitional object, child development experts told HuffPost.

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It’s common for most toddlers, particularly when going through change — not just traveling between two homes and parents, but also going to daycare or going to bed at night and knowing their parents aren’t in the room with them.

“When that child doesn’t have a relationship that they can turn to in the moment for love, safety, security [and] soothing, they can rely on that object to offer that same sense of, ‘I’m in a safe place,’” Rebecca Parlakian, the senior director of programs at Zero to Three, a nonprofit dedicated to early childhood development, said.

“Withholding a transitional object during this time can induce further anxiety in children, as they can be deprived of a source of comfort when they need it the most,” Paul Donahue, a clinical psychologist and the founder and director of Child Development Associates, said. “They may also interpret the object’s absence as a punishment for their misbehavior or perceived failure to hold the family together.”

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Parlakian noted that sometimes parents will have “backups” in their house in case they lose the transitional object, but the attachment to the original runs much deeper than that.

“It’s the smell, it’s the texture,” she said. “Let’s say a child leaves it in the airport or what have you. The parent will pull out this brand new stuffed animal, and the child is like, ‘Oh no, the leg on the other one, where I hold it, was all flattened.’”

Without the toy, experts say that it’s likely the child will experience a grieving period.

What Separated Parents Need To Keep In Mind

The best way to care for a young child in this environment is to keep their routines as consistent as possible, Donahue said, “including regular time with both parents, and by placing a priority on giving them access to the toys, stuffed animals, and other objects that they find familiar and comforting.”

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For parents who are separated, Parlakian recommends printing and even laminating a tag of critical items that must go in the child’s diaper or travel bag between visits. The tag should be a checklist of the most important items that can’t be replaced — the transitional object and maybe their favorite books or favorite bottle.

“I think so many times, adults unintentionally expect more of children than they would expect of adults,” she said. “We [also] derive some level of comfort and security when we know what to expect in a new place because we have all of our stuff. Meanwhile, we’re shifting human beings who haven’t been on the earth three years and expecting them to be like, sure, I’m fine without my transitional object.”

Neither Miller’s nor Emily Moreno’s respective lawyers responded to HuffPost’s requests for comment. Miller’s team also did not respond.

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The Ohio lawmaker faces other allegations that he physically abused his ex-wife and their daughter, according to court documents cited by The New York Times. Miller publicly denied all of the claims in a video he posted on X on Aug. 2.

Miller is running for reelection, despite calls for him to drop out of his campaign by the Aug. 10 deadline. If he drops out after, there will not be a Republican candidate in the race against Democrat Brian Poindexter.