Los aliados republicanos del presidente Donald Trump le están presionando para que retire su respaldo al representante Max Miller (R-OH), quien enfrenta acusaciones de haber abusado físicamente de dos exparejas sentimentales y de su hijo pequeño. Miller, un exasesor de la Casa Blanca que ganó su escaño en la Cámara con el apoyo de Trump, ahora ve su futuro político en riesgo mientras miembros de su propio partido se distancian de la controversia en escalada. La situación ha generado comparaciones con la reciente decisión de los demócratas de retirar su apoyo a su nominado al Senado por Maine, el agricultor de ostras Graham Platner, tras acusaciones de violencia doméstica y conducta sexual inapropiada, un contraste que ha puesto a los republicanos bajo presión para demostrar un criterio coherente al responder a este tipo de acusaciones. Sin embargo, según informes, Trump ha tenido dificultades para tomar una medida similar respecto de Miller.

Durante una conferencia de prensa en la Oficina Oval el lunes, Trump abordó el asunto: "It's a very sad thing; I know Max. He's a good person. I mean, I always thought he was a very good person. And I'm going to let the families figure that out. You know, those families, I know they're working on it. It's a very sad thing, but it's accusations, and I'm going to let them figure that out."

Miller ha negado todas las acusaciones, afirmando falsamente que solo su esposa ha presentado denuncias. De hecho, la exsecretaria de prensa de Trump, Stephanie Grisham, también lo ha acusado de abuso doméstico. Miller además argumentó que, si hubiera agredido a su entonces esposa, Emily Moreno, ella no habría ofrecido después cocinarle la cena ni habría pasado una tarde en un parque infantil con su hija. Los expertos en violencia doméstica señalan que las sobrevivientes con frecuencia sienten que deben mantener contacto con sus agresores por diversas razones, y que esa interacción continuada nunca constituye una excusa ni una exoneración del abuso.

En una aparición en CNN, el exrepresentante Peter Meijer (R-MI) leyó una carta escrita por el padre de Moreno, el senador Bernie Moreno (R-OH), quien pidió la renuncia de Miller. El senador escribió: "it's been horrific to watch this play out in full public view, all while knowing an innocent two-year-old girl is caught in the middle" y "I hold my breath every minute he has custody of my granddaughter."

"That's hard to skip past," le dijo Meijer a Kasie Hunt de CNN. "I mean, I totally believe that Sen. Moreno, again, did not want to bring additional attention to this. This is a private family matter. It's taking place over a custody dispute over his daughter's daughter — not something you want to get litigated in the public eye."

Luego Meijer explicó la dinámica política que está alejando a los republicanos de Miller: "I mean, both on the personal family side of the house and on the political side of the house — Congress is not in session right now, but I can tell you, if you're a member of Congress and you are the reason why all of your colleagues are getting a microphone shoved in their face and being asked, ‘Hey, what do you think about this terrible thing your colleague is alleged to have done?’ — that is not a way to build alliances within a caucus. It's a great way to have folks start to throw you under the bus."

Hunt señaló que hay informes de que Trump les ha dicho en privado a sus aliados que Miller no puede ganar, aunque públicamente mantiene su apoyo al congresista. Esa brecha entre la գնահատación privada de Trump y su postura pública subraya la carga política que las acusaciones representan para el partido de cara al próximo ciclo electoral, ya que los republicanos en funciones podrían verse obligados a responder por un colega cuya presencia continua en la boleta podría convertirse en un lastre de campaña en distritos competitivos.

"This is such a hard story," le dijo Alyssa Farah Griffin, exdirectora de comunicaciones de la Casa Blanca de Trump, a Hunt más temprano en la misma entrevista del lunes. "Listen, I personally really liked Max Miller. We served together in the first Trump administration. He's someone you'd want to be seated next to on Air Force One. He's a charming, gregarious person. But oftentimes, abusers are that way. And listen, he's obviously denied all allegations, but I would remind folks that before these allegations from Emily Moreno were leveled against him, former White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham also accused him of domestic abuse when they were dating."

Ella agregó: "The allegations were in her book, and they were very similar, and they show a pattern of behavior. And I wish that more people had believed her at the time. And perhaps he never would have been in office in the first place. But it's a tough moment for the Republican Party, because many of us were saying recently that Graham Platner needed to get out of the Maine Senate race because of the allegations against him."

En declaraciones exclusivas a AlterNet sobre la respuesta de Miller a las acusaciones de abuso, la Dra. Harriet Fraad — consejera de salud mental, hipnoterapeuta y una mujer con 55 años de experiencia que ha estudiado este tema en profundidad — describió esas declaraciones como "self-pitying" y características de agresores que buscan evitar rendir cuentas.

"This is the usual self-pitying deluge of a person who feels that the real crime is being exposed," escribió Fraad. También añadió: "He broke her collarbone in child abuse. And this is not only his wife, but it's also a girlfriend who reported violence. And so I don't believe him. I think that he's a violent man who's now a frightened man and is covering it up."

Fraad concluyó: "Because the idea is — which you can really get from Trump, who's also a rapist [he was found liable for sexually abusing writer E. Jean Carroll] — that they are not an abuser, but rather a victim. Because they feel that the person who told on them is victimizing them. That the victimization is in reporting their behavior, which they want to disavow. That's a betrayal: 'Keep my secrets. Shut up.'"