Former President Trump has thrown his support behind an ex-White House official who is opposing one of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach him in January. Max Miller, a former aide to Trump announced Friday that he will be challenging Rep. Anthony Gonzalez (R)OH), a two-term congressman who voted for impeachment.
Congressman Gonzalez has stood by his impeachment vote saying, “the president didn’t step up in my opinion, in nearly the right way, to stop it.”
Miller is from northeastern Ohio and worked on Trump’s 2016 and 2020 campaigns and served in the White House’s office of presidential personnel and as director of advance.
“I’m running for Congress to stand up for Northeast Ohioans. They overwhelmingly voted for the America First agenda. But their Congressman betrayed them when he voted to impeach President Trump. I won’t back down and I will never betray them,” Miller announced on Twitter.
Shortly after the announcement today, Trump offered his endorsement to Miller, which could pay dividends in a district that the former president won by 16 points in 2016 and by 15 points in 2020.
“Max Miller is a wonderful person who did a great job at the White House and will be a fantastic Congressman. He is a Marine veteran, a son of Ohio, and a true Patriot. Current Rep. Anthony Gonzalex should not be representing the people of the 16th district because he does not represent their interest or their heart. Max Miller has my complete and total endorsement!” Trump said in a statement.
Miller has made it clear that he plans to turn Gonzalez’s impeachment vote into a centerpiece of his campaign, as he noted in his tweet of the betrayed constituents by Gonzalez.
Trump has told advisers that he is intent on unseating the Republicans who backed his impeachment. Trump has already endorsed several candidates in next year’s elections, including former White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who is running for governor of Arkansas, and Kansas Sen. Jerry Moran.
Miller joins an increasingly long list of former Trump aides who are either seeking office or weighing potential bids. In addition to Sanders, former ambassador to Slovenia Lynda Blanchard has launched a campaign for Alabama’s open Senate seat. Cliff Sims, another former Trump aide, is seriously considering entering the Alabama race, and former campaign adviser Katrina Pierson is a potential candidate for a special House election in Texas.
Trump’s endorsement will be very significant to candidates because of his popularity and his established leadership PAC with tens of millions of dollars. And he is also laying out his plan to start a super PAC, which would be able to spend unlimited amounts of advertising dollars.
