Forty-two members of the U.S. House of Representatives have joined the Congressional Family Caucus, a group formed in 2023 to defend the interests of families and oppose “the radical Left,” which allegedly seeks to “replace the natural family with the federal government.”
Caucuses are groups of Congress members who meet and work together for shared legislative goals. There are hundreds of them, including some supporting foreign nations (Albania to Venezuela), faith groups (including Muslim and Sikh), and industries (air cargo to vehicle data access).
Most caucuses have both Republicans and Democrats in their leadership and membership, but not the Congressional Family Caucus. Its members and three leaders (Mary Miller of Illinois, Diana Harshbarger of Tennessee, Brian Babin of Texas) are all hard-right Republicans.
“For years, we have witnessed a concerted effort by activists on the Left to abolish the natural family.”
“For years, we have witnessed a concerted effort by activists on the Left to abolish the natural family,” said Miller, the group’s chairwoman, at its founding. “The Left advances abortion, fatherlessness, surgical castration and atheism.”
Family Caucus members, who have the support of conservative Christian “pro-family” groups, say there’s only one divinely approved model of family: the nuclear family of a father, mother and children. Members of single-parent families or other models should look to other legislators for congressional support.
“I am launching the Congressional Family Caucus because I believe we have a moral obligation as servant representatives to protect and conserve the family,” Miller said. “The natural family, a man and a woman committed for life to each other and to their children, is essential for a nation to prosper because the family is the root of self-government, service, community and personal responsibility.”
Miller’s co-chairs agree. “The Congressional Family Caucus will promote policies that are God-driven and family-focused,” Babin said.
“As you look around and take inventory of the struggles in our nation, the vast majority can be traced back to the demise of the family unit,” Harshbarger added.
An example of Miller’s “pro-family” work is her recently introduced resolution that would have Congress declare the month of June “Family Month” instead of “Pride Month.” She explained: “We reject the lie of ‘Pride’ and instead honor God’s timeless and perfect design. I came out with the mission — which was the same as when I was in Illinois — and that is I believe God has left us on earth as believers to overcome evil with good and Pride Month, in my opinion, (is) evil.”
Mary Miller, House Representative of Illinois (R-IL 15th District), (C) speaks to members of the press outside of 100 Center Street regarding Donald Trump’s New York criminal hush money case at Manhattan Criminal Court. (Photo by Derek French / SOPA Images/Sipa USA)(Sipa via AP Images)
Miller also opposes “the evil transgender agenda” and invoked “evil” once again when describing senators who oppose President Donald Trump’s “big beautiful” budget bill and even the nonpartisan Senate parliamentarian who ruled parts of the bill violated Senate rules.
“We need to be a force against evil, against bad ideas and against the Parliamentarian or whoever is trying to take a wrecking ball to the big beautiful bill,” Miller said.
Miller’s brief congressional career has more than its share of embarrassing incidents that illustrate her far-right views, her promotion of Christian nationalism and her inability to respect — or represent — the rights and religious freedom of Americans who don’t share her beliefs.
She’s a Trump loyalist who embraced his lies about a rigged 2020 election and sought to reject votes from Arizona and Pennsylvania as House members counted Electoral College numbers.
She voted against impeaching Trump but co-sponsored four resolutions to impeach President Joe Biden and tried to impeach four Biden officials.
She voted against impeaching Trump but co-sponsored four resolutions to impeach President Joe Biden and tried to impeach four Biden officials: Vice President Kamala Harris, the attorney general and the secretaries of State and Homeland Security.
Miller’s record of legislative accomplishments is slight, but her culture warring wins her regular airtime on conservative networks Newsmax and One America News. She avoids “fake news media” which she says “refuses to investigate or ask any questions about … the COVID vaccine or the impact of transgender surgeries on teens or the Biden family’s relationship with China.”
Miller claims she’s committed to religious freedom, but her behavior reveals that freedom should be afforded to only some religions. When a Sikh religious leader delivered the opening prayer in the House earlier this month, Miller unleashed in a post on X.
She misidentified the Sikh man leading the prayer as a Muslim and said the privilege of praying in the House should be restricted to Christians.
“America was founded as a Christian nation, and I believe our government should reflect that truth, not drift further from it,” she wrote. “May God have mercy.”
Miller later corrected the erroneous religious affiliation in her post before deleting the post. So far, she has declined numerous requests to apologize for her comments, including a petition from Interfaith Alliance.
“It’s deeply troubling that such an ignorant and hateful extremist is serving in the United States Congress,” said House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.
And after Delaware voters sent a transgender woman named Sarah McBride to the House this year, Miller referred to her as “the gentleman from Delaware, Mr. McBride.” Focus on the Family applauded Miller for “speaking truth and doing so boldly,” calling Miller’s comment “the kind of confident honesty that more people need to speak.”
“It’s deeply troubling that such an ignorant and hateful extremist is serving in the United States Congress.”
Miller says “climate change is a sham,” arguing, “God controls the climate because he controls the sun and the sun controls the weather, primarily.” And she favors repeal of the Johnson Amendment so preachers can politicize pulpits with no risk to their ministries’ nonprofit status.
Early on, she approvingly quoted Adolf Hitler in a speech to the group Moms for Liberty. Criticism from fellow Republicans and Jewish groups eventually led her to issue a partial apology.
And in another speech, she said the Supreme Court’s ruling overturning Roe v. Wade was a victory “for white life” before later correcting herself and saying it was a victory for “the right to life.”
Miller, who is serving her second term in Congress and is a member of the far-right House Freedom Caucus, has 100% endorsements from Family Research Council Action, the Koch brothers’ Americans for Prosperity, the Heritage Foundation’s Heritage Action for America, Phyllis Schlafly’s Eagle Forum, Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, and National Right to Life Committee. She has a 99% rating from Concerned Women For America Legislative Action Committee and a 93% rating from the John Birch Society.
Concerned Women for America, which participated in the Congressional Family Caucus’ inaugural event, praised the group’s focus on the nuclear family to the exclusion of other family types: “The Left has incessantly claimed that children who are raised by one parent or a same-sex parental unit are equally positioned as a child who is raised by their mother and a father. No matter how many times they try to sell this lie though, it is not true. Study after study shows that a child does best, by almost every measure, throughout their life when raised by their biological mother and father. It is in this sacred institution of marriage that a child should be reared. Our failure to live up to that standard does not negate that there is a standard.”
Concerned Women for America praised the caucus members: “All throughout the event, it was evident that these three legislators are driven by love, compassion and their faith. They seek Jesus in all they do and seek to glorify him in their work.”
Miller is a member of Oakland Christian Church in Oakland, Ill.
Members of the Congressional Family Caucus are:
- Mary Miller (Ill.) – Chairwoman
- Diana Harshbarger (Tenn.) – Co-chair
- Brian Babin (Texas) – Co-chair
- Eric Burlison (Mo.)
- Doug LaMalfa (Calif.)
- Lauren Boebert (Colo.)
- Byron Donalds (Fla.)
- Keith Self (Texas)
- Andy Ogles (Tenn.)
- Mike Johnson (La.)
- Andy Harris (Md.)
- Glenn Grothman (Wis.)
- Anna Paulina Luna (Fla.)
- Warren Davidson (Ohio)
- Michael Guest (Miss.)
- Josh Brecheen (Okla.)
- Barry Moore (Ala.)
- Rich McCormick (Ga.)
- Joe Wilson (S.C.)
- Michael Cloud (Texas)
- Ben Cline (Va.)
- Rick Allen (Ga.)
- Harriet Hageman (Wyo.)
- Ralph Norman (S.C.)
- Claudia Tenney (N.Y.)
- Carol Miller (W.Va.)
- Robert Aderholt (Ala.)
- Greg Steube (Fla.)
- Tom Tiffany (Wis.)
- Lisa McClain (Mich.)
- Bruce Westerman (Ark.)
- Erin Houchin (Ind.)
- Mark Harris (N.C.)
- Randy Weber (Texas)
- Riley Moore (W.Va.)
- Marlin Stutzman (Ind.)
- Bob Onder (Mo.)
- Paul Gosar (Ariz.)
- Brandon Gill (Texas)
- Addison McDowell (N.C.)
- Sheri Biggs (S.C.)
- Tracey Mann (Kan.)