Rob Miller (South Carolina politician)

Early life and education

Miller is originally from Charleston, South Carolina. He met his wife Shane, while a student at Bishop England High School. The two began dating while both were enrolled at the College of Charleston. He graduated from the University of South Carolina with a B.A. degree, and received a Master's Degree in justice administration from Norwich University.

United States Marine Corps

During his freshman year at the College of Charleston, Miller enlisted in the United States Marine Corps. Miller's basic training took place at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island in 1995. Miller served 13 years in the United States Marine Corps, including two deployments in the Iraq War. During his service in Iraq, Miller experienced combat duty in battle locations during the initial two years of the Iraq War, including Mosul, Haditha, and Fallujah. Miller rose to the rank of captain, and retired from the Marine Corps in February 2008.

2008 U.S. Congressional campaign

The 2nd had long been considered a Republican stronghold; it has been in Republican hands since 1965 and was one of the first areas of the state to break away from its Democratic roots. However, national Democratic officials expressed optimism that Miller could compete for the seat, in part based on expected high turnout of supporters of Barack Obama.

In the days leading up to the election, Miller's campaign attracted the interest of top Democrats, and House Majority Whip James Clyburn, also of South Carolina, campaigned for Miller. By October 23, 2008, Miller had raised about $500,000, approximately half as much as Wilson.

In the November 4 election, Miller took 46.4 percent of the vote. He was defeated by the Republican incumbent, Joe Wilson, in the closest election of Wilson's political life in the South Carolina Senate and United States House of Representatives. Wilson won the election by a margin of approximately 26,000 votes.

2010 U.S. Congressional campaign

In 2010, Miller challenged Republican incumbent Joe Wilson for South Carolina's 2nd congressional district. Also running were Libertarian nominee Eddie McCain and Constitution Party nominee Marc Beaman. On September 9, 2009, Representative Wilson shouted "You lie!" at President Obama during his speech to a joint session of Congress. Donations to Miller for his 2010 campaign against Wilson immediately spiked, followed by counter donations from Wilson's supporters. Within 48 hours, Miller had topped $1 million and Wilson $750,000. After one week, both candidates had received over $1.5 million. A poll conducted a day after the outburst by the Democratic affiliated pollster Public Policy Polling found Miller ahead of Wilson 44% to 43%. WCSC-TV described the 2010 race as "a high-stakes re-election campaign".

In January 2010, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee placed Miller's challenge opposing Wilson among the top 17 races in the 2010 elections for U.S. Congress. By February 2010, the Miller-Wilson contest had become the most expensive U.S. House of Representatives race in South Carolina history. During campaigning, Miller emphasized the viewpoint that his opponent had become complacent in Washington, D.C., "Joe Wilson raised his own pay five times; used taxpayer dollars to bail out Wall Street; and voted against combat benefits for troops in Iraq. I don’t know what state [Wilson] thinks he’s from. This race is going to be won because Congressman Wilson has voted against South Carolina interests time and time again." Miller positioned himself in the race as a fiscally conservative Democrat.

Carol Fowler, Chairwoman of the South Carolina State Democratic Party, noted that Miller had gained experience since his prior election campaign, "(Miller) ran a competitive race in 2008, but he was clearly new at it. He's more sure of himself, he's better at fundraising, he's better at one-on-one talking to voters, he makes a better speech." Miller's first political television advertisement, titled "Iraq", included U.S. Marines that spoke positively of his leadership skills while serving in Iraq. The political ad first ran in August 2010. Miller placed an ad in which he accused his opponent of outsourcing jobs to Central America. Miller stated his campaign was attempting to appeal to members of the Republican and Independent parties as well as the Democrats, in order to highlight criticisms of his opponent.

Miller criticized trips made by Wilson to Afghanistan, and stated the visits detracted from funding for U.S. military efforts due to the protection required for the trips. Miller emphasized a House Ethics Committee investigation into Wilson's usage of travel funds, and commented, "Joe Wilson represents everything about Washington that's wrong today. He has a long track record of skirting ethical rules in congress and that's not what South Carolina is about." He criticized Wilson's travel to Iraq as frivolous, stating to McClatchy Newspapers, "When I was in Iraq, I don't know how many times we had to take Marines and soldiers off missions so they could provide security for these political stunts. That's simply unacceptable. These politicians need to get out of the way and let the military get the job done." After reports that the Congressional House Ethics Committee investigation was wider than Wilson had led individuals to believe, Miller's campaign stated, "Congressman Wilson has been intentionally misleading the public about his ethics investigation. If he will admit to stealing in broad daylight, what is happening behind closed doors?"

Wilson defeated Miller by 53.5% to 43.8%.

Personal life

Miller and his wife Shane married in 1997. They own a store in Beaufort, South Carolina called The Recruit's Depot, which sells San Diego and Parris Island Marine Corps merchandise. In 2008, Miller lived on Lady's Island in Beaufort County, South Carolina. In 2010, their son, Ransom, was a student at Beaufort Elementary School. Ransom and his family now live in Bethesda MD.