President Donald Trump said Thursday he will withdraw the nomination of Ed Martin, a longtime champion of Jan. 6 defendants, to be the District of Columbia’s top federal prosecutor.
“We have somebody else that will be great,” Trump told reporters. “We have somebody else who we’ll be announcing.”
Support for Martin among Capitol Hill Republicans has faltered in recent days, particularly after Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) signaled his opposition to the nominee over his past comments downplaying the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.
Martin has spent the last few years advocating for Jan. 6 defendants and helping organize their legal defense. He has embraced conspiracy theories about the attack and the results of the 2020 election and he has spoken favorably about some of the most egregious perpetrators of the riot.
Tillis, who sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee, presented a major obstacle to Martin’s ability to be confirmed – both within the panel and on the chamber floor, given the GOP’s razor-thin majority and likely universal opposition among Democrats.
Trump suggested he would place Martin somewhere else in his administration. The Department of Justice did not immediately return a request for comment. However, shortly after Trump’s remarks — which coincided with the selection of a new pope — Martin posted on X what appeared to be a facetious, A.I.-generated image of himself as the pontiff.
“Plot twist,” he wrote.
Martin has been serving as interim U.S. attorney since Trump’s inauguration, but his ability to hold this temporary position is set to expire on May 20. At that point, judges of the federal district court in Washington may appoint a new temporary replacement that would stand until a permanent successor is confirmed by the Senate.
His tenure has been marked by unusual inquiries aimed at Trump’s political adversaries and efforts to court support from local D.C. residents. He’s also embraced Trump’s call to crack down on crime in the capital city and suggested he was launching investigations into some Democratic members of Congress
He also has also drawn scrutiny for his evasive answers to the Judiciary Committee about his relationship with Jan. 6 defendant Timothy Hale-Cusanelli, who had been accused of openly anti-Semitic behavior, and omission of dozens of appearances on Russian state media in recent years.
Democratic members of the Senate Judiciary Committee were pressuring chair Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) for the chance to question Martin at a formal hearing, which would be atypical for a U.S. attorney nominee. Grassley declined the request.
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