This Trump nominee f-cked around on Jan. 6—and is now finding out
President Donald Trump’s pick to serve as the top federal prosecutor in Washington, D.C., looks poised to fail after a key GOP senator grew a pair and said he won’t vote to confirm the nominee.
Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina said Tuesday he would not advance acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Ed Martin’s nomination through the Senate Judiciary Committee, a move that would likely keep Martin’s nomination from even making it to the Senate floor for a full vote.
“I’ve indicated to the White House I wouldn’t support his nomination,” Tillis told reporters on Capitol Hill.
Of Martin’s numerous flaws as a candidate, he sympathizes with Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol insurrectionists—because he was at the riot himself.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters that Tillis’ opposition is likely the end for Martin, whose interim position expires on May 20.
“Obviously we would cross the bridge if and when we came to it, but it sounds like he’s got problems at the committee,” Thune told reporters.
Even if Martin managed to advance, it’s unlikely that he’d earn a majority of support from other Republican senators. Multiple GOP senators have expressed concerns with Martin’s past conduct.
Martin is an election denier who, in his current role, has helped to weaponize the Department of Justice against Trump’s perceived enemies with threats to investigate Democratic lawmakers, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and California Rep. Robert Garcia, because of comments they made about co-President Elon Musk.
At the same time, Martin has protected Trump supporters accused of breaking the law, including a GOP lawmaker whom a woman accused of assault.
Martin—who previously served as the chair of the Missouri Republican Party—has also been accused of verbally attacking judges and threatening students. Martin also likened former President Joe Biden to Adolf Hitler. At the same time, Martin has embraced Timothy Hale-Cusanelli, a Jan. 6 insurrectionist who is an overt antisemite and posted a photo of himself donning a Hitler mustache. Martin called Hale-Cusanelli an “amazing guy” and “great friend.”
Trump wanted Republicans to confirm Martin, bizarrely claiming in a Monday night social media post that he needs Martin to serve in the position in order to enact the “Make America Healthy Again” agenda of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Trump wrote:
According to many but, in particular, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., his approval is IMPERATIVE in terms of doing all that has to be done to SAVE LIVES and to, MAKE AMERICA HEALTHY AGAIN. This is a passion for Ed, more so than for almost anyone that I have seen. One of the reasons that I was so successful in winning the 2024 Presidential Election is my commitment to Health, and helping to Make America Healthy. The Cost of the Chronic Disease Epidemic has gotten out of control over the past four years of the Biden Presidency. We are going to take our Country BACK, and FAST. Ed Martin will be a big player in doing so and, I hope, that the Republican Senators will make a commitment to his approval, which is now before them. Ed is coming up on the deadline for Voting and, if approved, HE WILL NOT LET YOU DOWN.
But that message didn’t cut it for Tillis, who said Martin’s Jan. 6 past was a bridge too far.
“If Mr. Martin were being put forth as a U.S. attorney for any district except the district where Jan. 6 happened, the protest happened, I’d probably support him. But not in this district,” Tillis told reporters.
As the saying goes, a broken clock is right twice a day.
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