Key Republican says he won't back Trump's pick for top DC prosecutor
because of Jan. 6 ties
[May 07, 2025]
By MARY CLARE JALONICK and ALANNA DURKIN RICHER
WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican Sen. Thom Tillis says he’s informed the
White House that he won’t support Ed Martin, President Donald
Trump’spick for top federal prosecutor in Washington, stalling the
nomination in the Senate weeks before the temporary appointment expires.
The North Carolina Republican told reporters Tuesday that he had met
with Martin on Monday evening and was opposing his nomination because of
his defense of rioters who breached the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Martin,
a leading figure in Trump’s campaign to overturn the 2020 election,
spoke at a rally on the eve of the violent riot and represented
defendants who were prosecuted for the attack.
“We have to be very, very clear that what happened on January 6th was
wrong,” Tillis said. “It was not prompted or created by other people to
put those people in trouble. They made a stupid decision, and they
disgraced the United States by absolutely destroying the Capitol.”

The U.S. Attorney’s office in Washington is the country’s largest and
prosecuted more than 1,500 riot defendants after the 2021 attack. Trump
pardoned most of the rioters the day he was inaugurated, and he later
appointed Martin to temporarily lead the office. That appointment
expires later this month, and Trump has urged Republican senators to
quickly confirm Martin to the job.
“Ed is coming up on the deadline for Voting and, if approved, HE WILL
NOT LET YOU DOWN,” Trump posted on Truth Social on Monday.
Martin could still be confirmed after his appointment expires. But
Tillis’s opposition will prevent the committee from advancing the
nomination, for now, and signals that Martin might not have the votes to
win confirmation on the Senate floor. Senate Judiciary Committee Chair
Chuck Grassley did not list Martin on this week’s agenda for votes later
in the week, suggesting that Republicans are aware there are not enough
votes to confirm him.
Speaking to reporters later on Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader John
Thune said that it is ultimately the Judiciary panel's decision whether
to proceed with Martin's nomination. “My understanding is they haven't
scheduled anything on that yet, and we will cross that bridge if and
when we come to it,” he said.
Martin has roiled the federal prosecutors’ office since his appointment
as U.S. attorney in January, including firing or demoting veteran
attorneys who prosecuted Trump supporters for storming the U.S. Capitol
and interrupting the certification of Democrat Joe Biden's victory.
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He has also described federal prosecutors as the “president’s
lawyers” and forced the chief of the office’s criminal division to
resign after a dispute over a directive to scrutinize the awarding
of a government contract during the Biden administration. He also
demoted several senior leaders, including prosecutors who handled or
oversaw politically sensitive cases involving the Jan. 6 riot and
Trump allies Peter Navarro and Steve Bannon.
Tillis said he believes that anyone who broke into the building that
day should be prosecuted, a disagreement he said he had with Martin.
“Whether it’s 30 days or three years is debatable, but I have no
tolerance for anybody who entered the building on January 6th, and
that’s probably where most of the friction was,” Tillis said.
Dozens of former federal prosecutors in the office have raised alarm
over Martin’s scant courtroom experience and his actions since
taking office. In a letter to the committee, more than 100 veterans
of the office described him as “an affront to the singular pursuit
of justice for which this Office has stood for more than two
centuries."
His supporters have touted his record fighting for conservative
causes and his efforts to tackle violent crime since his
appointment. About two dozen Republican state attorneys general said
in a letter to the committee that Martin has “shown conclusively
that he has what it takes to serve in that role with integrity and a
fearless commitment to do what is right on behalf of the American
people.”
It is unclear what will happen if Martin is not confirmed by May 20,
the day his appointment expires. Attorney General Pam Bondi could
ask the district court to extend Martin's interim status or the
administration could nominate someone else to serve as the interim
U.S. attorney while Martin's nomination is pending.

Tillis said that the White House can “work through that” if they
want to extend Martin's appointment, but “at this point I’ve
indicated to the White House I wouldn’t support his nomination."
In a post on X, White House spokesman Alex Pfeiffer said that “Ed
Martin is a fantastic U.S. Attorney for D.C. and will continue to
implement the President’s law-and-order agenda in Washington. He is
the right man for the job and we look forward to his confirmation.”
___
Associated Press writers Michelle Price and Ali Swenson contributed
to this report.
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