Trump drops Ed Martin for DC US attorney after Senate support wavers

WASHINGTON (CN) — President Donald Trump will withdraw Ed Martin as his pick to become U.S. attorney for D.C., he said in the Oval Office Thursday morning.

The move comes after Martin’s nomination was thrown into jeopardy by North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis, who said earlier this week that he would vote against him in a key procedural ballot in the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump said he was “disappointed” but appeared to acknowledge that Martin didn’t have a path to confirmation in the Senate.

“He’s a terrific person, he wasn’t getting the support,” said the president. “But that’s the way it works sometimes.”

Trump said that the White House planned to announce a new nominee for D.C.’s top federal prosecutor “over the next two days,” and opined that he could bring Martin into the Justice Department “in some capacity.”

Martin has been D.C.’s acting U.S. attorney since Inauguration Day and is in the final weeks of his 120-day term. He is set to leave the position on May 20.

As of early Thursday afternoon, the now-scuttled nominee had yet to offer a substantive comment on the White House’s decision. But he did appear to nod to the failure of his nomination with a post on X which featured an AI-generated image of him dressed as the pope.

“Plot twist …” wrote Martin. Trump’s announcement came mere minutes before the Vatican announced that it had selected a new pontiff.

Questions had swirled for days about whether the White House would continue to stand by D.C.’s acting top prosecutor, as it became apparent that his nomination had stalled in the Senate Judiciary Committee. Martin had proved a polarizing figure, with opponents — mainly Democrats — pointing to his long history of controversial statements and hundreds of appearances on Russian state media.

Tillis, who this week became the sole Republican to come out against Martin, pointed in particular to the nominee’s views on the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot. The nominee has defended rioters and as D.C. U.S. attorney opened an investigation into the office’s prosecution of Jan. 6 defendants.

The North Carolina senator told reporters Tuesday that Martin was focused on the “over-prosecution” of Capitol rioters which conflicted with his own belief that anyone who breached the building on Jan. 6 should be “prosecuted, period, full stop, no rationalization.”

And Tillis said Thursday that he is “looking forward” to seeing who the president would put forward as Martin’s replacement, reiterating that his concerns about the nominee were primarily related to Jan. 6 and that he would have voted for Martin had he been appointed to a U.S. attorney position outside of D.C.

Asked what qualities he’d be looking for in a replacement candidate, the North Carolina senator replied that “prosecutorial experience” was a top priority. Martin, though an attorney, had no prior experience as a federal prosecutor.

Other Senate Republicans were more tight-lipped. Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, who chairs the upper chamber’s Judiciary Committee, declined to offer much in the way of a reaction. And Missouri Senator Josh Hawley — one of Martin’s most vocal supporters — deferred to the president. Hawley also declined to suggest any possible replacement candidates.

Some conservative figures are already throwing shade toward Tillis in the aftermath of Trump’s announcement Thursday.

“Too many of our weak Senate Republican sisters are offended by Ed’s political work,” wrote Mike Davis, founder of the conservative legal advocacy group the Article III Project, in a statement posted to X.

Davis echoed the president’s suggestion that Martin could get another role at the Justice Department, saying that Trump would have the former nominee “go break more china elsewhere.”

“Thom Tillis blocked the most effective U.S. attorney America would have ever seen,” said conservative media personality Mike Cernovich.

Democrats, meanwhile, breathed a sigh of relief that Martin’s nomination would not move forward.

“Mr. Martin’s record made it clear that he does not have the temperament or judgment to be entrusted with the power and responsibility of being U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia,” said Illinois Senator Dick Durbin, the top-ranking Democrat on the Judiciary Committee.

“Good riddance,” Rhode Island Senator Sheldon Whitehouse quipped to Courthouse News.

California Senator Adam Schiff said in a statement that he would be “watching closely” to see who Trump nominated to replace Martin.

“And I will be working to ensure that the Jan. 6 deniers are not confirmed to positions from which they can undermine our rule of law and threaten our democracy,” he added.

With Tillis’ defection, Martin’s nomination was more or less on ice in the Judiciary Committee. Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, who chairs the panel, refused to say this week when he would consider bringing the nominee up for a vote.

And Martin’s withdrawal all but guarantees the Senate will not be able to confirm a permanent U.S. attorney for the capital city before the acting federal prosecutor’s 120-day tenure elapses on May 20.

According to federal law, the U.S. District Court for D.C. can appoint an interim U.S. attorney after Martin steps down. That temporary replacement will serve in the position until a permanent candidate is confirmed by the Senate.

The fact that the D.C. federal court, which has repeatedly ruled against the Trump administration in recent months, could select an interim attorney to replace Martin is sure to ruffle feathers among some Republican lawmakers who have slammed its judges as political activists.

Follow @BenjaminSWeiss