Committee concerns preview murky path to confirmation for DC attorney nominee Martin

WASHINGTON (CN) — President Donald Trump’s nominee to become U.S attorney for Washington D.C. is causing headaches on the Senate Judiciary Committee, where top lawmakers are slow-walking a crucial vote as questions swirl about Republican support for the appointment.

Ed Martin, currently acting U.S. attorney for the capital city, has faced intense scrutiny from Democrats who have pointed to a history of controversial statements and his support for defendants in cases related to the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot — among other things — as reasons why he should not be Washington’s top federal prosecutor.

But concerns about Martin’s nomination haven’t been limited only to Democrats. North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis, who sits on the Judiciary Committee and would be a crucial Republican vote to advance the nominee, told reporters on Wednesday that he isn’t comfortable supporting Martin. And Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, who chairs the panel, has so far withheld public support for the nominee and has submitted a flotilla of questions for Martin to answer on the congressional record.

Democrats have urged Grassley to convene a Judiciary Committee hearing to examine Martin’s nomination — notable because U.S. attorneys are not typically required to appear before Congress in such a way.

And during a panel meeting Thursday morning, Durbin appeared to suggest that he had planned to demand a vote on whether the Judiciary Committee should go ahead with a hearing on Martin’s nomination, but that he was holding off.

Josh Sorbe, a spokesperson for Durbin’s office, said in a statement that the Democratic whip would call for a vote on a hearing “if and when” the Judiciary Committee decides to move forward with Martin’s nomination.

But committee action on the U.S. attorney nominee looks, for now, to be more of an “if” than a “when.”

Grassley during Thursday’s panel meeting acknowledged that Martin’s nomination was not yet on the Judiciary Committee’s agenda and that he was still waiting for the nominee to respond to additional questions from staff. He added that he had not yet made it through Martin’s first round of questions for the record, and that he wouldn’t schedule any more action on the nominee until that was finished.

A source familiar with the process, however, told Courthouse News that the delay on Martin’s nomination isn’t simply because Republicans need more time to review his record. At the moment, the source contended, Martin doesn’t have enough GOP votes to advance out of the Judiciary Committee.

Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal, a top Democrat on the committee, made a similar inference.

“I think Republicans are sensing that this guy has no business being a United States attorney,” he told Courthouse News on Thursday. “The delay in our vote certainly speaks volumes about issues that are so prominent against the nominee.”

Blumenthal added that “a number” of his Republican colleagues had expressed reservations about Martin, though he did not say who. But he pointed out that the nominee’s controversies are “beyond the pale.”

“If you wanted to do a profile of someone who should not be a prosecutor in one of the most important offices in the Department of Justice, this would be it,” he said.

Democrats have taken aim at Martin’s past comments about the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, including social media posts in which he referred to rioters as victims and said they were politically persecuted. They’ve also accused the nominee of scrubbing his podcast, the “Pro America Report” off streaming services.

In written responses to Judiciary Committee Democrats, Martin denied intentionally deleting podcasts, arguing instead that hosting services such as Spotify and Apple Podcasts had moved audio files around without his knowledge. The nominee also said that he did not recall making many of the statements about the Capitol riot cited by Democrats.

A spokesperson for the D.C. U.S. attorney’s office did not immediately return a request for comment.

Missouri Senator Josh Hawley, meanwhile, dismissed Democratic criticisms of Martin, telling reporters Thursday that he thought they were “cherry-picked.”

Hawley was similarly unfazed by the reservations of some of his Republican colleagues, telling reporters that Tillis’ concerns are part of “the process.”

“He’s pretty diligent about these things,” he said of the North Carolina senator. “My guess is that he’ll meet with Ed, ask him a bunch of tough questions and make up his mind.”

Tillis told reporters outside the Senate chamber Thursday that he planned to meet with Martin next week.

If two Republicans on the Judiciary Committee break with their colleagues and vote against Martin’s nomination, the appointment will not advance to a final vote on the Senate floor. As of Thursday afternoon, a panel-level vote on the nominee has yet to be scheduled.

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