Donald Trump has been forced to drop Ed Martin, who defended the Jan. 6 rioters, as his pick for U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia after a key Republican senator refused to endorse him.
“He wasn’t getting the support from people,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Thursday. “To me, it was disappointing. I’ll be honest.
“We have somebody else that will be great,” he added. “That’s just how it goes sometimes.”
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Martin, a MAGA fanatic who has been serving as the interim U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia since Trump’s first week in office, was already on thin ice after failing to disclose appearances on Russian state media.
But his path to the nomination appeared to close once and for all after Sen. Thom Tillis, a member of the powerful Senate Judiciary Committee, refused to endorse him due to his role in supporting the “Stop the Steal” movement which sought to overturn former President Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory.
Martin also spoke at a rally in Washington, D.C., the night before the Capitol riot.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Tillis said: “I have no tolerance for anyone who entered the building on Jan. 6, and that’s probably where most of the friction was.
“At this point, I’ve indicated to the White House I wouldn’t support his nomination.”
This is a developing story and will be updated.
