President Trump’s divisive selection for the lead federal prosecutor in Washington, D.C., Ed Martin, is facing a precarious future, as a Senate Democrat intends to place an indefinite hold on his nomination.
Martin, an advocate of “Stop the Steal” and a former defense attorney for U.S. Capitol riot defendants, is nominated by Mr. Trump to be the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia. Sen. Adam Schiff, a first-term Democrat from California, is moving to hold his nomination in light of a series of controversial remarks and actions taken by Martin.
This position is one of the most high-profile and influential federal prosecutor roles in the U.S. Martin, who describes himself as “Ed the Eagle,” has been acting as the U.S. attorney for D.C. since Inauguration Day.
Senators can impose a hold on a presidential nominee, a tactic that may delay or hinder the nomination process for several days or weeks. Significant time on the Senate floor is often required to overcome holds on nominees.
“Over the past nine weeks, Ed Martin has repeatedly compromised the independence and misused the power of the U.S. Attorney’s office in D.C., openly threatening and intimidating political adversaries, dismissing charges against his own clients, firing public officials for participating in legitimate investigations, and utilizing his office to suppress dissent and free expression,” Schiff stated in correspondence to CBS News.
Former staff members of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in D.C. have criticized Martin for dismissing prosecutors involved in cases concerning U.S. Capitol insurrectionists. Since assuming the role of top prosecutor, Martin has expressed admiration for Elon Musk and Mr. Trump on his social media accounts.
In a letter posted on X, he declared his intention to pursue those who have threatened Musk and employees of the Department of Government Efficiency, vowing to chase them “to the end of the earth to hold them accountable.”
Martin has also been active on social media discussing crime in Washington, D.C., using the hashtag #MarchBadness. In a post last month, he wrote, “Hey, thugs with guns, you hear that? Yup, we comin.’
Earlier this year, in a different social media post, Martin criticized his predecessor as a “Biden prosecutor” who increased political prosecutions, directed resources toward a now-discredited legal theory targeting American citizens, and neglected gun prosecutions. He stated, “Let me be clear: he used our dollars to pursue political fabrications while the people of D.C. were terrorized by armed thugs.”
Schiff remarked, “No one exemplifies Donald Trump’s personal weaponization of the Justice Department more than Ed Martin. He is unqualified to serve as a lawyer, let alone to hold a position with the resources—and protection from the Senate—to further distort the law’s power.”
A spokesperson for Martin declined to offer any comments.
Before being appointed as acting U.S. attorney in D.C., Martin was involved in Missouri politics and served on the Republican National Committee’s platform committee in 2024.
