WASHINGTON (AP) — Conservative activist Ed Martin, who echoed Donald Trump’s baseless claims of a stolen 2020 election and defended Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol rioters, was nominated by the president on Monday to be the top federal prosecutor in Washington on a permanent basis.
Martin had been serving as U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia on an interim basis since just after Trump, a Republican, was sworn in for his second term on Jan. 20. His appointment must be confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
“Since Inauguration Day, Ed has been doing a great job as Interim U.S. Attorney, fighting tirelessly to restore Law and Order, and make our Nation’s Capital Safe and Beautiful Again,” Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform. “He will get the job done.”
Martin, who grew up in New Jersey, has an English degree from the College of the Holy Cross and spent two years studying at the Gregorian Pontifical University in Rome as a Rotary Scholar. He earned a law degree from St. Louis University.
Martin supervised legal clinics for low-income residents as director of the human rights office for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of St. Louis and, for two decades before becoming U.S. attorney, ran his own law practice and was active in Republican politics, including as the head of the Missouri Republican Party.
As interim U.S. attorney, Martin oversaw the dismissals of hundreds of Jan. 6 cases after Trump pardoned defendants, commuted sentences or vowed to throw them out. He also ordered an internal review of prosecutors’ use of a felony charge against hundreds of Capitol rioters and directed employees to hand over files, emails and other documents.
As U.S. attorney, Martin has also defended the work of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, saying that prosecutors would “pursue any and all legal action against anyone who impedes” the group’s work, which includes accessing government computer systems and scrutinizing spending.
Lawyer Mike Davis, a Trump ally, heralded Martin in a social media post as the “perfect choice” to serve as U.S. attorney in Washington. Martin, he said, “will bring much-needed accountability and refocus the office on DC violent street crimes — making DC safe again for all Americans.”
Alexis Loeb, the former deputy chief of the section that prosecuted the Jan. 6 cases, said when Martin was appointed on an interim basis that he appears to be in the role “purely to execute on the president’s political priorities more so than the work of protecting public safety in Washington.”
In a social media post, Martin appeared to describe federal prosecutors as “the President’s lawyers.”
Martin led a chant at a “Stop the Steal” rally on Jan. 5, 2021, telling the crowd of Trump supporters: “What they’re stealing is not just an election. It’s our future, and it’s our republic.” The next day, he attended Trump’s rally near the White House and remarked on social media: “Rowdy crowd but nothing out of hand. Ignore the #FakeNews.”
A violent mob loyal to Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol and forced lawmakers into hiding in a stunning attempt to overturn the 2020 presidential election and keep Democrat Joe Biden from replacing Trump in the White House. A woman was shot dead inside the Capitol, and Washington’s mayor instituted an evening curfew to try to contain the violence.
Martin later served on the board of the Patriot Freedom Project, which has raised money to support Jan. 6 defendants and their families, and he was listed in court filings as a lawyer for at least three Capitol riot defendants, including a Proud Boys member who pleaded guilty to felony charges.
