Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) said Tuesday that he will not be supporting Ed Martin’s nomination to be Washington‘s top prosecutor, citing the interim U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia’s controversial statements regarding the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot.
Tillis expressed concern about Martin’s nomination last week over “some of his public comments … particularly on Jan. 6,” but stopped short of declaring whether he was out on the self-described “Trump’s lawyer.” On Tuesday, he informed the White House that he would not support Martin.
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“Ed Martin is a fantastic U.S. attorney for D.C. and will continue to implement the president’s law-and-order agenda in Washington,” Trump spokesman Alex Pfeiffer told the Washington Examiner. “He is the right man for the job, and we look forward to his confirmation.”
The Senate Judiciary Committee will not vote on Martin’s confirmation this week, delaying the process and bringing President Donald Trump’s controversial pick closer to a deadline that could force the selection of a new nominee.
Under federal law, Martin can only serve as an interim U.S. attorney for 120 days without Senate confirmation. With no vote yet scheduled by the committee chairman, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), the clock is ticking as GOP members continue to question whether Martin is fit for the position. He faces a May 20 deadline.
When asked by the Washington Examiner whether Martin’s confirmation is “done with” following Tillis’s refusal to support him, Grassley said, “No, it’s just not listed. My goal is to help the president’s nominee succeed, so you list those where we’ll succeed.”
Grassley did not reveal whether Republicans have enough votes to confirm Martin.
Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) told reporters Tuesday that unlike Tillis, he does plan to support Martin’s confirmation.
“When he comes up for a vote, I intend to support him,” Cornyn said. “I tend to defer to the president on his choices.”
With two weeks left before Martin’s deadline, the White House faces a narrowing window and deepening divisions in its effort to secure his confirmation.
Trump made a direct plea to Judiciary Committee Republicans to confirm Martin in a Monday post on Truth Social.
“Ed Martin will be a big player in doing so and, I hope, that the Republican Senators will make a commitment to his approval, which is now before them,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “Ed is coming up on the deadline for Voting and, if approved, HE WILL NOT LET YOU DOWN.”
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Democratic opposition has intensified as members call for a public hearing on Martin’s nomination, according to Punchbowl News. Holding a public hearing is a rarity for U.S. attorney nominees, but the calls come after Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) accused Martin of making “false statements” to the committee.
“Mr. Martin makes a number of false statements that are easily debunked and dodges at least 80 questions outright, stating he doesn’t ‘recall’ the answer to a question more than 39 times, ‘I don’t know’ more than 21 times, and some variation of ‘can’t discuss this matter’ more than 20 times,” Durbin said in a statement.
David Sivak and Ramsey Touchberry contributed to this report.