Durbin, Senate Judiciary Democrats Push For Hearing On Ed Martin's U.S. Attorney Nomination

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, led all Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats in a letter to Chairman Grassley pushing for a hearing on Ed Martin’s nomination to be U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia.

While the Committee doesn’t typically hold hearings for U.S. Attorney nominees, Mr. Martin’s record and deeply problematic conduct merit heightened scrutiny and more than justify the full committee questioning him under oath.

The Senators described Mr. Martin’s record of attacks on law enforcement and association with violent criminals, writing: “Prior to his appointment as interim U.S. Attorney, Mr. Martin made stunning attacks on federal prosecutors and associated himself with individuals who present a threat to our nation. Mr. Martin was a leader of the so-called ‘Stop the Steal’ movement to illegally overturn the 2020 election. He was on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol on January 6, and has repeatedly downplayed the violence perpetrated against law enforcement that day.”

The Senators then underscored Mr. Martin’s extensive ties and shocking conduct regarding white supremacist and Nazi-sympathizer Timothy Hale-Cusanelli, writing: “In September 2024, Mr. Martin presented Mr. Hale-Cusanelli with an award at the Trump Bedminster Club in New Jersey. Mr. Martin called Mr. Hale-Cusanelli ‘an extraordinary man, an extraordinary leader.’ After Mr. Hale-Cusanelli concluded his remarks, he hugged Mr. Martin, who then returned to the podium to say, ‘It’s one of the goals of many of us to make sure that the world—and especially America—hears more from Tim Hale because he’s extraordinary.’ This shocking conduct necessitates sworn testimony from Mr. Martin.”

The Senators then outlined multiple ways that Mr. Martin has abused his position since being named Interim U.S. Attorney, such as his failure to recuse from January 6-related cases, writing: “Among his first official actions were to shut down the section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia (USAO-DC) that was handling January 6 cases and terminate numerous prosecutors who were involved in prosecuting January 6 rioters. Prior to Mr. Martin’s appointment, he represented three separate January 6 offenders as criminal defense counsel. He then failed to withdraw his representation of two of these offenders before taking actions as Interim U.S. Attorney that benefitted his clients, creating impermissible conflicts of interest and appearances of impropriety. There is further evidence to suggest that Mr. Martin has inappropriately communicated directly with other January 6 defendants since his appointment.”

The Senators continued outlining Mr. Martin’s abuses of power, writing: “On February 17, the Office of the Deputy Attorney General, led by then-Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove, and Mr. Martin, attempted to pressure Denise Cheung, the then-Chief of the Criminal Division of USAO-DC, to freeze assets held by Citibank, N.A. without sufficient evidence of criminal wrongdoing … Mr. Martin has regularly threatened to prosecute various government employees, members of Congress, and press outlets in an apparent attempt to chill their lawful speech … Mr. Martin then intervened to assist DOGE in its efforts to break into the U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP) … Finally, since his nomination to serve as U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, Mr. Martin appears to have attempted to scrub much of his previous public commentary from the internet.”

The Senators concluded with a formal request for a hearing, writing: “As the aforementioned makes clear, Mr. Martin is a nominee whose objectionable record merits heightened scrutiny by this Committee. We respectfully ask that you schedule a hearing on his nomination to allow members to ask him questions, under oath, about these and other matters.”

For a PDF of the letter to Chairman Grassley, click here.

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