Republican senators are mulling whether to defy President Donald Trump by rejecting his dubious pick for U.S. attorney, Ed Martin, news outlets reported Thursday.
Politico's Kyle Cheney posted on X Thursday, "Something is going on with Ed Martin's nomination to be US attorney in D.C. But what, precisely, is unclear Sen. Durbin said this AM: 'It’s my understanding that we are not going to move forward on the Martin nomination.' Grassley said he'd have more to say when Martin's nomination was officially on the calendar."
In a follow-up post, Cheney wrote, "Durbin said he had planned to ask for a vote on Martin today but 'on the basis of the chairman's — I hope, my clear understanding — I'm not going to make that move.' Grassley said he's still reviewing Martin's paperwork and his staff has some additional questions."
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CNN reported Thursday that Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee "met behind closed doors this week to discuss concerns about Ed Martin’s nomination and whether senators should take the extraordinary step of holding a hearing on it."
The report continued, "The senators-only meeting on Tuesday came as Republicans face a tightening timeline to decide whether to turn a blind eye to the cloud surrounding Martin and fall in line behind Trump or buck the president’s nominee for DC’s top prosecutor. Martin’s post as interim US attorney runs out on May 20."
Martin has long been a controversial figure, from his involvement in the MAGA "Stop the Steal" movement, to appearing on Russian state media "more than 150 times," and backing a Nazi-sympathizing white supremacist.
None of this has caused President Trump to pull Martin's nomination, however.
A source told CNN, “Martin is President Trump’s favorite US Attorney."