Free Speech

C.J. Ciaramella | 5.8.2025 3:55 PM

President Donald Trump told reporters today that he is dropping the nomination of Ed Martin to be U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia because of slipping Republican support for Martin in the Senate.

"He's a terrific person, and he wasn't getting the support from people that I thought," Trump said at the White House.

The news should be welcomed by free speech advocates or really anyone who dislikes bullies. Martin was a menace to the First Amendment and a loyalist who put his adoration of the president above his oath to the Constitution.

Doubts over Martin's nomination began to accumulate as news investigations uncovered his frequent appearances on far-right podcasts and Russian-backed media, which he had failed to disclose to the Senate.

Trump appointed Martin as the acting U.S. Attorney for the D.C. in January. It's one of the more powerful federal prosecutor offices in the country, both because of its political proximity and because it handles D.C.'s felony caseload.

Martin, a Missouri Republican, was an organizer and fundraiser for the 2020 "Stop the Steal" movement and later represented defendants charged with........

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