Many of you may not know or have heard much about Ed Martin, President Trump’s pick to lead the U.S. Attorney’s office for the District of Columbia—but I can tell you, in conservative circles, he is a legend. Imagine having someone as talented as Stephen Miller or Susie Wiles as the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia. That’s Ed Martin. For some reason, GOP Senators are balking at the prospect of his confirmation, which is infuriating. My RedState colleague Ward Clark has been covering this.

READ MORE: Senator Thom Tillis Is Blocking a Key Trump Nominee - Why?

Senators Bill Cassidy of Louisiana and Thom Tillis of North Carolina are two of the red state senators holding up Ed Martin's nomination. Tillis announced to the White House Tuesday that he wouldn't support Martin's nomination, telling reporters on Capitol Hill that it all had to do with January 6th and Martin's opposition to seeking jail time for anyone who breached the perimeter that day.

BREAKING: Sen. Tom Tillis informs the White House he is opposing President Trump's pick for U.S. Attorney for D.C. Ed Martin.

"Most of my concerns related to January 6th."

"I've indicated to the White House I wouldn't support his nomination."

Tillis' logic is absurd. He… pic.twitter.com/eLdFtPB8cc

— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) May 6, 2025

I’m ignoring the hold-up from Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski because they’re always worthless. McConnell is the other holdout; he lost his way a long time ago and is not worth discussing.

Cassidy, for his part, somehow leads the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, and MAGA had to force his hand to get now HHS Secretary Kennedy confirmed. Only after the threats by Trump die-hards and Kennedy’s billionaire VP choice, Nicole Shanahan, did Cassidy fold. I guess the thought of raising $30 million for his reelection campaign moved the needle enough to get Kennedy confirmed. This is the type of pressure we need. I’m from Louisiana, we can’t stand Bill Cassidy who voted to impeach Trump. There are about 100 other reasons why I believe he’s a garbage Senator, but that’s a story for another day and involves red state voters. 

Tillis, who is also up for reelection, also likes to find himself in opposition to the conservative movement, and can keep Martin's nomination from reaching the floor because of his position on the Senate Judiciary Committee. I’m not sure what his play is here. Ed Martin is not only qualified but would be the best person we’ve had in this position in decades—maybe ever.

Here is the problem: If the MAGA movement can’t get someone like Ed Martin across the finish line or even out of committee, this will not be the last time we’re fighting these ridiculous battles. The pressure has to be ramped up. Frankly, this vote should be easy for any Republican senator. Regardless of the outcome of this confirmation, having red state senators struggling to confirm someone like Ed Martin just proves that these two senators need to be retired by the MAGA faithful. 

Charlie Kirk, one of the main leaders of the MAGA movement, wrote: 

"Tillis' logic is absurd. He ignores or forgets that many J6ers who entered the Capitol were waved in by Capitol Police. Many simply looked inside the building or took a selfie and left. Those people did NOT deserve to spend a day in prison. Tillis is handing this critical post to the Democrats. If Ed Martin is not confirmed by Senate Republicans before May 20th, Trump-hating Judge Boasberg gets to choose his replacement.” 

Kirk makes a good point that “Trump-hating Judge Boasberg gets to choose his replacement” if we don’t confirm Martin by May 20. As a Republican Senator, even if you take issue with a nominee, would you rather a radical judge who has an axe to grind against Trump to make the pick? This harkens back to my point about the historical GOP. They want desperately to be seen as middle-of-the-road bipartisans. The problem with being in the middle of the road is that the left runs you over. No one in the middle of the road on the GOP side has ever gotten a legitimate win from the left.

The actual issue here - and this deserves its own column - red state voters continue to sit back and allow these weak Senators to be reelected. Jesse Kelly, host of the Jesse Kelly Show put it this way on X: 

“The DC swamp remains protected in part because Ed Martin is not confirmed and Ed Martin is not confirmed because red state republican senators are stopping him. So we can’t drain the DC swamp because red state republicans are too lazy and stupid to vote in primaries.”

This is of course true. The MAGA movement is strong. We fought to get Trump back in office. We have strong leadership in the wings that will carry the MAGA torch. However, red state voters need to wake up and have the same fervor throughout the primaries as we had when Trump was on the ballot. If we don’t, the MAGA movement will continue to lose its grip. I would hate to see Ed Martin’s nomination go down unsuccessfully. He deserves this position, and frankly, we need him in this position. Turn up the heat. 

Editor's Note: The Deep State is working overtime to subvert President Trump's agenda and the will of the people. 

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