Traumatized Tillis Could Inflict Fatal Blow to Martin Confirmation

In defending the Biden DOJ's lawfare against his own constituents, Sen. Thom Tillis not only could sink interim DC US Attorney Ed Martin's confirmation but end ongoing investigations at the office.

At the heart of the systemically corrupt Department of Justice beats the office of the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia. Nearly every politically-driven prosecution in Washington starts and ends there: for example, the first official act of Matthew Graves, the Biden appointed DC US Attorney, was to hand up a criminal indictment against Trump confidant Steve Bannon for contempt of Congress in November 2021.

The office is a case feeder to DC judges who routinely, as the American people now see, serve as nothing more than a rubber stamp for any prosecution targeting Donald Trump, his associates, and his voters.

Which is why the president’s nomination of Ed Martin represents a once in a lifetime opportunity for Republicans—not necessarily to wield the office in the same manner as his predecessors (not that I oppose such fair play) but to expose the malfeasance and abusive tactics behind the most egregious political prosecutions of the past several years.

Martin, who defended January 6 protesters, must be confirmed by the Senate by May 20, the day his interim appointment expires. If the Senate fails to approve Martin, federal law may enable Jeb Boasberg, the partisan Obama appointee and chief judge of the DC District Court, to name a replacement until the president picks a new one.

One Republican who could prove fatal to Martin’s confirmation is North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis. In an interview on Tuesday, Tillis, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said he does not support Martin’s nomination and informed the White House of his decision:

So let’s break this down, shall we?

The January 6 investigation represented the largest criminal investigation in U.S. history. Hundreds of families were subjected to invasive investigations followed by terrorizing FBI raids consisting of armed agents and SWAT vehicles, even those accused of nonviolent offenses. They were branded “domestic terrorists” by everyone from Joe Biden and Attorney General Merrick Garland down to local newspaper reporters. Lives were ruined, families and marriages were broken up, bank accounts emptied, children turned on parents, and at least four J6ers committed suicide rather than continue to endure the torment inflicted by Biden’s DOJ and DC judges.

Forty-nine North Carolinians were charged and prosecuted for their involvement in Jan 6; 11 were indicted on 18 USC 1512(c)(2), an obstruction felony put on the books in 2002 in the aftermath of the Enron accounting scandal.

But last June, the Supreme Court reversed how the Biden DOJ had bastardized the law by turning a corporate fraud statute into a political protest crime, an unprecedented ruling effectively gutting the J6 prosecution. Far from representing “heat of the moment bad decisions” as Tillis generously described it, the DC US Attorney’s office charged more than 300 J6ers with 1512(c)(2) over the course of three years; at least 100 served time in federal prison before the highest court brought some relief.

One J6er imprisoned on the obstruction count is Laura Steele, a former North Carolina law enforcement officer and current Tillis constituent. Although Steele had no criminal record and did not commit any violence—to the contrary, she tried to aid police that afternoon—Judge Amit Mehta in 2023 sentenced Steele to a year and a day. She served eight months in the Philadelphia federal detention center.

During a phone interview on Wednesday, Steele told me she was not able to use a phone or computer after she was arrested but family and friends reached out to Tillis’ office to explain what had happened to her. “He never replied,” she said. Steele also is unaware of any J6er who successfully made contact with the two-term senator up for re-election next year.

In January 2025, Martin immediately opened an internal inquiry into his predecessor’s unlawful use of the obstruction count. Martin announced to his staff last month the investigation is expanding to seek input from former prosecutors and judges. Why would Tillis want to shut down that process rather than demand answers on behalf of his own voters? As a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, is it not Tillis’ duty to conduct oversight of the DOJ? Why would he not view Martin as a partner in such an important endeavor?

Imprison My People—Please!

Further, it appears Tillis missed all the coverage, court proceedings, videos, and a DOJ report that proved the use of informants and undercover agents from several departments before and on January 6. Most of the MAGA base believes January 6 was a “fedsurrection” rather than a protest gone wrong.

So why did Tillis insist January 6 was not “prompted or created by other people” when plenty of evidence exists to the contrary? Is Tillis unaware that Senators Grassley and Johnson just busted DOJ Inspector General Michael Horowitz for his half-assed “investigation” into the FBI’s use of confidential human sources and demanded more records as to their whereabouts and communications with FBI handling agents?(Important to note Tillis still peddles the lie that Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick was murdered by Trump supporters.)

And as far as Tillis' argument that anyone who entered a government building on a Wednesday afternoon should spend time behind bars—is 1,600 J6 defendants not enough for him? Does Tillis know this is the first time political protesters including those who were perfectly peaceful have faced federal misdemeanors for demonstrating inside the Capitol?

In fact, then Chief Judge Beryl Howell in 2021 admitted she wasn’t quite sure how to handle one of the most common misdemeanors brought against J6er because the court had never dealt with such petty offenses before. Did Tillis demand the same when anti Kavanaugh protesters stormed Senate buildings for weeks, coming within close proximity to U.S. Senators on several occasions—something that didn’t happen on January 6?

But one of Tillis’ colleagues shared an even more pathetic reason why he opposes Martin’s confirmation. During a hit on Benny Johnson’s show on Wednesday, Oklahoma Senator Markwayne Mullin explained that some senators are still “emotional” about their “life or death situation” on January 6?

This is for real, people:

“IT DOESN’T GO AWAY?” The trauma of almost coming face to face with your own unarmed constituents? The Indiana meemaws and veterans and families taking selfies and marveling at the beauty of the building? The Americans thanking Capitol police?

Keep in mind, the Capitol was evacuated around 2:30 p.m.; Tillis and others were taken to underground tunnels and then transported to secure facilities. Yes, windows were broken and a few doors were breached but most of the violence between protesters and police was confined to the lower west terrace tunnel and occurred after Congress left the building.

“Why would you be traumatized by your own constituents?” Steele asked me when I read Mullin’s remarks to her. “Maybe he should talk to his constituents. In fact, I am willing to come to DC to talk to Tillis to work out his problems.”

That might take a very long time, Laura.