At a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing prior to the Congressional recess, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) spoke about US Attorney for Washington, D.C., Ed Martin and his ties to alleged Nazi sympathizer, Timothy Hale-Cusanelli.
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00:00I'm looking forward to the responses to the questions that we've both sent to Mr. Martin.
00:05And before we go into the substance of the hearing, I want to take a moment to acknowledge a member of my staff whose last day is tomorrow,
00:13Michael May, served as professional staff and head researcher for nominations since 2022.
00:19He's worked on more than 200 nominees who've come before the committee.
00:22If you were confirmed as a federal judge, U.S. attorney, U.S. marshal since 2022, there is a good chance that Michael has read everything you've ever posted on social media.
00:33In addition to his thorough work, he is much appreciated for his quick wit, willingness to translate Gen Z speak for the rest of my staff.
00:42In all seriousness, he's a real professional, and he's helped this committee fulfill its constitutional duty.
00:48Our loss is the gain of UC Berkeley Law School, Senator Padilla, so he's headed out to California, his home state, to begin law school this fall.
00:58Please join me in thanking Michael for his service to the committee.
01:07Mr. Chairman, I want to thank you and my colleagues for considering my concerns regarding the nomination of Ed Martin
01:14to serve as U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia.
01:18He is seeking to be the lead prosecutor for the Department of Justice in the District of Columbia, a substantial assignment.
01:27I understand that Chairman Grassley has submitted questions to Mr. Martin in response to the issues that I raised in a previous meeting,
01:35and I have joined him in that effort.
01:37We take our responsibility to advise and consent very seriously.
01:42I understand Mr. Martin will submit responses during the April recess so that we have an opportunity to review them
01:49before we vote on whether to hold a hearing on his nomination.
01:53Mr. Martin has a long record of objectionable statements and conduct.
01:58I would like to take a few minutes to provide some examples to my colleagues.
02:02Mr. Martin has repeatedly attacked law enforcement officers who kept us safe
02:08as members of the Senate and staff during the January 6th riot
02:12and the assistant U.S. attorneys who were assigned to prosecute the rioters
02:17who brutally attacked police officers.
02:20Mr. Martin was at the U.S. Capitol on that day when he posted social media,
02:25and I quote,
02:26like Mardi Gras in D.C. today,
02:29love, faith, and joy.
02:31Ignore fake news.
02:32Mr. Martin had the audacity to call Michael Fanone,
02:37a 20-year veteran of the Metropolitan Police Department,
02:40who was nearly killed on January 6th,
02:43quote,
02:43a fake cop,
02:45words of Ed Martin.
02:47When leaders of the Oath Keepers,
02:49a domestic violent extremist group,
02:51were prosecuted for seditious conspiracy for their role in planning January 6th,
02:56Mr. Martin responded,
02:58quote,
02:59Oath Keepers are all of us,
03:01close quote.
03:02Mr. Martin also has advocated for,
03:05quote,
03:05less judgment on somebody who hits a cop.
03:09That is an appalling statement,
03:11especially for someone who is asking this committee to approve his nomination
03:16to be the top law enforcement official in the nation's capital.
03:19He has repeatedly attacked prosecutors who were assigned to work on January 6th case,
03:24calling them, quote,
03:25terrorists,
03:26and stating,
03:27and I quote,
03:28when I see these prosecutors,
03:30I shun them.
03:31I ostracize them socially.
03:34I say about them,
03:35they are despicable people who decided to do something wrong,
03:39end of quote.
03:40We also need to hear from Mr. Martin about his close relationship with Timothy Hale Cusinelli,
03:46a January 6th rioter and anti-Semitic racist Nazi sympathizer.
03:52You can see his photo.
03:53I will not repeat the vile things Mr. Hale Cusinelli has said about Jewish people,
04:00black people,
04:01and other minorities.
04:02These slurs are well documented and extensive.
04:05At a time when we are expelling students from the United States for participating in protests,
04:12where the question is raised as to whether their statements were anti-Semitic,
04:16at a time when we are basically deciding that this committee is going on record about the seriousness of this charge of anti-Semitism,
04:24to think of some of the things that Mr. Martin has done for his pal Timothy Hale Cusinelli is outrageous.
04:32Mr. Martin is well aware of Mr. Hale Cusinelli's record.
04:37In fact,
04:37he has excused Mr. Hale Cusinelli for dressing up like Hitler,
04:41quote saying that he was just goofing around.
04:46Just last year,
04:47Mr. Martin presented Mr. Hale Cusinelli with an award.
04:50Where was the award presented by Mr. Martin to Mr. Hale Cusinelli?
04:55At the Trump Bedminster Club in New Jersey,
04:58at which this place is where Martin said,
05:02quote,
05:02of Cusinelli,
05:03quote,
05:03an extraordinary man,
05:05an extraordinary leader.
05:07This man who dresses up like Adolf Hitler.
05:09He continued,
05:11and I quote,
05:11it's one of the goals of many is to make sure that the world,
05:14and especially America,
05:16hears more from Tim Hale because he's so extraordinary.
05:20Quote,
05:20unquote,
05:20Ed Martin.
05:22Just last month while serving as interim U.S.
05:24attorney,
05:24Mr. Martin attended an event with Hale Cusinelli,
05:28members of the Oath Keepers,
05:30and other January 6 offenders,
05:31including some whose cases are still on appeal.
05:34At this event,
05:35Mr. Martin compared the prosecution
05:37of January 6 rioters
05:40with the internment of Japanese Americans
05:43during World War II.
05:44This false equivalency is alarming,
05:48harmful,
05:49disrespectful,
05:49and disgusting.
05:51Another speaker at this event was Douglas Mackey,
05:54who has said,
05:55quote,
05:56women are children with the right to vote.
05:59And another quote from Mr. Mackey,
06:01black people will believe anything they read,
06:04and we let them vote?
06:06Why?
06:07Question mark.
06:08At the end,
06:09Ed Martin praised Mackey as,
06:11quote,
06:12a leader of people who sees what happens
06:14and wants to do something about it.
06:16I am describing the friends
06:18and political and professional acquaintances
06:20of the man who wants to be the chief prosecutor
06:23for the U.S. Department of Justice
06:25in the District of Columbia.
06:27Mr. Martin must answer
06:28for these offensive comments that he's made.
06:31Recounting his tenure at CNN,
06:33Mr. Martin said,
06:34quote,
06:35I got fired because of the crazy black ladies on CNN
06:39that demanded I be fired
06:40because I didn't take their nonsense.
06:43The fact that Mr. Martin feels the need
06:45to note the race and gender of individuals
06:47who cross him
06:48speaks volumes about his temperament and character.
06:52And just last year,
06:53he said in an interview,
06:54and I quote,
06:55you show me a Jewish American
06:57who feels good about the Democratic administration,
07:00I'll show you someone
07:01who is not really Jewish.
07:04End of quote.
07:05How dare Mr. Martin pass judgment
07:07on someone else's religion?
07:09Ed Martin's history raises serious questions
07:11about whether he should ever be given
07:13the authority of the U.S. Attorney
07:15for District of Columbia.
07:17One of Martin's first official acts
07:18after his appointment as temporary
07:21was to fire numerous prosecutors
07:23simply because they were assigned
07:25and handled January 6th cases.
07:27Less than a month into his tenure,
07:30Martin sent a threatening letter
07:31to Georgetown University Law Center
07:33claiming that the school, quote,
07:35continues to teach and promote DEI.
07:38The dean of the law school,
07:40William Traynor,
07:41rightfully responded,
07:42and I quote,
07:43given the First Amendment's protection
07:45of a university's freedom
07:46to determine its own curriculum
07:47and how to deliver it,
07:49the constitutional violation
07:51behind this threat is clear,
07:53as is the attack
07:54on the university's mission
07:55as a Jesuit and Catholic institution.
07:58End of quote.
07:59The top prosecutor
08:00in the nation's capital
08:01should be focused
08:03on fighting crime and terrorism,
08:04not monitoring the curriculum
08:06of local law schools.
08:08I'll continue to review his record.
08:10I can't wait for his answers
08:12to the questions,
08:13and I hope that members
08:14of this committee
08:14on both sides of the table
08:16will take it seriously
08:17when we made that pledge,
08:19bipartisan pledge,
08:20to do our best to stop anti-Semitism
08:22and look honestly
08:24at the record of Ed Martin.
08:26Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
08:27I hope our members
08:28can get here
08:29so we can vote on the nomination.
08:32Senator Gerano.