Trump says he is naming Fox News host and former judge Jeanine Pirro as top federal prosecutor in DC
WASHINGTON AP President Donald Trump explained Thursday that he is naming Fox News host Jeanine Pirro a former county prosecutor and elected judge to be the top federal prosecutor for the nation s capital after abandoning his first pick for the job Pirro who joined Fox News in co-hosts the configuration s show The Five on weekday evenings She was elected as a judge in New York s Westchester County Court in before serving three terms as the county s elected district attorney Trump tapped Pirro to at least temporarily lead the nation s largest U S Attorney s office after pulling his nomination of conservative activist Ed Martin Jr for the position earlier on Thursday In a post on Truth Social Trump explained he was naming Pirro as the interim U S attorney in Washington D C but didn t indicate whether he would nominate her for the Senate-confirmed position on a more permanent basis Jeanine is incredibly well qualified for this position and is considered one of the Top District Attorneys in the History of the State of New York She is in a class by herself Trump wrote Trump withdrew Martin from consideration after a key Republican senator noted he could not aid Martin for the job due to his defense of rioters who stormed the Capitol on Jan He s a terrific person and he wasn t getting the help from people that I thought Trump advised reporters in the Oval Office on Thursday He later added But we have somebody else that will be great Pirro is the latest in a string of Trump appointments coming from Fox News a list that includes Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth who co-hosted Fox Friends Weekend Martin has served as acting U S Attorney for the District of Columbia since Trump s first week in office But his hopes of keeping the job faded amid questions about his qualifications and background Martin had never served as a prosecutor or tried a episode before taking office in January Martin has stirred up a chorus of critics during his brief but tumultuous tenure in office He fired and demoted subordinates who worked on politically sensitive cases He posted on social media about prospective targets of investigations And he forced the chief of the office s criminal division to resign after directing her to scrutinize the awarding of a cabinet contract during Democratic President Joe Biden s administration Martin s temporary appointment is due to expire on May Pirro a graduate of Albany Law School has significantly more courtroom experience than Martin She led one of the nation s first domestic violence units in a prosecutor s office After her elected terms as a judge and district attorney Pirro briefly campaigned in as a Republican to unseat then-Democratic Sen Hillary Rodham Clinton before announcing that she would would run for New York attorney general instead She lost that race to Andrew Cuomo son of former New York Gov Mario Cuomo Pirro became an ubiquitous television pundit during O J Simpson s murder trial often appearing on CNN s Larry King Live During her time on Fox News she has frequently interviewed Trump In the final minutes of his first term as president Trump issued a pardon to Pirro s ex-husband Albert Pirro who was convicted in on conspiracy and tax evasion charges In voting equipment company Smartmatic USA sued Fox News Pirro and others for spreading false indicates that the company helped steal the presidential polling from Trump The company s libel suit filed in a New York state court sought billion from the defendants Source
