Hours before #Trump announced US missile strikes on #Syria in response to a chemical attack that killed 90 civilians in April 2017, Ed Martin said on the Russian state television network #RT America that Syrian President Bashar al-#Assad might not be to blame. Instead, Martin told viewers, the situation was “engineered” in Washington “by the people that want war in Syria.”

#law #DC #USAttorney #Russia #NationalSecurity #FarRight #ConspiracyTheories #RussianDisinformation #WhiteSupremacy #Jan6

In early 2022, #EdMartin told an interviewer on the same arm of #RT’s global network that “there’s no evidence” of a Russian military buildup on #Ukraine’s borders, criticizing US officials as warmongering & ignoring #Russia’s security concerns. Russia invaded 9 days later, igniting a war that continues today.

Martin is now interim #USAttorney for #DC & #Trump’s pick to serve full time in the role.

#law #NationalSecurity #FarRight #ConspiracyTheories #RussianDisinformation #WhiteSupremacy

But as a *conservative* activist & fmr #Missouri Republican ofcl, #EdMartin appeared >150 times on #RT & #Sputnik — networks funded & directed by the Russian govt — as a guest commentator from August 2016 to April 2024, acc/to a search of their websites & the #InternetArchive’s database of TV broadcasts.

#law #DC #USAttorney #Russia #NationalSecurity #FarRight #ConspiracyTheories #RussianDisinformation #WhiteSupremacy #Jan6

#EdMartin did not disclose the appearances last month on a #Senate #Judiciary Cmte questionnaire, which asks nominees to list all media interviews. Analysis of television archives suggests he went on #RT & #Sputnik more often than on any major cable network during that span.

#law #DC #USAttorney #Russia #NationalSecurity #FarRight #ConspiracyTheories #RussianDisinformation #WhiteSupremacy #Jan6

#EdMartin’s frequent appearances, reviewed by WaPo, drew rebukes from some #NationalSecurity analysts, who accused him of amplifying anti-American #propaganda on Russian outlets that the #State Dept last year said had moved beyond #disinformation to engage in covert #influence activities aimed at undermining democracies worldwide for President Vladimir #Putin’s regime.

#law #DC #USAttorney #Russia #FarRight #ConspiracyTheories #RussianDisinformation #WhiteSupremacy #Jan6

#EdMartin’s brief tenure as top federal prosecutor in Washington has stoked controversy. Democrats accuse Martin — a #Trump “Stop the Steal” organizer who has called the 2020 election & #Russia’s 2016 #ElectionInterference investigation “hoaxes” — of violating the #law & legal #ethics in threatening to investigate or prosecute lawmakers, protesters, journalists & others whom he perceives as undermining Trump’s agenda.

#DC #USAttorney #NationalSecurity #ConspiracyTheories #disinformation #Jan6

Fmr US #NationalSecurity ofcls & analysts said #EdMartin’s #RT & #Sputnik appearances, & his failure to disclose them, raise questions about his judgment & candor. The #DC #USAttorney’s office is the largest in the country & has wide jurisdiction to prosecute important national security offenses. Its leader should be alert to the threats & risks posed by #Russia & other #influence operations from overseas, such as the ones the office has prosecuted in recent years….

#law #RussianDisinformation

People can disagree over US #ForeignPolicy, said Joseph Cirincione, a nuclear policy & #NationalSecurity expert who has advised US presidents & supports US military #aid to #Ukraine, “but repeatedly helping #Russia advance its #propaganda aims by echoing its views on its state-directed media, that should be #disqualifying.”

#EdMartin #law #DC #USAttorney #FarRight #ConspiracyTheories #RussianDisinformation #WhiteSupremacy #Jan6

…Asked about #EdMartin’s pro-#Russia stances & media role, a #WhiteHouse official said: “President #Trump made a brilliant choice in selecting Ed Martin to serve a full, permanent term as United States Attorney for the District of Columbia. With a distinguished record of service, Ed is the perfect leader to restore #law & order & make our Nation’s Capital safe & beautiful once again.” 🤦🏼‍♀️

#DC #USAttorney #NationalSecurity #FarRight #ConspiracyTheories #RussianDisinformation #WhiteSupremacy #Jan6

…If confirmed, #EdMartin would…direct an office that prosecuted advisers to #Trump — including Martin allies #RogerStone & #MikeFlynn — as well as Dem atty Gregory B. Craig in past federal investigations into #Russia #influence ops.

…Martin has posed a challenge for the #Senate #Judiciary Cmte, not only bc of his lack of experience as a prosecutor or trial #lawyer but also bc of the volume of his statements on social media & in traditional media, & the unusual extent of his omissions.

#law

…#EdMartin has omitted far more from his nomination materials than other recent #USAttorney nominees, 2 people familiar w/the process said, one of them estimating [his] omissions [to be] about 350 events, interviews & media appearances.

By comparison, only about 3 of roughly 80 such nominees from 2021 through 2024 left out published writings & public statements in supplemental committee disclosures, & none missed more than 4 items….

#Trump #law #DC #Russia #NationalSecurity #disinformation

…Since 2017 & 2018, the #DOJ [under #Trump 1.0] has required #RT & #Sputnik to register as #ForeignAgents, reflecting #Russian government control over their operations. 5 months after #EdMartin’s final appearance last April, the #UnitedStates, #Canada & #Britain announced new sanctions on RT & several employees meant to cripple funding for… #disinformation operations around the world.

#law #DC #USAttorney #Russia #NationalSecurity

…Now, #Trump’s 2nd admin is pushing US #ForeignPolicy ofcls to find ways to partner w/ #Putin’s #Russia, signaling that he is willing to part ways w/ #allies, including by staking claims to #Greenland & #Canada, pressing #Ukraine to seek peace, & shifting US resources from #Europe to focus on #China.

#EdMartin’s views in some ways track those of VP #JDVance & #DNI #TulsiGabbard, who have criticized the exercise of US military power overseas.

#law #DC #USAttorney #NationalSecurity

…#Trump risks abandoning leadership of a liberal democratic order that spreads American values & global prosperity, siding instead w/ #autocratic #strongman govts.

#EdMartin advocated greater #US - #Russia cooperation before Trump’s 1st meeting as pres w/ #Putin, in Germany in July 2017, saying on #RT that he expected Trump to come away w/ “some affinity w/Putin.” He struck the same note just after the #Ukraine invasion, as the US imposed sanctions on Putin personally.

#law #NationalSecurity

“We needed to be allies w/ nuclear powers like #Russia,” #EdMartin told #Sputnik in March 2022, suggesting a missed opportunity under #Trump’s first term. “What Trump knew was you want to be allies with the toughest dudes on the street. And he was ready to be allies with #NorthKorea & with #Putin & everybody.”

#law #DC #USAttorney #NationalSecurity #RussianDisinformation #autocracy

“We want to use these terms carefully, but this is a kind of #ForeignInfluence,” FilterLabsAI founder & CEO Jonathan Teubner said, adding that #RT is cultivating relationships w/American #conservative #influencers & micro-influencers as #Trump emerges as a leading figure in a #global wave of hard-line conservative #populism, inspiring #nationalist parties in #Europe & elsewhere.

#EdMartin #law #DC #USAttorney #Russia #NationalSecurity #FarRight #ConspiracyTheories #RussianDisinformation