Trump's Top D.C. Prosecutor Apologizes for Lauding Nazi Sympathizer as ‘Extraordinary Man'
Timothy Hale-Cusanelli, a former Army reservist and Navy security guard, gained notoriety as a Jan. 6 defendant convicted on charges related to the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. While the charges against Hale-Cusanelli were non-violent, his public persona and social media presence were littered with racist and extremist statements and views. In one now notorious selfie, Hale-Cusanelli sports a Hitleresque mustache with a hand to his chest in the first motion of a Nazi salute. According to court documents, former Navy service members who spoke to investigators said that Hale-Cusanelli had once said that 'Hitler should have finished the job,' and that 'babies born with any deformities or disabilities should be shot in the forehead.'
In September, Martin described Hale-Cusanelli as an 'extraordinary man' and 'leader,' while presenting an award to him at an event at Trump's Bedminster golf club. In an interview with The Forward, Martin said that he was 'sorry' for his praise of Hale-Cusanelli.
'I denounce everything about what that guy said, everything about the way he talked, and all as I've now seen it,' Martin told The Forward. 'At the time, I didn't know it.'
'I certainly didn't know all the terrible things that he said and how he had acted. I think that's terrible, and I denounced it completely. I hate it. I hate that it happened,' he added.
It's hard to see how Martin could have been unaware of Hale-Cusanelli's history, as he himself represented Jan. 6 defendants — and Hale-Cusanelli's case was one of the most prominent at a national level.
The apology comes as Martin, currently Trump's interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, seeks Senate confirmation to lose the interim moniker and hold the role permanently. Senate Democrats have urged Republicans to hold a confirmation hearing — which is uncommon for U.S. attorney nominees — given Martin's track record so far.
Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), who announced he was putting a hold on Martin's nomination, recently told Rolling Stone that when Democrats 'outlined all of the list of horribles that [Martin's] been engaged in, Republicans seem genuinely surprised.'
'While U.S. attorney nominees don't generally get much scrutiny, this one really needs to,' Schiff says. 'And if they end up confirming him anyway, we're going to make sure that they own him, that they're forced to wrap their arms around him as he's wrapped his arms around Nazi sympathizers.'
As the interim U.S. attorney, Martin has spent his few months declaring himself a legal attack dog for the president. In February, Martin referred to himself and the prosecutors in his office as 'President Trumps' lawyers.' Martin has pledged to 'protect' staffers working for Elon Musk's so-called Department of Government Efficiency.
On Thursday, Martin was featured in a Justice Department press release touting misdemeanor charges filed against a man accused of vandalizing Teslas in Washington. The press release quoted Martin as calling the Tesla Takedown movement — a nonviolent protest campaign — 'domestic terrorism.'
Martin was previously an active figure in the 'Stop the Steal' movement, which boosted Trump's false claims about the 2020 election and sought to help him overturn the results.
Schiff and Sen. Alex Padilla, California's other Democratic senator, recently said that 'Martin's record and deeply problematic conduct merit heightened scrutiny and more than justify the full [Judiciary] Committee questioning him under oath.'
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