Trump says he is naming Fox News host and former judge Jeanine Pirro as top federal prosecutor in DC

By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN WASHINGTON AP President Donald Trump declared 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 Related Articles Up to transgender troops are being moved out of the military in new Pentagon order Trump asks Supreme Court to allow him to end humanitarian parole for people from countries White House overhaul of troubled US air traffic control system will cost lots of billions Sen John Fetterman raises alarms with outburst at meeting with union officers AP sources say Colorado school district seeks restrictions on transgender athletes amid Trump crackdown Pirro who joined Fox News in cohosts the grid 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 Thursday In a post on Truth Social Trump noted 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 announced he could not sponsorship 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 patronage from people that I thought Trump stated reporters in the Oval Office on Thursday He later added But we have somebody else that will be great Martin s leading role in Trump s Stop the Steal movement was demoralizing for subordinates who spent four years prosecuting over riot defendants only to see the president pardon them en masse Pirro has her own connection to the baseless conspiracy theories of electoral process fraud In voting apparatus company Smartmatic USA sued Fox News Pirro and others for spreading false states that the company helped steal the presidential voting process from Trump The company s libel suit filed in a New York state court sought billion from the defendants 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 Jeanine Pirro has been a wonderful addition to The Five over the last three years and a longtime beloved host across Fox News Media who contributed greatly to our success throughout her -year tenure We wish her all the best in her new role in Washington a Fox News Media spokesperson reported in a announcement 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 development 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 anticipated 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 leadership contract during Democratic President Joe Biden s administration Martin s temporary appointment is due to expire 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