…#EdMartin’s …appearances on #RT surged again in 2021, when he did roughly 60 spots, compared w/ 50 over the prior 4½ years. He was often asked about #Jan6, 2021, Capitol riot prosecutions, 3 of whose defendants HE REPRESENTED, & mounting federal & state investigations of #Trump, which he strongly & repeatedly criticized.

#Russia #StateMedia at the time promoted #EdMartin’s critiques in headlines such as one on #Sputnik International’s website in April 2023, “‘Trumped-Up’ Charges Against Former US President ‘Embarrassing’ to US,” & another in December 2023, “GOP Activist: ‘Stupid’ US Leaders Will ‘Throw Money’ at #Ukraine Unless Stopped by House.”

#EdMartin was invited by several [#Russia] networks to discuss the 2016 presidential election after writing a book making the conservative case for #Trump w/ #antifeminist icon #PhyllisSchlafly.

Over time, Martin appeared as a solo guest discussing the #Ukraine crisis & was described as a “co-host” on one show episode in December 2023.

#EdMartin has been a prolific user of social & other media to defend #Trump & his policies. His presence on #Russia #StateMedia puts a twist on Trump’s frequent tapping of TV personalities to stock his 2nd admin.

Martin appeared as a panelist or commentator on more than a dozen #RT or #Sputnik programs beginning in Aug 2016, often introduced as a #Republican strategist….

“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.

“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.”

…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.”

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.”

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….

#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.

#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.

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.

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.

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.”

More #FactCheck of #TrumpLies & the idiocy & malignancy of #Trump’s #comments about #Ukraine, #Zelenskyy, #Russia & #Putin.
Holding a fair election that meets international standards would be nearly impossible w/ at least a ⅕ of the country occupied by Russia, millions of Ukrainians living outside the country & tens of thousands of others deployed to fight.

#StandWithUkraine #geopolitics #authoritarianism #RussianDisinformation #propaganda #Trumpaganda #RevengePolitics
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/02/19/ukraine-russia-trump-elections-zelensky/