Trump names Fox News host as top Washington DC prosecutor

US President Donald Trump has appointed Fox News host and former New York prosecutor Jeanine Pirro as interim US attorney for Washington DC.

The announcement comes after Trump withdrew his first pick for the job after he lost key Republican support in the Senate, which votes on such positions.

After Trump's 2020 loss to Joe Biden, Pirro made false statements about the election that were part of a lawsuit against Fox News by a company that makes voting machines. The case was settled for more than $787m (£594m).

Trump called Pirro "a powerful crusader for victims of crime" in a social media post announcing his selection. Meanwhile, critics described her as unqualified.

The president did not indicate whether Pirro, 73, would serve permanently in the job, which requires Senate confirmation, or how long her term would last.

In the Truth Social post on Thursday night, Trump noted that she previously served as a Republican district attorney in Westchester, New York, as well as a judge. He also touted her roles on various shows on Fox News, including on The Five, which he called "one of the Highest Rated Shows on Television".

Pirro has been a close ally of Trump for decades. In one of his last actions during his first term, he issued a pardon to her husband, who had been convicted of tax evasion decades earlier.

Democrats were quick to criticise the appointment of Pirro, the second Fox News host with to receive a high-profile federal job after Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, raising questions about her credentials for the role and about her career outside of broadcasting.

"Which Fox News host will get the next federal appointment," Jimmy Gomez, a Democrat representative from California, wrote on X.

The Democratic National Committee wrote in a statement: "Jeanine Pirro is yet another unqualified TV personality with a history of putting Trump and violent insurrectionists above the rule of law."

Republicans, like South Carolina Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, celebrated the news on social media. He called Pirro a "grand slam, home run" choice.

"She is exactly the right person at the right time to take on this responsibility," Graham said on X.

Pirro replaces current interim US attorney Ed Martin, a former conservative podcaster that Trump appointed this January.

He was let go after North Carolina Republican Senator Thom Tillis, a key swing vote, said he would refuse to confirm Martin for the role on a permanent basis, citing "friction" over how Martin viewed those involved in the 6 January 2021 riots at the US Capitol.

Tillis told reporters this week that he had "no tolerance for anybody who entered the building on January 6".

Martin has been a staunch critic of the investigation into the Capitol riot. While serving in the role on an interim basis, he fired prosecutors who oversaw prosecutions of alleged and convicted rioters.

Trump said Martin will remain at the US Justice Department and serve as director of the "weaponization working group", which looks into officials who investigated Trump, the president said in another post on social media.

Since taking office, Trump has issued pardons and ended prosecutions against 6 January rioters who stormed the US Capitol in an effort to block Biden's election win over Trump in the 2020 election.