Senate Republicans Blocking Biden Pick to Spearhead Capitol Riot Prosecutions, Says Report

In July, President Joe Biden tapped the ex-federal prosecutor Matt Graves to lead hundreds of cases against Capitol riot suspects. The Senate Judiciary Committee had signed off on Graves’ nomination to run the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, but the appointment is now reportedly being held up by Senate Republicans. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, a Democrat who represents district, told Insider the nomination is “being used for leverage,” adding that the senators don’t seem to have a problem with Graves himself. “‘Caught in the fire’ is how I would put it, because it doesn’t have anything to do with him,” she said. Sen. Chuck Grassley, the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, told Insider he wasn’t aware of any kind of block. Meanwhile, the House panel investigating the riot has vowed to “fight” Donald Trump’s lawsuit to stop the inquiry from using documents he claims are privileged, saying in a statement that its “authority to seek these records is clear.”