Trump urged to reconsider appointment of 'Judge Jeanine' Pirro as interim US attorney for DC

Rights advocates are raising the alarm over US President Donald Trump's appointment of Fox News host Jeanine Pirro for Interim US attorney for DC, a position that will give her considerable power to further Trump's agenda to punish political opponents.

The Lebanese American conservative TV pundit, who is set to be sworn in on Wednesday, has repeatedly expressed bigoted statements about minorities, including Muslims. Born Jeanine Ferris, she was raised in Elmira in up-state New York.

In 2019, she was suspended from Fox News for three weeks following anti-Muslim comments about Minnesota Representative Jeanine Pirro. In addition, the episode led to the withdrawals of corporate sponsors. She said that the congresswoman’s decision to wear a hijab showed that she was against the US Constitution.

"Think about it. Omar wears a hijab," said Pirro in 2019. "Is her adherence to this Islamic doctrine indicative of her adherence to sharia law, which in itself is antithetical to the United States Constitution?"

The suspension reportedly didn't sit well with then-first term president Trump, who then complained to the network that she had been treated unfairly, saying that the Fox executives were being too politically correct.

Over the last several years, Pirro has routinely covered the news from pro-Trump angles, including false claims of him winning the 2020 election against Joe Biden. Meanwhile, Trump has seen her as a trusted advisor, often holding closed-door meetings with her.

Following news of Trump's decision to appoint Pirro as interim US attorney, the Council on American-Islamic Relations issued a statement condemning Trump's decision and urging him to reconsider.

"Appointing an infamous anti-Muslim bigot like Jeanine Pirro to one of the nation's top federal law enforcement posts calls into question the application of equal justice to members of minority communities," reads CAIR's statement.

Pirro, or 'Judge Jeanine' as she is called, is currently a host with The Five, one of the highest rated shows on Fox. She plans on leaving the network immediately upon assuming her new role.

In her new role, Pirro will be replacing Ed Martin, a Trump loyalist who represented 6 January defendants and who stirred controversy last year for hosting an event honouring a Nazi sympathizer.

"We urge President Trump to rescind her appointment and instead nominate someone without such a clear history of bigotry and bias," they wrote.

Pirro wouldn't be the first Fox News personality for Trump to appoint to a key role. He chose Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, who previously had no political experience, for his work at the network.

Trump has recently given other Lebanese Americans political appointments, including businessman Michel Issa as US ambassador to Lebanon.