Trump Pushes January 6 Protester With Zero Trial Experience as Wyoming U.S. Attorney

Donald Trump’s pick for U.S. Attorney in Wyoming, Darin Smith, is an estate planning lawyer with no trial experience at any level of government. That glaring lack of prosecutorial background would normally disqualify a nominee for this powerful position. But Smith’s defining credential, at least to this Justice Department, is his presence at the January 6 Capitol protest—a violent insurrection aimed at overturning a democratic election.

Smith currently serves as interim U.S. Attorney and insists he never entered the Capitol building itself. That technicality hasn’t stopped the Senate from moving toward confirming him permanently. It’s telling that merely showing up to a rally explicitly intended to disenfranchise voters is enough to propel someone into a top federal law enforcement role.

Smith is not alone in this disturbing trend. Another nominee, Phillip Williams, slated for the Northern District of Alabama, also lacks criminal trial experience. Williams has publicly condemned federal prosecutors for “hunting down” January 6 rioters, comparing their prosecutions to the Salem witch trials—an absurd analogy given the overwhelming evidence, including photos and videos, of violent attacks on police and the Capitol.

Then there’s former GOP congressman Dan Bishop, nominated for North Carolina, who was inside the Capitol on January 6 and voted to overturn the election results despite zero credible evidence. Bishop even claims “the left” orchestrated January 6, a conspiracy theory that flies in the face of documented facts.

The bigger problem is systemic. U.S. Attorneys wield immense discretionary power over who faces federal prosecution and how aggressively cases are pursued. Entrusting this authority to loyalists with no relevant experience and ties to an insurrection undermines the rule of law. January 6 participation may not strip citizenship, but it should absolutely disqualify anyone from deciding who is a criminal.

This isn’t an isolated misstep. The Trump DOJ has been normalizing unqualified, January 6–linked picks for over a year, prioritizing loyalty over competence. From Ed Martin to Lindsey Halligan, the message is clear: January 6 bona fides are the new gold standard.

Despite these red flags, GOP Senators have largely shrugged off concerns, clearing the path for these wild picks to take office. The result is a Justice Department weaponized for political loyalty, not justice—an alarming erosion of democratic accountability we cannot afford to ignore.