On Monday, the House Judiciary Committee filed a lawsuit against Attorney General Merrick Garland. The reason behind the lawsuit is to acquire the audio recordings of President Joe Biden’s interview with special counsel Robert Hur. The interview was regarding Biden’s handling of classified documents after he left the position of vice president.
On Monday, a civil action lawsuit was filed in a federal court in Washington. The lawsuit requests an injunction that orders Garland to produce the audio recordings of the Special Counsel’s interviews with President Biden and Mark Zwonitzer, the president’s book ghostwriter, to the Republican-led House Judiciary Committee chaired by Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio.
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Despite the availability of the transcripts of Biden’s two-day interview online, which amount to 258 pages, the President has refused to turn over the audio recordings to the House. The reason behind this refusal is the claim of executive privilege, which is considered valid by Garland and the Justice Department as a basis to deny access to the said recordings.
On the same day that the Supreme Court made a ruling about former President Donald Trump’s presidential immunity, it also happened that…
Republicans on Capitol Hill and the White House have been engaged in an ongoing partisan debate over this topic.
A GOP plan was announced by a Florida House Republican last week to have Garland apprehended by the House sergeant-at-arms. The plan involves utilizing a House procedural tool that is seldom used and is relatively unremarkable.
In early June, the House voted 216-207 along mostly party lines to hold Garland in contempt of Congress for defying the resolution pushed by the House Judiciary and Oversight Committees in May. This was due to Garland’s refusal to provide the audio recordings of Biden’s Oct. 8 and Oct. 9 interviews by Hur despite the availability of the transcript.
After the vote, the House GOP was accused by the attorney general of transforming a crucial congressional authority into a tool for partisan gain. This came on the heels of a recent attempt by the GOP to hold Zwonitzer in contempt of Congress.
Recently, House Speaker Mike Johnson pursued a court order to obtain audiotapes that House Republicans have been eagerly awaiting. This action was taken after the Justice Department refused to prosecute Attorney General Garland regarding the matter.
During Garland’s contempt of Congress vote, Johnson emphasized that it is the responsibility of Congress, not the executive branch, to decide on the necessary materials for their investigations. Refusal to comply with lawful Congressional subpoenas results in consequences, as stated by Johnson.
