US Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks during a press conference on January 12, 2023, at the Justice Department to announce the appointment of a special counsel to investigate the discovery of classified documents in President Joe Biden’s possession in an office and at his home. The investigation has not led to any charges against Biden. Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images.
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House Judiciary Committee filed charges Monday against Attorney General Merrick Garland, continuing its effort to obtain audio recordings of President Joe Biden’s interview with a special counsel amid an investigation into the president’s handling of classified documents.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, asks to overturn Biden’s invocation of executive privilege regarding the recordings of his interviews with Robert K. Hur.
The Republican-controlled committee argues in the lawsuit that the tapes are relevant in its impeachment inquiry into Biden and “whether the President intentionally retained the classified material to benefit his family … or himself.”
A spokesperson for the Department of Justice said in a statement to States Newsroom that the “Department is investigating the lawsuit and will respond to the court at the appropriate time.”
The lawsuit also seeks audio recordings of Hur’s interview with Mark Zwonitzer, the ghostwriter of Biden’s 2017 memoir.
It’s one of several attempts by Republicans to obtain the tapes after Hur declined to press charges against Biden, describing him as a “likable, well-meaning older man with a bad memory.” Biden has rejected many of those claims.
“The committee therefore needs those recordings to review the special counsel’s characterization of the President, which he and White House attorneys have vigorously disputed, and to ultimately recommend that President Biden should not be prosecuted,” he said. the indictment.
Separately, Florida Republican Party Rep. Anna Paulina Luna is leading efforts to hold a vote on “inherent contempt” when lawmakers vote against Garland next week, in hopes of obtaining the tapes.
Last week, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said House Republicans “will be as aggressive as we can and will use every tool in our arsenal to ensure” the tapes are released.
The House voted in early June to hold Garland in contempt for not releasing the audio recordings. However, the Justice Department provided a written transcript of Hur’s interviews with Biden to the House Judiciary Committee and the House Oversight and Accountability Committee.
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