Attorney General Merrick Garland received a final warning from House oversight and judiciary committee chairs to comply with subpoenas for audio of President Biden’s interview with special counsel Robert Hur regarding the classified documents investigation.
Republicans want the audio and transcript to conduct oversight, while DOJ has only offered Hur’s interview transcript of Biden’s book ghostwriter.
The lawmakers warned Garland that if materials are not produced by April 25, contempt of Congress proceedings will be initiated.
“If the Department continues to withhold materials responsive to the Committees’ subpoenas—namely, the audio recordings of Special Counsel Hur’s interviews with President Biden and Mr. Zwonitzer—we will have no choice but to invoke contempt of Congress proceedings,” the Committee on the Judiciary and the Committee on Oversight and Accountability wrote.
“To avoid this, the Committees expect you to produce all responsive materials no later than 12:00 p.m. on April 25, 2024,” the lawmakers added.
During Biden’s interview, he experienced reported mental lapses or poor memory at least seven times.
Hur’s investigation found Biden willfully kept documents but declined to prosecute due to insufficient evidence, describing Biden as elderly with poor memory.
Recent polls show about a third of Democrats doubt Biden’s mental fitness and four-fifths of Americans have health concerns about the president.
