The House Judiciary Committee advanced a resolution to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress over the Justice Department’s failure to produce the subpoenaed audio recording of President Biden’s interview with Special Counsel Robert Hur.
The House Judiciary Committee considered a resolution to hold the attorney general in contempt during a mark-up session Thursday. The vote advances the measure for a full floor vote.
The move comes after the White House asserted executive privilege over the audio and video recordings related to Hur’s interviews with the president as part of his classified records investigation.
US Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks during a meeting with US Attorney Damian Williams, not pictured, as well as federal, state, and local law enforcement leaders, in New York City on November 27, 2023. Garland is visiting US Attorney’s Offices across the country to discuss the issues in their communities. (EDUARDO MUNOZ/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that “the attorney general made it clear that law enforcement files like these need to be protected.”
“And so the president made his determination at the request of the attorney general,” she said. “So just want to make that second point that I made really clear.”
The DNC paid lawyers representing President Biden as he was under investigation over his possession of classified documents by Special Counsel Robert Hur. (Getty Images)
Hur, who released his report to the public in February after months of investigation, did not recommend criminal charges against Biden for mishandling and retaining classified documents, and he stated that he would not bring charges against Biden even if he were not in the Oval Office.
Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee leaves the Republican caucus meeting at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Oct. 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana) (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
Those records included classified documents about military and foreign policy in Afghanistan and other countries, among other records related to national security and foreign policy, which Hur said implicated “sensitive intelligence sources and methods.”
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Hur, in his report, described Biden as a “sympathetic, well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory” — a description that has raised significant concerns for Biden’s 2024 re-election campaign.