House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said the House Judiciary Committee plans a lawsuit to force Attorney General Merrick Garland to turn over audio of President Joe Biden's interview with special counsel Robert Hur.
The Justice Department has only released a transcript of the interview. The House voted to hold Garland in contempt over his refusal to turn over the tapes but were rebuffed by the Justice Department, which said his refusal to turn over audio "did not constitute a crime."
"We are going to file suit next week against the Department of Justice to enforce that subpoena. We will go to district court here in D.C., which is the appropriate venue, and we will fight vigorously to get it," Johnson told a group of reporters Wednesday.
Garland has refused to turn over the audio because Biden asserted executive privilege. The White House said Republicans want the tapes only for political reasons.
Johnson's move comes after Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., vowed a vote on a measure that would allow the House sergeant-at-arms to detain Garland. Johnson said her motion is one of several being weighed.
However, not all House Republicans are on board with Luna.
The topic was discussed at Republicans' weekly leadership meeting and "people in the room don't want it to happen," according to one GOP member, Axios reported.
"I made fun of my Democratic colleagues two years ago when they introduced their [inherent contempt] resolutions," Rep. Kelly Armstrong, R-N.D., said, Axios reported. "I don't know how you enforce it, and I don't know how you don't actually weaken our position ... I'm assuming we're going to court very quickly on it, and I think that is the appropriate way to do it."
Hur spent a year investigating Biden's retention of classified documents, from his time as a senator and as vice president. Hur said he found insufficient evidence to successfully prosecute a case in court.
Hur cited limitations with Biden's memory and the president's cooperation with investigators that "could convince some jurors that he made an innocent mistake." Hur's report also described the president as "someone for whom jurors will want to identify reasonable doubt."
Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.
Sam Barron ✉
Sam Barron has almost two decades of experience covering a wide range of topics including politics, crime and business.
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