Staff Reports
In yet another episode of Washington theatrics, the House Judiciary Committee has stepped up their game by filing a lawsuit against Attorney General Merrick Garland. The demand? The Justice Department must cough up audio tapes of President Biden’s interview related to his classified documents case. It’s like a political soap opera that just keeps giving.
Why, one might ask, has it come to this? Well, the answer lies in the House voting to hold Garland in contempt of Congress a full three weeks ago. The Judiciary Committee had taken the painstaking step of subpoenaing these tapes, which Garland chose to ignore, preferring instead to invoke executive privilege. It appears Biden and company have gotten quite the hang of using executive privilege like an all-access get-out-of-jail-free card.
https://twitter.com/therealJJMurray/status/1807926245776060639
Apparently, the Justice Department has no intention of prosecuting Garland for his blatant contempt of Congress. The official excuse revolves around some “longstanding position and uniform practice” of not getting involved in executive privilege spats. How convenient! It’s almost as if the system is rigged to protect its own.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, aims to bulldoze through this so-called executive privilege. The Judiciary Committee isn’t just after Biden’s tapes; they also want recordings of special counsel interviews with Mark Zwonitzer, Biden’s ghostwriter for his 2017 memoir. Do tapes scare the administration? Apparently, transcripts aren’t enough because they lack the “verbal and nonverbal context” essential for a full understanding. House Republicans argue these little details could reveal more than Biden’s team would like the American people to know.
House Republicans Sue Garland For Tapes Of Hur Interview With Biden
👇https://t.co/p65qsE7JSu— Stoned Ranger (@Stoned_Ranger_) July 2, 2024
Biden’s ace in the hole seems to be a narrative spun around his sympathy points—portraying him as a “well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory.” The Judiciary Committee wants those tapes to see if this portrayal holds water. They argue it’s crucial for their impeachment inquiry into the President.
Not to be outdone by the usual bureaucratic runaround, some Republicans are pushing for invoking “inherent” contempt to arrest Garland if he keeps stonewalling. Jim Jordan, ever the showman, indicated he’s open to this dramatic route but believes the lawsuit will come through. The House, having voted to kick off an impeachment inquiry, feels entitled to all the evidence, including those elusive audio tapes. Get your popcorn ready, folks. This political spectacle is far from over.
