Biden is suing the Justice Department to stop the release of audio, documents tied to the special counsel’s investigation
Joe Biden sued the Justice Department on Tuesday in an attempt to block the release of transcripts and transcripts of the former president’s conversations with a ghostwriter obtained by a special counsel investigating his handling of classified documents.
Biden’s lawyers said in a lawsuit filed in Washington federal court that the Justice Department plans to release the files to Congress and the preservation group, the Heritage Foundation, after the department had argued that they were not disclosed under public records law.
Biden’s lawyers argued that the disclosure would “constitute an unwarranted invasion of President Biden’s privacy.”
“Every American, including a sitting or former Vice President, has a right to privacy in their private conversations,” his lawyers wrote. “And when the US Department of Justice receives that confidential information through a criminal investigation, the Department has a certain responsibility to protect it from disclosure.”
At issue in the case are audio recordings and transcripts of Biden’s conversations at his home in 2016 and 2017 with Mark Zwonitzer, who worked with Biden on two of his documentaries.
The files are being reviewed by special counsel Robert Hur as part of his investigation into the president’s handling of classified documents, from his time as a member of parliament and as vice president.
Hur’s year-long investigation resulted in a 345-page report that questioned Biden’s age and mental capacity but recommended that no criminal charges be brought against the 81-year-old. Hur said he found enough evidence to successfully prosecute the case in court.
Biden has separately fought the release of the audio of his conversation with Hur.
The House in 2024 voted to hold Biden’s Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress by refusing to change that vote after the White House gave the upper hand, protecting it from Congress.
Transcripts of five hours of Biden’s conversations with federal prosecutors were released that same year.
While Biden insists he handles classified information, the transcript shows he was sometimes confused about dates and details and said he didn’t know the paper trail of some of the sensitive documents he carried.
Republicans have said that Biden was given authority by his Justice Department and that Trump was unfairly harassed by prosecutors.
On the other hand, Democrats emphasized Biden’s cooperation in the investigation and compared it strongly to a separate criminal case against Trump, who was accused of refusing to return secret documents requested by the National Archives that he had at his Florida residence.
