House votes to hold AG Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress
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Attorney General Merrick Garland. Photo: Aaron Schwartz/Xinhua via Getty Images.
The House on Wednesday voted to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for refusing to turn over audio of President Biden's interview with special counsel Robert Hur.
Why it matters: The vote is the culmination of months of digging by House Republicans to try to bring into public view as much material from the special counsel interview as possible.
- The 216-207 vote is unlikely to result in Garland facing prosecution, but Republicans hope it will strengthen their subpoena for the audio files.
- Rep. Dave Joyce (R-Ohio) was the lone GOP no vote. Joyce said in a statement: "I cannot in good conscience support a resolution that would further politicize our judicial system to score political points."
- Garland said in a statement shortly after the vote: "It is deeply disappointing that this House of Representatives has turned a serious congressional authority into a partisan weapon."
- He added that "today's vote disregards the constitutional separation of powers, the Justice Department's need to protect its investigations, and the substantial amount of information we have provided" to the congressional committees.
Zoom out: Hur said in his report in February that Biden suffered repeated memory lapses in his interview — leading prosecutors to believe the president would come across to a jury as a "sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory."
- Republicans quickly jumped on the revelation to try to dredge up as many details as possible, including holding a hearing with Hur.
- The DOJ turned over a transcript of the interview to House Republican investigators but declined to provide audio, with Biden asserting executive privilege to shield it.
The other side: Justice Department officials wrote a legal memo to Garland last month making the case against a contempt prosecution, noting that Biden asserted executive privilege.
- "No U.S. Attorney has pursued criminal contempt charges against an Executive Branch official asserting the President's claim of executive privilege," the officials argued.
Editor's note: This story has been updated with additional developments.
