{"id":2369667,"date":"2024-11-16T06:10:02","date_gmt":"2024-11-16T11:10:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/doj-under-pressure-to-release-hur-tapes-even-as-biden-term-nears-its-end-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2024-11-16T06:11:16","modified_gmt":"2024-11-16T11:11:16","slug":"doj-under-pressure-to-release-hur-tapes-even-as-biden-term-nears-its-end-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/doj-under-pressure-to-release-hur-tapes-even-as-biden-term-nears-its-end-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"DOJ under pressure to release Hur tapes even as Biden term nears its end &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">34<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fdoj-under-pressure-to-release-hur-tapes-even-as-biden-term-nears-its-end-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2369667&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The Department \u2062of \u200dJustice (DOJ) is facing \u200bsignificant\u2064 legal pressure to release \u2062audio recordings from an interview between \u200cformer Special Counsel Robert K. Hur and President Joe Biden. This interview,\u200b conducted in October 2023 as part of an investigation into Biden&#8217;s handling of\u2064 classified documents, has become a\u200b <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">focal point amid ongoing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-labor-purge-sparks-legal-challenge\/\" title=\"Biden Labor Purge Sparks Legal Challenge\">court battles<\/a><\/a>. Despite releasing \u200ba redacted transcript, the DOJ argues that the audio is protected \u2062by executive privilege,\u200c a claim \u200dBiden made when faced with congressional contempt threats.<\/p>\n<p>Various parties, including the House Judiciary Committee and conservative groups, are petitioning the DOJ for access to \u2064the recordings,\u2063 feeling they are crucial for understanding Biden&#8217;s mental state and the implications of using executive privilege. Hur, who determined that\u200d Biden \u200dmishandled confidential material \u200bbut opted not to prosecute due to Biden&#8217;s cognitive decline,\u200b faced backlash for his remarks\u2064 regarding the president&#8217;s demeanor during the\u2062 interview. <\/p>\n<p>Legal experts\u200c suggest that even if the current\u2063 administration maintains the audio&#8217;s confidentiality, future \u200bdevelopments, particularly under a potential Trump administration, could lead to \u200dits release. The \u2064situation raises concerns about transparency and accountability, \u2062particularly regarding\u2063 the mental competency of the president \u2062and the broader implications for executive power.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">DOJ under pressure to release Hur tapes even as Biden term nears its end<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1707709\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>The&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/justice-department\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Department of Justice<\/a>&nbsp;is under legal pressure to release audio recordings of the interview between former special counsel<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/robert-k-hur\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\"> Robert K. Hur<\/a> and President&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/joe-biden\">Joe Biden<\/a>, even as Biden&rsquo;s term winds down.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>After refusing to hand over the audio to&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/congress\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Congress<\/a>&nbsp;and outside groups, the DOJ remains caught up in several court battles, in which it has continued, as recently as this week, to ask judges to keep the audio and other material from Hur&rsquo;s inquiry out of the public eye.<\/p>\n<p>The legal fights stem from the House Judiciary Committee, two conservative groups, and a coalition of major media companies suing the DOJ in an effort to obtain the audio recordings from a two-day interview Hur conducted with Biden in October 2023 as part of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-debate-performance-renews-spotlight-on-hur-tapes-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"Biden debate performance renews spotlight on Hur tapes - Washington Examiner\">special counsel&#038;rsquo<\/a>;s investigation into the president&rsquo;s handling of classified documents.<\/p>\n<p>The DOJ released a redacted transcript of the interview this year, but the department maintains that the audio is protected by executive privilege. Biden asserted the privilege in May, as soon as Congress threatened contempt proceedings over it.<\/p>\n<p>During the special counsel investigation, Hur found that Biden mishandled top-secret material. However, Hur declined to prosecute the then-80-year-old president in part because of what he described as Biden&rsquo;s lagging memory and &ldquo;elderly&rdquo; demeanor during their interview. Hur&rsquo;s descriptions of Biden prompted outrage from Democrats and the White House, but Hur was later vindicated when Biden&rsquo;s mental decline led to the president dropping his bid for reelection.<\/p>\n<p>The DOJ has responded to the lawsuits over the interview recordings by saying it has been transparent enough by releasing redacted transcripts of it and that the audio is unavailable because of Biden&rsquo;s executive privilege claim. <\/p>\n<p>One of the conservative groups, the Heritage Foundation&rsquo;s Oversight Project, has two pending Freedom of Information Act lawsuits against the DOJ related to the Hur investigation. Kyle Brosnan, an Oversight Project lawyer, told the&nbsp;<em>Washington Examiner<\/em>&nbsp;it is imperative his group obtain the audio recordings despite Biden leaving office.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;These records are still relevant in revealing the scope of the cover-up of the President&rsquo;s mental state, exposing his egregious use of executive privilege to shield the public from evidence of his own corruption, and highlighting the very real dangers America faces from having a President who is asleep at the wheel,&rdquo; Brosnan said. &ldquo;It is an urgent and open historical question as to who was actually making decisions in this White House.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>If judges decide that the audio recordings can remain under wraps, legal experts say there is no way to know if a Trump DOJ will change gears and release them.<\/p>\n<p>One senior Republican aide familiar with Congress&rsquo;s legal proceedings against the DOJ said Trump&rsquo;s administration will have access to the audio recordings and that it is possible the DOJ could provide them to Congress in the next term. At that point, it is possible Congress could share them with the public.<\/p>\n<p>However, the aide cautioned that Biden&rsquo;s assertion of executive privilege remains a relevant factor.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Normally, new administrations defer to old administrations on privilege,&rdquo; the aide said. &ldquo;But who is to say what the Trump administration will do?&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Some lawyers have described executive privilege as a murky concept that is not explicitly addressed in the Constitution and can come into conflict with Congress&rsquo;s authority to conduct oversight of the executive branch. This issue cropped up during the committee&rsquo;s Jan. 6 investigations, when the Biden White House&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/news\/2021\/10\/08\/bannon-jan-6-subpoena-515681\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">gave<\/a>&nbsp;the committee records that Trump claimed were protected by executive privilege.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Ilya Shapiro, a lawyer who works for the Manhattan Institute, told the&nbsp;<em>Washington Examiner<\/em>&nbsp;it was &ldquo;an open legal question whether a president can waive a predecessor&rsquo;s executive privilege.&rdquo; He added, however, that privilege claims over the audio tapes were &ldquo;weak.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The issue of who knew about Biden&rsquo;s decline and when is of utmost public concern, and since we&rsquo;ve already gotten Hur&rsquo;s conclusion, the privilege claim over the interview [recordings] is exceedingly weak,&rdquo; Shapiro said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1707709\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1707709\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>DOJ faces pressure to release Hur tapes as Biden&#8217;s term ends<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":49,"featured_media":2369668,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Joe-Biden-election-uuh2.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[32502,7076,32452,12404,32076],"class_list":["post-2369667","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-biden-administration","tag-doj","tag-hur-tapes","tag-transparency","tag-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Joe-Biden-election-uuh2.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2369667","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/49"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2369667"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2369667\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2369671,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2369667\/revisions\/2369671"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2369668"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2369667"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2369667"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2369667"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}