The Justice Department (DOJ) has unveiled a significant development in the ongoing investigation into President Joe Biden’s handling of classified documents. During a lawsuit initiated by the Oversight Project, a conservative transparency watchdog, the DOJ disclosed the discovery of 117 pages of transcribed conversations between President Biden and his ghostwriter, Mark Zwonitzer. These transcripts detail discussions about classified material and were utilized by Special Counsel Robert Hur in his probe.
The Oversight Project, which has been actively pursuing records from Hur’s investigation, contends that this revelation further underscores the need for transparency regarding Biden’s handling of classified information and raises questions about his competency. The group’s counsel, Kyle Brosnan, emphasized the significance of these transcripts, stating that they are new and amplify the urgency for open access to information about the investigation.
The DOJ’s disclosure of these transcripts follows a subpoena issued to Zwonitzer by the House Judiciary Committee in March. The Committee sought all documents, contracts, and recordings related to Zwonitzer’s interviews and conversations with Biden. The Oversight Project’s lawsuit aims to force the DOJ to release these records, arguing that they are essential for understanding the full scope of Biden’s actions.
The transcripts, which document conversations between Biden and Zwonitzer while working on Biden’s 2017 memoir, “Promise Me, Dad,” have become a point of contention in the legal battle between the Oversight Project and the DOJ. The DOJ initially asserted that it did not possess verbatim transcripts of any recordings between Zwonitzer and Biden. However, the Oversight Project challenged this claim, pointing to evidence suggesting the existence of such transcripts.
Following further investigation, the DOJ confirmed the existence of the transcripts, indicating that they represent a portion of the over 70 hours of recordings between Biden and Zwonitzer. The DOJ is currently working with the Oversight Project to determine how to handle these newly discovered materials.
The Oversight Project’s lawsuit also focuses on the DOJ’s assertion of executive privilege over the Hur tapes, citing former Attorney General Michael Mukasey’s 2008 memo as justification. However, Mukasey himself has challenged the Biden administration’s application of executive privilege in this case, stating that it goes beyond the boundaries of previous uses and lacks justification.
The discovery of these transcripts adds a new layer of complexity to the ongoing legal battle surrounding Biden’s handling of classified documents. As the Oversight Project continues its pursuit of transparency, it remains to be seen how the DOJ will proceed with the release of these potentially crucial records and how they might impact public understanding of the investigation’s findings.
