Attorney General Merrick Garland said this week that he will defy subpoenas from Congressional Republicans that he does not agree with.
Garland’s statement came after Republican leaders in Congress threatened to hold him in contempt “in their efforts to gain access to audio recordings from special counsel Robert K. Hur’s investigation into President Biden’s handling of classified materials,” according to the Washington Post.
Garland reportedly requested for the president to claim executive privilege on the recordings, fearing that “releasing them could harm future efforts to get officials to cooperate with investigations and sit for taped interviews,” per the Post.
Speaking before the House Judiciary Committee this week, Garland accused Republicans of “seeking contempt as a means of obtaining — for no legitimate purpose — sensitive law enforcement information that could harm the integrity of future investigations. This effort is only the most recent in a long line of attacks on the Justice Department’s work.”
Republicans shot back and accused Garland of weaponizing the Department of Justice, citing the recent indictments of former President Trump and his recent conviction by a Manhattan jury on 34 felony counts.
Though the White House has provided transcripts of Biden’s interviews, where Hur described the president as an “elderly man with a poor memory” in his report, Republicans say the audio recordings could help provide missing context.
“Substantively, the transcript may be accurate, but, you know what, the audio would tell us so much more,” said Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ).
During the same hearing, Garland said that he “will not intimidated” by threats of contempt.
“I view contempt as a serious matter. But I will not jeopardize the ability of our prosecutors and agents to do their jobs effectively in future investigations. I will not be intimidated. And the Justice Department will not be intimidated. We will continue to do our jobs free from political influence. And we will not back down from defending democracy,” he said.
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