Biden Moves to Block Trump Administration From Releasing Hur Interview Recordings

Mintesinot Niggusie

Former President Joe Biden has asked a federal judge in Washington to prevent the Justice Department from releasing audio recordings and transcripts from interviews conducted during the writing of his memoir, after the Trump administration changed course on keeping the material private.

The Justice Department said it intends to hand over the recordings to the Heritage Foundation and to Congress by June 15. The department had previously argued in court that disclosure would represent “a severe invasion of privacy.”

The materials were collected in 2023 as part of former Special Counsel Robert Hur’s investigation into Biden’s handling of classified documents. The interviews were recorded at Biden’s home in 2016 and 2017 while he was working on his memoir centered on the death of his son Beau Biden.

Biden’s legal team argued that the recordings contain discussions of sensitive personal matters and described the department’s reversal as politically motivated. Spokesperson TJ Ducklo said the reversal abandoned longstanding protections surrounding law enforcement files.

The Heritage Foundation has said it plans to challenge Biden’s intervention request. The case, Heritage Foundation v. Department of Justice, is being heard in the US District Court for the District of Columbia.