(Daily Wire) The House Judiciary Committee is poised to initiate contempt of Congress proceedings against Attorney General Merrick Garland in a clash over recordings from special counsel Robert Hur’s investigation into President Joe Biden‘s handling of classified documents.
With no apparent breakthrough in negotiations between House Republicans and the Department of Justice (DOJ) for lawmakers to get the audio files, a source confirmed to The Daily Wire that a markup is being planned for May 16, which is Thursday of next week.
House Oversight Chairman James Comer (R-KY) and Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) sent a letter to Garland a few weeks ago, saying they were giving him 10 more days to fully comply with their February subpoenas or face contempt of Congress proceedings.
“Your response to the subpoenas remains inadequate, suggesting that you are withholding records for partisan purposes and to avoid political embarrassment for President Biden,” the pair wrote, according to a copy of the April 15 letter obtained by The Daily Caller.
The lawmakers warned they would have “no choice but to invoke contempt of Congress proceedings” unless they were given the audio recordings of Hur’s interview with Biden and of the special counsel’s interview with Biden’s ghostwriter, Mark Zwonitzer.
“To avoid this, the Committees expect you to produce all responsive materials no later than 12:00 p.m. on April 25, 2024,” Comer and Jordan added.
The two chairmen had previously set an April 8 deadline, warning their committees would “consider taking further action, such as the invocation of contempt of Congress proceedings” without full compliance.
Assistant Attorney General Carlos Uriarte sent a letter to the lawmakers on April 8, saying a transcript for the two-day interview with Biden already provided to them should be sufficient. A transcript of Hur’s interview with Zwonitzer was also given.
