WASHINGTON – The House of Representatives on Thursday rejected a resolution citing “natural hatred” over Attorney General Merrick Garland’s failure to turn over audio tapes of President Joe Biden’s interview with special counsel Robert Hur.
A “privilege” resolution authored by Florida Republican and Donald Trump ally Anna Paulina Luna passed the House of Representatives. impose a daily fine of $10,000 It’s not every day in Garland that he hands out audio cassettes.
The impugned contempt process has in the past involved the Sergeant of the House taking a person into custody and trying them on the floor of the House, but has not been used in this way. At home for over a century. Luna’s resolution only directed Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., to impose the daily fine, though it was unclear exactly how he would impose it and the matter could end up in court.
He did not request that Garland be arrested.
After the failed vote, Luna took to social media to vow that his resolution only failed “due to the absence of some Republicans.”
“I have refiled the resolution and will call for it again in a few weeks when Congress is back in session and the Members are back.” Luna said in X. “Attorney General Merrick Garland will pay and be held accountable for trying to undermine our institutions. No one is above the law.”
The vote was 204-210. Four Republicans — Reps. John Duarte and Tom McClintock of California; and Dave Joyce and Mike Turner, both of Ohio — voted with all Democrats to reject the resolution. Another 12 Republicans did not participate.
Joyce, the former prosecutor, noted that the executive privilege subpoena was for Biden, not Garland, and that the DOJ had already turned over transcripts of the interview with Biden.
Joyce, a former prosecutor, said in an interview: “The privilege is the president’s. The attorney general gave the transcripts. When they asked for the tapes, the president indicated that he was exercising privilege over the tapes.” “A wreath is between a rock and a hard place. Getting where you need to go is going through the courts.”
Republicans sought audio of Biden’s interview with Hur, who was appointed by Garland to lead an investigation into his handling of classified documents from his Senate and vice-presidential tenures. Although he said Biden’s practices “present serious risks to national security,” Hur did not press charges in part against the president because Biden could describe himself as an “old man with a failing memory” who sympathized with the jury.
Ministry of Justice in March released the edited written transcripts On October 8 and 9, 2023, the president’s five-hour interview with Hur. But Luna and other Republicans say they want to hear Biden’s voice themselves to ensure the transcripts have not been tampered with.
The White House has argued executive privilege in refusing to hand over the tapes, and Biden’s Democratic allies on Capitol Hill have said the written transcripts are sufficient.
Asked to respond to the vote, a Justice Department spokeswoman said Garland “chairs the cross-border crime forum and was not available for comment.”
Thursday’s contempt vote comes a month after the House voted 216-207 against Keep Garland hating Congress on the audio tapes, but the DOJ said it would to refuse to judge the head of the law enforcement agency.
On Wednesday night, Democrats initially tried to “table” or kill Luna’s resolution, but that effort failed. Democrats then filed a motion to send the resolution to the Rules Committee to delay the process, but that also failed, leading to a full House vote on Thursday.