Biden Sues DOJ To Block Release Of Biographer Interview Audio To Congress And FOIA Plaintiffs
On Tuesday, May 26, 2026, President Joe Biden sued the Justice Department in federal court in Washington, D.C., to block release of about 70 hours of audio and transcripts from interviews with biographer Mark Zwonitzer.[1]
DOJ attorneys told a federal judge they planned to begin releasing the files, with redactions, to the House Judiciary Committee and the Heritage Foundation on June 15 unless a court intervened.[1] Biden's complaint argues disclosure would "constitute an unwarranted invasion of President Biden's privacy" and asserts a privacy interest in personal conversations at home.[2] President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social late on May 26, calling Biden a "Crooked Politician." CBS News
In 2024 the House held Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt after the White House asserted executive privilege and refused to turn over audio of Biden's special counsel interview.[2] DOJ had earlier argued the biographer interview records were exempt from the Freedom of Information Act before the Trump administration reversed that position in February 2026, drawing three separate FOIA lawsuits.[3] Those interviews also were part of Special Counsel Robert Hur's 345-page probe into Biden's handling of classified documents, which questioned his age and mental competence but recommended no criminal charges.[2]
Mainstream coverage shifted from treating the suit mainly as a privacy and executive-privilege dispute to highlighting a broader clash between the president and the Justice Department after reporting on DOJ's FOIA reversal and the separate FOIA lawsuits.[3]
Show source details & analysis (5 sources)
📌 Key Facts
- On Tuesday, May 26, 2026, Joe Biden filed a lawsuit in federal court in Washington, D.C., seeking to block the Justice Department from releasing about 70 hours of audio files and transcripts from his 2016–2017 interviews with biographer Mark Zwonitzer used for his memoir "Promise Me, Dad."
- DOJ attorneys told a federal judge they planned to begin releasing the files, with redactions, to the House Judiciary Committee and the Heritage Foundation on June 15, 2026 unless a court intervened.
- Biden's complaint argues that disclosing the materials would "constitute an unwarranted invasion of President Biden's privacy" and asserts a privacy interest in personal conversations at home even for a sitting or former vice president.
- The Justice Department had previously argued the records were exempt from disclosure under FOIA before the Trump administration reversed that position in February 2026, prompting the planned releases.
- There have been three separate FOIA lawsuits seeking the biographer interview material, making the dispute one over access for both Congress and FOIA requesters.
- The recordings and transcripts are connected to Special Counsel Robert Hur's 345-page report into Biden's handling of classified documents, which questioned his age and mental competence but recommended no criminal charges.
- In 2024, the House held Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt for refusing to turn over audio of Biden's special counsel interview after the White House asserted executive privilege, although five hours of interview transcripts were released.
- CBS coverage framed the case as a major clash over privacy, executive privilege and public access and reported that President Trump responded late on May 26, 2026 on Truth Social, calling Biden a "Crooked Politician."
📰 Source Timeline (5)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
- CBS piece reiterates that Joe Biden has sued the Justice Department to block release of audio and transcripts from his 2016-2017 ghostwriter interviews, which became part of Special Counsel Robert Hur's classified-documents investigation.
- The segment frames the development as a dispute over releasing both audio and transcripts, not just audio, to Congress and FOIA requesters.
- Legal analyst Jessica Levinson appears in the CBS segment to explain the suit, underscoring it as a significant clash between a former president and DOJ over privacy, executive privilege, and public access.
- Article confirms that Joe Biden personally filed suit on Tuesday, May 26, 2026, in federal district court in Washington, D.C., to block DOJ from releasing approximately 70 hours of audio and transcripts from his 2016-2017 interviews with biographer Mark Zwonitzer.
- It reiterates that DOJ previously told a judge it planned to begin releasing the audio files, with redactions, to the House Judiciary Committee and the Heritage Foundation on June 15, 2026, unless a court intervened.
- The piece emphasizes Biden’s argument that disclosing the tapes would be an unwarranted invasion of his privacy, even though portions of related transcripts from Special Counsel Robert Hur’s interview have already been released.
- NPR/AP piece reconfirms that on Tuesday, May 26, 2026, Joe Biden filed a lawsuit in Washington's federal court to block DOJ from releasing audio recordings and transcripts of his 2016-2017 home interviews with ghostwriter Mark Zwonitzer.
- The article quotes the complaint's argument that releasing the materials would 'constitute an unwarranted invasion of President Biden's privacy' and emphasizes Biden's claim that even a sitting or former vice president has a right to privacy in personal conversations at home.
- The story reiterates that DOJ had previously argued the records were exempt from disclosure under FOIA before deciding to release them to Congress and the Heritage Foundation.
- The article restates that Special Counsel Robert Hur's yearlong investigation into Biden's handling of classified documents produced a 345-page report that questioned Biden's age and mental competence but recommended no criminal charges.
- It notes that the House in 2024 held Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for refusing to turn over the audio of Biden's special counsel interview after the White House asserted executive privilege, while five hours of interview transcripts were released.
- The CBS article specifies that Biden’s May 26, 2026 lawsuit in D.C. federal court seeks to block DOJ from releasing about 70 hours of audio files and transcripts from his 2016-2017 interviews with ghostwriter Mark Zwonitzer that were used for his 2017 memoir "Promise Me, Dad."
- It reports that DOJ attorneys told a federal judge earlier in May 2026 they planned to release the files, with redactions, to both the House Judiciary Committee and the Heritage Foundation on June 15, 2026 absent a contrary ruling.
- The piece notes that three separate FOIA lawsuits had been filed seeking the material and that DOJ previously argued in court that the files were exempt from disclosure before the Trump administration reversed that position in February 2026.
- The article reiterates that Biden asserted executive privilege over the recordings in 2024 after House Republicans sought access and that his lawyers now argue DOJ has "reversed" its stance without formal explanation.
- It adds that late on May 26, 2026, President Trump responded on Truth Social, calling Biden a "Crooked Politician" in reaction to the lawsuit.