Why did a House panel vote to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt? We explain

Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee and House Oversight Committee voted earlier this year to hold U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress—but why?

Audio of interview with special prosecutor denied

In 2023, President Joe Biden was deposed by Special Counsel Robert Hur as part of an investigation into alleged mishandling of classified documents found at President Joe Biden’s former office at the Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and at his home in Wilmington, Delaware.

A transcript of the extensive interview was released to lawmakers, but Biden invoked executive privilege to prevent the audio recording from being made available.

Outraged Republican lawmakers issued a subpoena to the Department of Justice for the audio of the deposition, but in keeping with Biden’s executive privilege assertion, Garland refused to release the audio, saying there was no legislative purpose and that those lawmakers wanted the audio for their political ends.

Highlights of House Judiciary Committee hearing

Garland testified for nearly five hours on a variety of topics before the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday and denied allegations made by former President Donald Trump’s Republican allies who questioned the Justice Department’s integrity.

“Many Americans believe there’s now a double standard of our justice system. They believe that because there is,” said committee chair Representative Jim Jordan of Ohio.

“I view contempt as a serious matter, said Garland. “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.”

Garland’s testimony was the first time he has appeared before Congress since a jury in New York City convicted Trump on 34 counts of falsifying documents to cover up a payment to silence Stormy Daniels, an adult film star, ahead of the 2016 election.

Trump still faces three other criminal cases - two brought by Special Counsel Jack Smith over his efforts to overturn the 2020 election and his mishandling of classified documents - and a state case in Georgia also tied to his actions in the 2020 election.

Republicans claimed all four cases are miscarriages of justice and represent a coordinated effort by the Biden administration to interfere in the 2024 election on Nov. 5.

This article originally appeared on Fort Smith Times Record: Why was Merrick Garland held in contempt over Biden documents case