Court says Biden memoir interview audio can be released
A federal appeals court rejected Joe Biden’s bid to keep recordings of interviews with his memoir ghostwriter private, AP News reports.
By Georgia Hale · Staff Writer
2 min read
Joe Biden lost a key round in his fight to keep audio from a 2017 interview with his memoir ghostwriter out of public hands, according to AP News.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled 2-1 late Monday against the former president’s appeal, AP reported. The court said there is a “substantial” public interest in releasing the material.
The recordings at issue come from interviews Biden gave to Mark Zwonitzer, who interviewed him in 2016 and 2017 for Biden’s two published memoirs, according to AP. The interviews took place at Biden’s home and happened before he was elected president.
Biden’s legal team argued that releasing the audio would invade his privacy, AP reported. The Department of Justice had previously taken the position that the recordings were exempt from disclosure under public records law.
That did not carry the day in federal court. In June, U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich ruled that the public should be allowed to hear the recordings, according to AP. Friedrich was nominated to the bench by President Donald Trump.
Biden appealed that ruling, sending the dispute to the D.C. Circuit. The appeals court has now rejected that challenge, though it did not clear the audio for immediate release without any safeguards.
According to AP, the appeals court said redactions to parts of the audio could address privacy concerns. That means the court saw a path for release while still shielding some material from public view.
The ruling is paused for now. AP reported that the court suspended its decision until August 3, giving Biden time to file another appeal if he chooses to keep fighting the release.
The decision keeps attention on a set of recordings tied to Biden’s private work on his memoirs, rather than his time in the White House. The court’s public-interest finding now puts pressure on the next legal move: whether Biden asks another court to step in before the August deadline.
For now, the appeals court’s message is clear enough. The recordings can be released with redactions, unless Biden wins another reprieve.
This story draws on original reporting from TMZ.