House Judiciary Committee passes resolution to hold Garland in contempt

House Judiciary Committee voted 18-15 along party lines on Thursday to pass a resolution holding Attorney General Garland in contempt for not complying with congressional subpoenas.

The House Committees on Oversight and Accountability and Judiciary issued subpoenas to Garland on February 27, 2024 for "records, including transcripts, notes, video, and audio files, related to Special Counsel Robert Hur’s investigation of President Joe Biden’s willful mishandling of classified information," according to committee staff.

Garland hasn't provided the audio files of President Biden’s interview with the special counsel. Biden has claimed executive privilege and won't authorize the release of the recordings.

Hur's final report on the classified documents investigation has raised GOP concerns about Biden's mental fitness for office.

“We have also considered that, at trial, Mr. Biden would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory,” Hur wrote in his report.

Democrats argued at the markup hearing that Trump's mental fitness for office is questionable, referring to Trump mixing up former 2024 GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley with former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi at a rally.

In response, Republicans pointed out gaffes that Biden has made in speeches.

The House Oversight Committee is expected to hold its markup hearing for the Garland contempt resolution on Thursday evening.

Some of the Republican House Oversight Committee members were in New York on Thursday attending Trump's hush money trial.