(IntegrityTimes.com) – In October of last year, President Biden was interviewed by Special Counsel Robert Hur over the span of two days regarding allegations that he had mishandled classified documents. Ultimately it was decided that there was insufficient evidence to charge President Biden with any crime in the case.
However, there were widespread concerns about the audio recordings of the interviews. The White House asserted executive privilege to block the release of the recordings saying that they could be manipulated or distorted for political purposes.
Republicans have criticized the decision to keep the recordings secret and have accused the administration of trying to hide the truth. There has also been rampant speculation about the president’s mental fitness as Special Counsel Hur’s report referred to Biden as an “elderly man with a poor memory”. Various lawsuits and other legal actions have ensued as a result of the decision to restrict access to the interviews. Former U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey recently joined the legal efforts for the public release of the audio recordings.
On Friday June 21, Mukasey filed a declaration in federal court in Washington, D.C. repudiating the misrepresentation of his 2008 Executive Privilege Letter. He asserts that letter was meant to refer to “frank and candid deliberations” among presidential advisers. However, he characterizes the interview of Biden by Special Counsel Hur as private conduct which should not be included under the umbrella of official White House actions. While a strong proponent of the President’s ability to invoke executive privilege, he has implied that the use of it in this case is inappropriate and may have negative repercussions in the future.
The transcripts of Hur’s interviews have been released so the information within them is available. In a world where audio and video manipulation are becoming more effective and prevalent concern that there could be deep fakes is perhaps reasonable. However, Mukasey and many others believe recordings could indicate problems with Biden’s “mental acuity”. The 81-year-old president has been dogged by questions and accusations regarding his memory and cognitive function with increasing frequency. Special Counsel Hur resigned from the Department of Justice one day before his scheduled testimony in the case. He will now be testifying as a private citizen.
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