Story perspectives

Judge Lets DOJ Access Biden Memoir Recordings, Redacted

6/20/2026

Summary

Story summary

District Judge Dabney Friedrich ruled on June 19, 2026 that the Department of Justice (DOJ) may give the Heritage Foundation copies of President Joe Biden’s recordings made for his 2017 memoir “Promise Me, Dad” by Mark Zwonitzer.
She said interest outweighs Biden’s privacy claims because redactions remove family or sensitive references, and issued a three-week stay for the D.C. Circuit to consider an injunction.
Robert Hur’s probe found no charges.

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Story summary

District Judge Dabney Friedrich ruled on June 19, 2026 that the Department of Justice (DOJ) may give the Heritage Foundation copies of President Joe Biden’s recordings made for his 2017 memoir “Promise Me, Dad” by Mark Zwonitzer.
She said interest outweighs Biden’s privacy claims because redactions remove family or sensitive references, and issued a three-week stay for the D.C. Circuit to consider an injunction.
Robert Hur’s probe found no charges.