US judge rejects Biden's bid to block memoir recording release

A U.S. judge has denied a legal bid by former President Joe Biden to keep private recordings made for his memoir from being released. U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich ruled on Friday that the recordings could be provided to the Heritage Foundation, a right-wing think tank. The recordings and transcripts were made by Biden with his ghostwriter, Mark Zwonitzer, while he was out of public office, contributing to the 2017 memoir "Promise Me, Dad: A Year of Hope, Hardship, and Purpose." In her ruling, Judge Friedrich acknowledged that the release of the recordings could potentially harm Biden's reputation. Biden had argued that his right to privacy would be violated if the recordings were made public, particularly given concerns about his age and fitness for office. "The Court agrees that, on these facts involving the frank words of a public figure in his home, disclosure of the Zwonitzer materials risks irreparable harm to Biden’s privacy interests and his reputation," Friedrich wrote. However, she concluded that these harms were not irreparable and did not outweigh the public's interest in accessing the files. "Biden has not identified any public harm that would arise absent an injunction in this case," the judge stated. "The harm to Biden’s diminished privacy interest is outweighed by the public’s interest in the Zwonitzer materials." Biden's lawsuit contended that the Department of Justice had a responsibility to protect private information gathered during investigations. He sought an injunction to stop the Heritage Foundation from obtaining the documents via a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request. Biden's legal team asserted that "every American, including a sitting or former Vice President, has a right to privacy in the personal conversations he has within his own home." The Justice Department came into possession of the recordings in 2023 during Biden's presidency, as part of a special counsel investigation into his handling of classified documents. Special counsel Robert Hur concluded that no criminal charges were warranted against Biden, citing insufficient evidence.

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The Court agrees that, on these facts involving the frank words of a public figure in his home, disclosure of the Zwonitzer materials risks irreparable harm to Biden’s privacy interests and his reputation.