PBS’s Nawaz: Biden Is Blocking Hur Audio That He Claims Would Vindicate His Attacks on Hur

On Thursday’s “PBS NewsHour,” co-host Amna Nawaz reacted to President Joe Biden invoking executive privilege to block the release of audio recordings from Special Counsel Robert Hur’s investigation into the President by noting that Biden “insisted that Hur had mischaracterized the interviews when the transcripts came out” but now refuses to release audio that could prove Biden’s assertions. And NPR National Justice Correspondent Carrie Johnson agreed with this point, but the White House may have decided it’s better to face that criticism than to release audio recordings that could potentially be used against the President in ads in the 2024 election.

Nawaz said, “President Biden had insisted that Hur had mischaracterized the interviews when the transcripts came out, but now they won’t release the audio. Doesn’t that put the White House in a difficult position here?”

Johnson responded, “It does to some extent, but I think the White House may be making a calculation that it’s better to receive criticism on that point than to try to release the audio, which, as the White House counsel said, could then be sliced and diced and chopped up as part of campaign ads before the November election.”

Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett