WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� A federal appeals court has by Joe Biden to block the release of audio recordings and transcripts of his interviews with a memoir ghostwriter before he was .
A divided three-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit suspended its decision until Aug. 3 to allow more time for Biden to consider another appeal.
The panel’s 2-1 ruling late Monday found there is a 鈥渟ubstantial鈥� public interest in disclosing the material that Biden wants to keep under wraps. Redactions to the recordings would help protect Biden’s privacy, the majority noted.
鈥淲e conclude that any remaining incursion on personal privacy from disclosure of the now-redacted materials likely does not outweigh the public interest in disclosure,鈥� the ruling says.
Judge Florence Pan, who was nominated by Biden, a Democrat, wrote a dissenting opinion in which she said Biden has shown a 鈥渟ubstantial privacy interest鈥� in keeping the material hidden.
鈥淭he conversations at issue took place in Biden鈥檚 home, and the recordings of them were obtained by the government in the course of a criminal investigation that did not lead to an indictment,鈥� she wrote.
The appeal also was heard by D.C. Circuit Chief Judge Sri Srinivasan and Judge Gregory Katsas. Srinivasan was nominated by President Barack Obama, a Democrat who chose Biden as his vice president. Katsas was nominated by President Donald Trump, a Republican who as president lost to Biden in 2020 but was to the White House in 2024.
Mark Zwonitzer, who , 2007鈥檚 鈥淧romises to Keep鈥� and 2017’s 鈥淧romise Me, Dad,鈥� interviewed him at his home in 2016 and 2017. Biden鈥檚 lawyers say the conversations were candid, personal and intended to remain private.
Biden spokesperson T.J. Ducklo said the former president disagrees with the ruling but 鈥渞espects the courts and the vital role an independent judiciary plays in a healthy democracy.鈥�
鈥淧resident Biden鈥檚 conversations for a book a decade ago that discussed his late son are private, and were provided to the Department of Justice on the express condition they stay that way,鈥� Ducklo said in a statement. 鈥淩eversing course and making them public is just the latest example of this administration weaponizing the (Justice Department) for political retribution.鈥�
The recordings were obtained by , who investigated Biden’s from his time as a senator from Delaware and as Obama’s vice president. Republicans in Congress demanded the material after Hur declined to file charges against the then-president.
and sought an injunction to prevent the Justice Department under Trump from releasing the recordings to Congress and the conservative Heritage Foundation. The department previously argued that the recordings were exempt from disclosure under public records law.
Biden appealed after U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich, who was nominated by Trump, ruled in June that the public interest in the material outweighed whatever privacy rights Biden had.
Pan noted that the majority is effectively ruling in favor of immediately disclosing the material by denying Biden’s request for an injunction pending appeal.
鈥淭hat, of course, will moot this case,鈥� she wrote.
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