Former President Joe Biden is preparing for a courtroom fight as the Trump administration moves closer to releasing roughly 70 hours of partially redacted audio recordings tied to Special Counsel Robert Hur’s classified documents investigation. The recordings, which capture Biden’s conversations with ghostwriter Mark Zwonitzer, have become the latest flashpoint in a political and legal battle that is rapidly escalating ahead of the 2026 election cycle.
According to new Justice Department filings submitted Friday, DOJ attorneys informed U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich that Biden is expected to seek legal action to block the release of the tapes to both Congress and the Heritage Foundation, the conservative organization that sued under the Freedom of Information Act to obtain the materials. The Justice Department established a Tuesday deadline for Biden to formally file his challenge and agreed not to release the recordings before June 15 if legal action is initiated.
By Sunday, Biden’s team confirmed the former president intends to fight.
“President Biden cooperated fully with Special Counsel Hur, and agreed to provide audiotapes of conversations with his biographer for a book about his deceased son on the condition that they would not be made public,” Biden spokesman TJ Ducklo said. He also argued the tapes “serve no public interest,” echoing previous positions taken by the Justice Department under Biden’s administration.
The controversy centers on recordings gathered during Hur’s investigation into Biden’s handling of classified materials after documents were discovered at a University of Pennsylvania think tank and later at Biden’s Delaware residence. Hur’s probe focused heavily on recorded interviews between Biden and Zwonitzer, who collaborated with Biden on his memoirs, including the 2017 book “Promise Me, Dad,” which chronicled the death of Beau Biden.
Hur’s final report created political shockwaves when it concluded Biden had “willfully retained and disclosed classified materials” but declined prosecution. The report stated prosecutors believed a jury would likely view Biden as “a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory,” a phrase that immediately ignited bipartisan scrutiny over Biden’s mental sharpness during his presidency.
Now the recordings themselves may become public.
According to details contained in Hur’s report, some audio sessions allegedly captured Biden reading from notebooks that investigators later determined contained classified information. One particularly damaging exchange cited by investigators includes Biden allegedly telling Zwonitzer, “I just found all the classified stuff downstairs.”
Biden has repeatedly denied knowingly sharing classified material. “I did not share classified information,” he insisted in February 2024. “Guarantee you, I did not.”
The recordings are expected to be edited before release to remove classified content and personal information, but that has not stopped concerns inside Biden’s camp that the tapes could reignite questions surrounding both his memory and his handling of sensitive government records.
The situation became even more complicated after Hur’s investigation revealed that Zwonitzer attempted to delete portions of the recordings after learning a special counsel had been appointed. Investigators later recovered the files. Zwonitzer ultimately received immunity in exchange for cooperation, though prosecutors stopped short of charging him with obstruction.
Biden’s legal strategy remains unclear. His attorneys could argue the recordings are personal records rather than federal materials, or claim their release would violate privacy protections. However, legal experts note those arguments may carry limited weight, particularly regarding congressional access.
The fight also revives constitutional questions surrounding Congress’s ability to obtain records from current or former presidents. A 2020 Supreme Court ruling involving Donald Trump’s financial records established that congressional demands for presidential documents can affect separation-of-powers concerns even when records are personal rather than official.
Meanwhile, the Heritage Foundation is pressing aggressively for disclosure. Mike Howell, president of the group’s Oversight Project, accused Biden allies of using delay tactics to prevent the public from hearing the recordings.
“These tapes will further prove the massive lie regarding Biden’s fitness for office,” Howell said, while also accusing Biden of improperly disclosing classified information.
Biden’s office fired back by accusing the Trump administration of selective transparency. Ducklo argued that if the administration truly cared about openness, it would release Volume 2 of Special Counsel Jack Smith’s report regarding Trump’s own classified documents case.
For now, the legal battle is only beginning. But with the possibility of hours of Biden audio becoming public, the stakes are growing by the day — not just legally, but politically.