(NewsNation) — GOP members of the House Oversight Committee plan to send a subpoena if they do not receive a transcript of the full interviews between President Joe Biden and special counsel Robert Hur by the end of next week.
Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., the committee’s chair, told NewsNation’s Joe Khalil that they have sent one letter to the White House requesting this transcript. Within the next 48 hours or so, Comer said, he and GOP Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio will send a second letter.
Hur was appointed by the Department of Justice to probe Biden’s handling of classified documents, releasing a report about his findings last week that mentioned interviews he had with the president. While Hur cleared Biden of any criminal charges, GOP lawmakers have expressed concerns about references in the report about the president’s poor memory.
Biden, meanwhile, insisted to reporters that his “memory is fine” and that he is the most qualified person to serve as president. White House officials called characterizations of Biden’s mental state highly prejudicial, inappropriate and not supported by facts.
However, while Comer acknowledged much of the media is focused on the memory issue, he said his main concern is documents found at Biden’s residence and office related to China and Ukraine.
Republicans on the House Oversight Committee have been investigating the Biden family’s foreign business dealings.
“We need to know what those documents were,” Comer said.
Still, Comer said Oversight Committee members would rather officials turn over the letter without a subpoena.
“We’re set up to provide oversight,” Comer said. “We shouldn’t have to be issuing all these subpoenas and dragging these people in. They should willfully turn them over.”