Dr. Kevin O’Connor, who was former President Joe Biden’s physician, showed up for his deposition on Wednesday after being subpoenaed by the House Oversight Committee as part of its investigation into the alleged cover-up of Biden’s health decline.
O’Connor entered the Rayburn House Office Building hearing room at 9:36 a.m. and didn’t take any questions from reporters. He
WHO IS DR. KEVIN O’CONNOR? MEET BIDEN’S FORMER WHITE HOUSE PHYSICIAN
O’Connor’s deposition follows Neera Tanden’s appearance for a daylong interview before the Oversight Committee’s majority and minority counsel last month. The doctor showed up despite a request to delay his hearing and the White House waiving him from executive privilege.
“The American people have a right to know the health condition of the president, both physical and mental,” House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY) said before the meeting. Comer’s committee has been investigating whether Biden was aware of White House aides using his autopen signature to sign important documents, such as pardons.
“It’s no secret that this is an investigation of the autopen, but at the center of the use of the autopen is whether or not the president knew his name was being signed with an autopen.”
President Donald Trump waived executive privilege the day before O’Connor’s closed-door hearing. Executive privilege allows a witness to withhold information from Congress to protect the integrity of the executive branch. As the investigation progresses, the rest of the witnesses will also be denied the same protections.
O’Connor’s lawyers sent a request Saturday to delay his deposition before the counsel, saying the doctor could face “serious consequences” for violating his obligations as a physician, including losing his medical license. Comer declined the request.
“We are unaware of any prior occasion on which a Congressional Committee has subpoenaed a physician to testify about the treatment of an individual patient,” the physician’s lawyers wrote. “And the notion that a Congressional Committee would do so without any regard whatsoever for the confidentiality of the physician-patient relationship is alarming.”
FIVE MORE BIDEN AIDES LOCK IN TESTIMONY DATES FOR HOUSE OVERSIGHT AUTOPEN INVESTIGATION
The transcripts are slated to be made public, according to a spokesperson for the committee. Comer told the Washington Examiner last month that no interviews will be released before all of them have concluded. Transcribed interviews are typically conducted by committee staff over several hours, and both parties are granted extended time for questioning, compared to the five-minute increments afforded to members during publicly televised hearings.
Interviews are set to take place until Aug. 7, with former Jill Biden aide Anthony Bernal scheduled to appear on July 16 for a deposition after being subpoenaed for refusing to appear before the committee to testify as part of its investigation, following the White House telling the witnesses they were not protected by executive privilege.