The special counsel Robert Hur’s report made public on Thursday, did not accuse President Joe Biden of a crime. Still, it did present a political risk to Biden because it showed him as a forgetful ‘elderly man’ who neglected to protect extremely sensitive secret material properly.
Key takeaways from the report:
Hur detailed in great detail the mishandling of sensitive data by Biden, stating that materials were found in “the garage, offices, and basement den in Mr. Biden’s Wilmington, Delaware, home” by FBI investigators. The papers included notebooks with Biden’s handwriting and classified documents pertaining to military and foreign policy in Afghanistan, some of which were marked at the highest level of top secret/sensitive compartmented information. Photographs showing different areas of Biden’s residences, items under examination, and other pertinent scenes taken over time were also included in Hur’s report. However, the evidence did not support charging President Biden with a crime.
In the first interview, he couldn’t recall when he had been vice president (“if it was 2013 – when did I stop being Vice President?”), and in the second, he couldn’t recall when he had been vice president (“in 2009, am I still Vice President?”).
Even after a few years, he could not recall the exact moment his son Beau passed away. And when he talked about the Afghanistan discussion that used to mean so much to him, his memory seemed to falter.
Among other things, he falsely claimed to have “had a real difference” of opinion with General Karl Eikenberry, whom Mr. Eiden referenced with approval in his Thanksgiving note to President Obama, but in reality, Eikenberry was an ally.
The President blamed his staff for mishandling the documents
President Joe Biden accepted responsibility for “not having seen exactly” what his team was doing when it came to their handling of secret documents.
When a reporter questioned Biden about his accountability for handling classified material carelessly, he responded, “I take responsibility for not having seen exactly what my staff was doing.” “Items that show up in my garage, items taken out of my house, items moved—not by me, but by my staff.”
Watch the press conference below:
Joe Biden’s response to the report
According to Biden, the special counsel’s sole authority was to decide whether to press charges or not. As for “any extraneous commentary, they don’t know what they’re talking about,” he said. It is not relevant to this report,” he declared.
“The bottom line is the matter is now closed, and we can continue what I’ve always focused on, my job of being President of the United States of America,” he stated.
The DOJ special counsel report raises some significant concerns regarding 2024.
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