WASHINGTON – The special counsel Robert Hur The president declined to prosecute Joe Biden for handling classified documents, but said Biden’s practices “present serious risks to national security,” adding that Biden described himself as an “old man with a failing memory” who would be sympathetic to the jury. .
“Our investigation uncovered evidence that President Biden intentionally withheld and disclosed classified material after the vice presidency when he was a private citizen,” but the evidence “does not establish Mr. Biden’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt,” the report said.
In a February 2017 taped conversation with Dreamer, about a month after he left the vice presidency, Biden noted that he “found all this classified stuff downstairs.” 2009 Afghan troop surge opposed by Biden.
According to Huron’s report, Biden’s memory was “significantly limited” during his 2023 interviews with the special counsel.
“We also believe that at trial, Mr. Biden is likely to present himself to the jury as a sympathetic, well-intentioned elderly person with impaired memory, just as he did when we interviewed him.” “Based on our direct contact with him and our observations of him, he is someone that many jurors would want to establish a reasonable doubt about. It would be difficult to convince a jury that they should convict him—he was a former president, by then in his eighties—that would require a state of mind. felony.”
The special counsel later said in the report that the president’s memory during the interview with him was “worse” than his memory of the 2017 tapes.
“He didn’t remember being vice president, when his term expired on the first day of the interview (“if it was 2013 — when did I stop being vice president?”), and he forgot on the second day of the interview. when his term begins (‘Am I still vice president in 2009?’),” the report said.
Biden also had trouble remembering the time of his son Bowe’s death, as well as the controversy over Afghanistan.
“She didn’t even remember when her son Bow died for several years,” the report said.
Richard Sauber, the president’s special counsel, responded to the report by saying the White House was “pleased” with the outcome and that no criminal charges had been filed.
“As noted in the Special Counsel’s report, the President has been fully cooperative from day one,” he said. “His team immediately reported the classified documents that were discovered to ensure that these documents were returned to the government immediately because the President knows where they belong.”
Sauber continued to criticize the report, but did not raise any specific points.
“We disagree with a number of inaccurate and inappropriate comments in the Special Counsel’s report,” Sauber said. “However, the most important decision made by the Special Counsel – to pursue no charges – is based strictly on the facts and evidence.”
Huron’s report highlighted the “clear” material differences between the potential case against Biden and the ongoing case against Trump, noting that “unlike the evidence against Mr. Biden, the allegations in Mr. Trump’s indictment, if proven, present serious aggravating facts.” .
Most importantly, they wrote, “after being given multiple chances to return classified documents and avoid prosecution, Mr. Trump allegedly did the opposite.” On the other hand, they wrote: “Mr. Biden turned over classified documents to the National Archives and the Department of Justice, consented to searches at multiple locations, including his home, sat for voluntary interviews and cooperated with the government in other ways. investigation.”
Huron’s report broadly explains how the facts of Biden’s investigation are similar to the allegations against Trump.
“For all of the classified materials found during this investigation, Mr. Biden did not receive a written waiver of his need-to-know request after the vice presidency, and no agency official made the findings required by the executive order.” the report says.
The announcement ends a long saga that began in November 2022 following one of Biden’s personal attorneys. found Classified documents that appear to belong to the Obama administration at the Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement, which Biden uses as a private office after his term as vice president has ended. Secret documents were also later found at Biden’s home in Delaware.
The existence of classified documents at Biden’s home and former office has been reported for the first time january 2023. CBS News first reported the availability of the documents at the Penn Biden Center.
Attorney General Merrick Garland in January 2023 announced Hur said he would appoint a special counsel to oversee the investigation of Biden, giving him the authority to “investigate whether any person or entity has violated the law in relation to this matter.”
It was Biden gave an interview As part of the investigation in October, the White House said. According to White House spokesman Ian Sams, the interview was voluntary.
“As we’ve said from the beginning, the President and the White House are cooperating with this investigation, and as appropriate, we’ve provided relevant updates to the public, as transparently as possible, consistently to preserve and protect the integrity of the law,” Sams said.
There’s also NBC News previously reported The special counsel also interviewed Hunter Biden, according to a source familiar with the matter.
According to Hur Donald Trump remains the only president in history to face criminal charges includes Seven felony charges related to the mishandling of classified documents found at Mar-a-Lago. According to the indictment in that case, Trump’s Florida home contained more than 100 classified documents, including documents marked “Top Secret.”