Donald Trump doesn’t seem to be the only one mishandling classified documents! This week, we found out that on November 2nd last year, President Joe Biden’s personal lawyers discovered 10 classified documents – some marked Top Secret – in a “locked closet” in a private office at the University of Pennsylvania’s Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement he used from 2017 to 2019 after leaving the Obama administration.
And that was only the beginning, as newer reports have come out confirming that a second batch of classified documents were then found after lawyers conducted a search at two of Biden’s residences in Wilmington and Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. All but one of the documents were reportedly found in a storage space in Biden’s Wilmington garage, with the other one being located in another room.
EXCLUSIVE: Classified documents from Joe Biden’s vice-presidential office were discovered by the president’s personal attorneys at the Penn Biden Center, a think tank in Washington, D.C. https://t.co/auvhlMTqGw
— CBS News (@CBSNews) January 9, 2023
President Joe Biden’s Lawyers First Discover Classified Documents In His Old Office
Richard Sauber, special counsel to President Biden, said in a statement that “a small number of documents with classified markings” were discovered in the office just days before the US midterm elections, as Biden’s personal lawyers “were packing files housed in a locked closet to prepare to vacate office space at the Penn Biden Center in Washington, D.C.” The classified documents reportedly include US intelligence briefings on foreign countries such as Ukraine, Iran and the United Kingdom, but nothing has been confirmed yet – and we don’t think it ever will be due to the classified nature.
Biden reportedly kept his office there after his time as Vice President had come to an end in 2017 until just before he launched his own 2020 presidential campaign in 2019. It’s currently not yet known if any other classified materials Biden may have from the Obama administration have been found, but Sky News reports that the search is “exhaustive,” with aides wanting to make sure they recover all of the classified documents that may have inadvertently been packed away when Biden left the Vice President’s office in January 2017.
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"The White House is cooperating with the National Archives and the Department of Justice regarding the discovery of what appear to be Obama-Biden Administration records," Sauber's statement continued. "The President periodically used this space from mid-2017 until the start of the 2020 campaign."
Sauber also went on to say that Biden's lawyers alerted the White House Counsel's Office on the day of discovery, which then notified the National Archives and Records Administration which then "took possession of the materials the following morning." The statement added: "The discovery of these documents was made by the President’s attorneys. The documents were not the subject of any previous request or inquiry by the Archives. Since that discovery, the President’s personal attorneys have cooperated with the Archives and the Department of Justice in a process to ensure that any Obama-Biden Administration records are appropriately in the possession of the Archives."
BREAKING: Attorney General Merrick Garland announces appointment of special counsel to investigate Pres. Biden classified documents matter. https://t.co/1CmqAbOdJW pic.twitter.com/AoKyxQ8ahF
— World News Tonight (@ABCWorldNews) January 12, 2023
Attorney General Appoints Special Counsel To Review Storage Of Documents
Also on Thursday, January 12th, Attorney General Merrick Garland revealed that he had appointed a special counsel to review the storage of the records, announcing that former US attorney Robert Hur will lead the probe.
"The extraordinary circumstances here require the appointment of a special counsel for this matter," Garland said at a press conference. "This appointment underscores for the public, the department’s commitment to both independence and accountability in particularly sensitive matters. And to making decisions indisputably guided only by the facts and the law."
BREAKING: Joe Biden FINALLY forced to ADMIT GUILT on live TV to stealing classified docs as VP— What he did next made crowd CRINGE pic.twitter.com/udBjqvSgRS
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) January 11, 2023
President Biden's Reaction
The US justice department is also reviewing the matter, but has declined to comment. A Republican congressional committee will also reportedly be investigating, with James Comer, Chairman of the House Oversight Committee, saying that it "is concerned that President Biden has compromised [intelligence] sources" with his mishandling of classified records.
President Biden hasn’t said much about the discovery, but first told reporters that he was "surprised" by what had been found in his former private office. "I don't know what's in the documents," he added, also telling reporters in Mexico City that he was advised not to even ask about the nature of the documents.
He went on to say: "As I said earlier this week, people know I take classified documents and classified materials seriously. I also said we’re cooperating fully and completely with the Justice Department’s review."
Donald Trump Gives His Thoughts On Social Media
Donald Trump couldn’t wait to speak out on the matter, taking to his Truth Social platform and asking, "When is the FBI going to raid the many homes of Joe Biden, perhaps even the White House?" in reference to the raid on his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida last year, where over 325 classified documents – some marked with Secret and Top Secret – were found.
There are clear distinctions between the two classified documents cases involving President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump https://t.co/QmIE2flpov pic.twitter.com/697PtaYoM0
— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) January 10, 2023
Many of the former president's associates have been interviewed in relation to the mishandling of the documents, but it's currently unclear when a decision will be made on who will be charged, or if anyone will be charged at all. Will Trump and Biden's cases be handled differently? Only time will tell!
