Staff Reports
President Joe Biden’s legal team is up in arms over the special counsel Robert Hur’s report on the president’s handling of classified documents. According to The Washington Post, Biden’s lawyers were not pleased with Hur’s findings and the tone of his report, which they deemed as downright disrespectful.
In a series of letters exchanged between Biden’s legal counsel and Justice Department officials, it was revealed that Hur chose not to prosecute Biden for keeping classified documents after leaving his position as vice president, despite acknowledging that such practices pose serious risks to national security. Biden’s personal attorney, Bob Bauer, and White House counsel, Edward Siskel, fired back at Hur, claiming that the report violated Justice Department policy and was a slap in the face to presidential norms.
Hur was in hot water with White House before he released his report https://t.co/ate2aBXYPl via @dcexaminer
— 🌴PalmTreePatriot🌴 (@FLMomNYGirl) February 16, 2024
The president’s legal team also argued that previous presidents had engaged in similar practices of retaining classified information, and that the Justice Department had turned a blind eye to it in the past. They were particularly irked by Hur’s comments about Biden’s memory, which they deemed as unnecessary and baseless. Hur had gone as far as to label Biden as an “elderly man” with a “poor memory,” a characterization that did not sit well with Biden’s attorneys.
This issue has sparked concerns among Republicans, who have seized upon Hur’s remarks about the president’s memory as proof that Biden may not be mentally fit to continue serving as president. The special counsel is scheduled to appear before the House Judiciary Committee on March 12 to discuss his findings and his decision not to charge the president.
Despite the uproar from Biden’s legal team, the Justice Department has stood by Hur’s report, maintaining that it did not violate any policy or practice. Associate Deputy Attorney General Bradley Weinsheimer asserted that the report’s language was not intended to demean the president, but rather to explain Hur’s conclusions about Biden’s state of mind in handling classified information. According to Weinsheimer, the report and its release align with departmental policies and practice.
It’s clear that tensions are running high as Biden’s legal team and the Justice Department lock horns over the handling of Hur’s report. The issue of Biden’s treatment of classified documents, as well as the implications for his presidency, remains a hot-button topic that is likely to continue sparking heated debates in the political arena.
