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A second batch of classified documents was discovered in President Joe Biden’s ‘personal library’ at his home in Wilmington, Delaware, and other documents in his garage, White House counsel revealed Thursday. found in his former office in Washington, D.C.
Richard Sauber, special counsel to the president, said the files were immediately turned over to the National Archives and the Justice Department was notified.
It is still unclear what information the files contained or when they were found.
Biden responded to a question Thursday amid mounting scrutiny of the situation when asked how he could have classified the materials “next to his Corvette,” a reference to his classic 1967 Stingray that his son Hunter had rebuilt for him as a gift. of Christmas.
Fox News’ Peter Doocy asked Biden how he could keep “classified materials next to his Corvette.” What were you thinking?’
By the way, my Corvette is in a locked garage, okay? It’s not like I’m sitting on the street,” Biden replied. He confirmed that the documents were kept in a locked garage, saying: ‘Yes, as was my Corvette.
“People know that I take classified documents seriously,” Biden said, beginning to read a prepared statement.
The tense back and forth comes after Biden dodged questions during a trip to Mexico about whether he had mishandled the documents.
A second batch of classified documents was found in a “storage space” in the garage of President Biden’s home in Wilmington, the president’s attorney revealed Thursday.
“We are fully and completely cooperating with the Justice Department’s review,” he continued.
He said attorneys “discovered a small number of classified branded documents in storage areas and filing cabinets at my home and in my personal library.”
“The Department of Justice was notified immediately,” he said. “We’ll see how this all plays out, I’m sure…” she said. Biden’s voice trailed off, leading to a chorus of shouted questions. ‘Thank you very much,’ she concluded.
Then, amid the cacophony of questions, he pointed to the back of the auditorium in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building where he was speaking. ‘Hi how are you? Good to see you!’ she yelled at her, then left the stage.
The disclosure comes as the White House faces multiple questions about why the discoveries have not been disclosed until now and who was handling them.
The first set of files, found a week before the November midterms, were housed in a locked cabinet at the Penn Biden Center in Washington DC.
Biden was asked how he could have classified materials “next to his Corvette.” He replied, ‘By the way, my Corvette is in a locked garage, okay?’
He said attorneys “discovered a small number of classified branded documents in storage areas and filing cabinets at my home and in my personal library.” He also made reference to the discovery of materials at the Penn Biden Center in Washington.
The discovery of classified materials at the Penn Biden Center has caused a political uproar and comes amid an investigation by the Justice Department of
Biden’s beloved Corvette Stingray was a wedding gift from his father
They are believed to have contained information on Iran, Ukraine, the United Kingdom and personal family information, including documents on the funeral of the late son Bean.
“As we previously stated, we are fully cooperating with the National Archives and the Department of Justice in a process to ensure that any Obama-Biden Administration records are properly in the Archives’ possession,” Sauber said in Thursday’s statement.
‘Following the discovery of government documents at the Penn Biden Center in November 2022, and in close coordination with the Department of Justice, the president’s lawyers have searched the president’s residences in Wilmington and Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, the other locations where find the files of his Vice-Presidential office could have been sent during the 2017 transition.
The attorneys completed that review last night.
“During the review, attorneys discovered among personal and political documents a small number of additional Obama-Biden Administration records bearing classified marks.
‘All but one of these documents were found in storage space in the garage of the president’s residence in Wilmington.
‘A document consisting of one page was discovered among materials stored in an adjacent room. No documents were found at the Rehoboth Beach residence.
‘As was done in the Penn-Biden Center case, the Department of Justice was immediately notified and attorneys arranged for the Department of Justice to take possession of these documents.
“The White House will continue to cooperate with the Justice Department’s review.”
The White House issued the statement shortly before Biden made comments to the media about the new inflation figures.
That followed a controversial briefing at the White House on Wednesday, where reporters pressed White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre about why the discovery of the classified materials days before the November election was not it had been revealed before.
Republicans are already demanding that a special counsel review the matter at the Justice Department to determine the next course of action. On Thursday, the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) wrote senior intelligence officials asking if they were conducting a national security review to determine if there was a risk to national security.
A special prosecutor is already reviewing former President Donald Trump’s possession of highly classified materials at his Mar-a-Lago residence. FBI agents searched the residence this summer under a grand jury subpoena after a months-long process to obtain government materials.
The discovery of classified materials in Biden’s office at Penn had already sparked demands from Republicans to investigate the matter, and that was before the latest discovery.
In particular, the lawyer’s office did not mention the exact number of documents that were discovered.
Biden has criticized Trump’s handling of materials in the past and has stated that when he brings home classified documents as president, he is careful to be briefed in a secure room and returns the classified materials to a military aide.
He told CBS ’60 Minutes’ after the Mar-a-Lago raid: ‘How could that happen? How could anyone… anyone be so irresponsible?
Biden’s Corvette, a wedding gift from his father more than 50 years ago, has been valued at $78,000.