Joe Biden questioned as part of classified documents investigation
The president voluntarily spoke to investigators at the White House in interviews on Sunday and Monday.
Tuesday 10 October 2023 08:24, UK
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Joe Biden at the White House earlier this week
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President Joe Biden has been interviewed as part of an independent investigation into his handling of classified documents.
White House spokesman Ian Sams said in a statement on Monday that the interview was voluntary and conducted at the White House on Sunday and Monday.
Mr Sams said: “As we have said from the beginning, the president and the White House are co-operating with this investigation, and as it has been appropriate, we have provided relevant updates publicly, being as transparent as we can consistent with protecting and preserving the integrity of the investigation.
“We would refer other questions to the Justice Department at this time.”
In January, documents containing classification markings were found at the president’s home in Delaware.
The Justice Department conducted a search at the Wilmington residence which lasted approximately 13 hours.
Other documents were also found at a Washington think-tank he was associated with.
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The apparent mishandling of classified documents and official records from the Obama administration is under investigation by a former US attorney, Robert Hur, who was appointed as a special counsel by Attorney General Merrick Garland.
Read more:
Special counsel appointed to investigate classified documents found in Biden’s home and former office
One man’s gaffe, another man’s gift? What we know about the Biden classified documents discovery
Republicans have sought to compare the investigation of Mr Biden’s handling of classified documents to the ongoing probe into how former president Donald Trump handled classified documents after his presidency.
The White House, however, previously said the two cases are different because Mr Biden’s team has cooperated with authorities in their probe and turned over documents, while Mr Trump had resisted doing so until an FBI search at his Florida home.
The Department of Justice historically imposes a high legal bar before bringing criminal charges in cases involving the mishandling of classified information, with a requirement that someone intended to break the law as opposed to being merely careless or negligent in doing so.
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