US politics
Special counsel questions Joe Biden about secret documents in the president’s private home
US President Joe Biden’s handling of the secret documents found differs from that of his predecessor Donald Trump
© Evan Vucci / AP / DPA
Because secret government documents were found in the president’s private home, Joe Biden answered questions from a special investigator. The White House emphasized that this was voluntary.
“As we have said from the beginning, the President and the White House are cooperating in this investigation,” Sams emphasized. He referred further questions to the Ministry of Justice.
Is there an end to the investigation?
According to US media, the questioning of Biden himself indicates that the investigation may be nearing its end. ABC News reported that special investigator Hur’s team had already conducted extensive interviews with Biden’s staff.
At the end of 2022, around a dozen confidential government documents from his time as vice president under Biden Obama were found in an office formerly used by Biden. Additional secret documents were subsequently discovered in Biden’s garage and his home in Delaware. The US Department of Justice then appointed a special prosecutor to investigate the case.
The incident is sensitive for Biden: It gives rise to comparisons with the discovery of hundreds of secret documents in his predecessor Donald Trump’s estate in Florida. Trump’s case is also being investigated by a special investigator. A US law requires presidents and vice presidents to turn over all their emails, letters and other documents to the National Archives after leaving office.
Although at first glance the cases of Trump and Biden are very similar, there are important differences. According to Biden’s team, they immediately reported the discoveries to the National Archives and passed on the documents. Unlike Biden’s case, Trump’s case was preceded by a dispute with the National Archives. It tried unsuccessfully for months to get papers from Trump during his time in office. Trump’s team finally handed over documents to the National Archives – but not all of them, as it became clear during the sensational FBI search in August 2022.