US President
Explosive Biden investigation report draws wider attention
US President Joe Biden: “I’m an older man, and I know what the hell I’m doing.” photo
© Evan Vucci/AP/dpa
Biden’s documents affair had no legal consequences, but it raised questions about his mental fitness. A transcript that has now been published can be interpreted in different ways.
The recently published transcript of an interview with the US President Joe Biden in October reignites the debate about the 81-year-old’s mental fitness. The House Judiciary Committee released the document ahead of a hearing by special counsel Robert Hur.
US Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed Hur last year to investigate the affair surrounding the discovery of secret government documents in Biden’s private rooms.
At the beginning of October, Hur spoke to Biden for several hours over two days. The exchange served as an important basis for Hur’s report, which ultimately found no criminal charges against Biden were warranted, but described the US president as a “well-meaning older man with a poor memory,” leading to questions about Biden’s suitability for the presidency . Hur based his assessment in the report, among other things, on the fact that Biden’s memory was “significantly impaired” during the questioning.
Biden himself gave a press conference shortly after the report was released in which he railed against Hur, saying, among other things, “I’m an older man, and I know what the hell I’m doing.”
Not a clear picture
The transcript that has now been published does not paint a clear picture. On the one hand, it shows a US president who mixed up years or couldn’t remember them. For example, at one point he said that Donald Trump was elected US President in November 2017 – the election was in 2016. During the course of the conversation, Biden also used sentences like: “I don’t know” or “I can” several times I can not remember”. On the other hand, the 81-year-old made quick-witted jokes and spoke in detail about world political events.
After Hur’s investigation did not result in any legal repercussions for Biden, the Republican-led Judiciary Committee in the House of Representatives summoned the special counsel to a hearing on Tuesday. Some observers classified this as a political maneuver. The chairman of the committee is the right-wing hardliner Jim Jordan. He is likely to have an interest in maintaining attention to the report for as long as possible in an election year.
Hur fielded questions from committee members from both parties, each of whom criticized him for either making Biden’s mental fitness part of his investigation or for not judging him harshly enough. Hur, who once served as Maryland state attorney general under then-President Donald Trump’s nomination, defended both his approach and his conclusions at the hearing. At one point he said of Biden that he “did not exonerate” him.
Biden’s age is a liability in the election campaign
Looking ahead to the presidential election in November, Biden’s age remains his biggest liability. Recently he has repeatedly made headlines with mistakes. The Republicans – especially former President Trump – are using the topic extensively to question the Democrat’s mental and physical fitness. Meanwhile, Trump himself has to answer in court for his handling of documents.
At the end of 2022, classified information from Biden’s time as vice president was discovered, including in private offices in the capital Washington and in Biden’s house in Wilmington, Delaware. Presidents and vice presidents are required to turn over secret documents to the National Archives after leaving office. They are not allowed to privately store confidential government records after leaving government. Biden was President Barack Obama’s deputy from 2009 to 2017 before moving into the White House as number one in the state at the beginning of 2021.