US President Joe Biden was questioned by a special investigator about the case involving the storage of secret documents in private rooms. “The voluntary survey was conducted at the White House over two days, Sunday and Monday, and concluded on Monday,” the White House said on Monday (local time). The President and the White House, as stated from the beginning, would cooperate in the investigation. To the extent appropriate, “relevant information has been made publicly available.” Biden was questioned by special investigator Robert Hur.
In late 2022, confidential information from Biden’s time as vice president was discovered in multiple locations, including private offices in Washington and Biden’s home in Wilmington, Delaware. US Attorney General Merrick Garland then appointed Robert Hur as a special investigator for the politically sensitive investigation. Presidents and vice presidents are required to turn over secret documents to the National Archives after leaving office.
The case is politically extremely sensitive for Biden, as his Republican predecessor Donald Trump, who has to fight legally on several fronts, caused a scandal with a similar case. The Republican is accused of illegally storing highly sensitive information from his time as President of the United States in private rooms. The Federal Police’s FBI searched his property in Mar-a-Lago in August 2022 and confiscated several confidential information there. Trump pleaded not guilty at his arraignment in Miami in June. The trial is scheduled to begin on May 20, 2024.
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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 findings 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. For months, he tried unsuccessfully to obtain documents from Trump during his term in office. Trump’s team finally turned over documents to the National Archives — but not all of them, as became clear during the FBI’s sensational August 2022 search.