Attorneys for President Joe Biden allegedly requested that special counsel Robert Hur not include comments regarding concerns about the president’s age. The allegations came just over a week after Hur released a report indicating no charges in his classified documents investigation in part because of Biden’s advanced age and forgetfulness.
According to several press outlets, two of Biden’s attorneys wrote to Attorney General Merrick Garland, “complaining that details in the report about the president’s recollections during an interview with investigators ‘openly, obviously and blatantly violate department policy and practice.’”
A reminder that an email signed by Jill Biden went out asking for donations off this talking point that the Hur questioned when Beau Biden died. https://t.co/hZBPYuZGBg
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) February 14, 2024
A senior member of the Department of Justice (DOJ) reportedly responded back that the language in the report was “neither gratuitous nor unduly prejudicial because it is not offered to criticize or demean the President; rather, it is offered to explain Special Counsel Hur’s conclusions about the President’s state of mind in possessing and retaining classified information.”
Following the statement of the DOJ’s official, Biden’s attorneys wrote back that they “fundamentally” disagreed with the assessment and argued that Hur’s report was not “consistent with Department policy and practice.”
One of Biden’s attorneys criticized the report as “shoddy.”
Hur’s report released a firestorm in Washington earlier this month. While Hur determined that Biden “willfully” retained classified documents, the special counsel also wrote that he did not recommend charges related to Biden’s apparently failing memory.
Hur wrote that if the case was brought to trial, Biden would try to present himself as “a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.”
Furthermore, the report indicated that Biden forgot several basic elements about his life, including when he was vice president and when his son Beau Biden died.
Following the release of the report and increased concerns about the president’s fitness for office, Biden held a press conference later that day. During the event the president struggled with certain words and increased concern when he confused Mexico with Egypt.
The incidents have also increased public concerns about whether Biden can remain in office, with polls showing a large majority of Americans believing that he is too old for the job.
