In a recent article published by NBC News, President Joe Biden came under fire for his reaction to a line in the special counsel’s report on his handling of classified documents. The report, written by Robert Hur, was released last week and concluded that while Biden had mishandled classified material, there was not enough evidence to criminally charge him.
However, one particular line in the report caught the attention of the public and sparked controversy. It stated that Biden “did not remember, even within several years, when his son Beau died.” Biden was visibly upset by this statement and lashed out at Hur during a press conference, questioning why he would bring up his son’s death in a report about his handling of classified documents.
But according to sources familiar with the situation, it was actually Biden who first brought up his son’s death during an interview with Hur. The two-day interview, which took place last October, covered a wide range of topics related to Biden’s personal life and work.
When Hur asked about Biden’s workflow at a rental home from 2016 to 2018, the president mentioned that he was working with a ghost writer on a memoir about losing his son Beau to brain cancer in 2015.
Biden’s emotional reaction to Hur’s report has sparked criticism and accusations that the special counsel was using “our son’s death to score political points.” However, sources close to Hur defend his report, stating that he was simply trying to provide a balanced and thorough narrative of his investigation.
Hur spent a year examining 7 million documents and interviewing 147 witnesses before reaching his conclusion that there was not enough evidence to charge Biden with a crime.
WATCH: A week ago, Joe Biden blasted Special Counsel Robert Hur: “There is even reference that I don’t remember when my son died. How in the hell dare he raise that? Frankly, when I was asked the question I thought to myself, it wasn’t any of their damn business.
Joe Biden lied.… pic.twitter.com/K37dNqlh1e
— Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) February 14, 2024
Those close to Hur also defend his inclusion of details about Biden’s memory issues, pointing out that it was relevant to the investigation. The report states that Biden struggled to recall certain facts during the interview and that his memory appeared to be “significantly limited” during a previous 30-hour interview in 2017. Hur concluded that this would make it difficult to convince a jury to convict Biden of intentionally mishandling classified information.
Attorney General Merrick Garland, who selected Hur as special counsel, has come under criticism for releasing the full, unredacted version of the report. Some Democrats have accused him of using Biden’s memory issues as an excuse not to bring criminal charges against the president.
However, Garland has stated that he took no action to block any investigation steps by Hur and that he was simply following the Justice Department’s tradition of releasing special counsel reports.
Oh… https://t.co/vjLMPtOIjN pic.twitter.com/dvyh05w3JM
— Chuck Ross (@ChuckRossDC) February 14, 2024
Despite the controversy surrounding the report, those who know Hur personally describe him as a fair and impartial prosecutor. Hur, a longtime Republican, has held multiple positions in the Justice Department and has been praised by both Democrats and Republicans for his service. He has also publicly donated to at least three Republican political campaigns, including one for a former U.S. attorney and two moderate Republicans who are not ardent supporters of former President Trump.
