Joe Biden reacted with anger to the report in which he is portrayed as an old person with a bad memory.
Photo: SAMUEL CORUM / POOL / EPA / SIPA USA
Special investigator Robert K. Hur clears Joe Biden of criminal charges surrounding his handling of classified documents after his time as vice president. That pleased Biden, of course.
But the words about why he should not be prosecuted were not flattering. Robert K. Hur describes Biden as an “old man with a bad memory” and writes extensively about how Biden’s memory has been bad – and getting worse. He writes that Biden has difficulty remembering both small and large things. Among other things, the president is said not to remember which years he was vice president.
Biden reacts with both anger and sadness to the report.
– There is nothing wrong with my memory. I know what the hell I’m doing, says Joe Biden.
– There is even a reference in the report that I do not remember when my son died. How the hell does he have the guts to write that?
FACTS: THE DOCUMENT HÄRVAN
• US President Joe Biden kept classified documents in his home after he left his official positions as senator and vice president. This is confirmed by investigator Robert Hur in the report that has now been published.
• These include, among other things, secret documents about Afghanistan, which Biden kept in a paper box in his garage.
• The investigator is not recommending charges, despite the report finding that Biden intentionally withheld parts of the material.
• “We have taken into account that during a trial Biden would likely appear as a likable, well-meaning older man with a poor memory before the jury, as he did during our interview with him”writes special prosecutor Robert Hur.
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But while he fought back against the investigator and the claims that he has a bad memory, he managed another blunder. When asked about the situation in Gaza, he confused Egypt and Mexico.
– At first, the president of Mexico, El-Sisi, did not want to let aid in across the border, he says, referring of course to Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, who is president of Egypt.
The report has caused quite a stir in the United States, where both Joe Biden’s and Donald Trump’s age have long been discussed. In particular, concerns about Biden’s ability given his age have been great.
– It’s a nightmare, says a Democrat in the House of Representatives NBC News.
– It weakens President Biden before the election and Donald Trump would be a disaster and authoritarian.
The Republicans did not hesitate to swing right away. After the report, several party leaders, including Speaker Mike Johnson and Elise Stefanik, a possible vice presidential candidate for Trump, expressed distrust of Biden.
“A man who cannot be held accountable for mishandling classified information is unfit to sit in the Oval Office”, they sign X.
READ MORE: Biden is cleared of secret documents in the garageREAD MORE: Joe Biden in questioning: “Was I vice president?”READ MORE: The Speaker: Biden is not fit to be president
