Former special counsel Robert Hur had nowhere to hide from the wrath of Republicans grilling him during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on Tuesday.
Hur’s investigation of President Joe Biden and his mishandling of classified materials came under fire in the hearing as the lawyer appointed by Attorney General Merrick Garland was called out for not recommending criminal charges because of Biden’s age and “poor memory.”
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan asked, “why did Joe Biden, in your words, willfully retain and disclose classified material?”
“He knew the law. Been in office like 50 years, five decades in the United States Senate; chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee; eight years as vice president; he got briefed every day as vice president; he’s been in the Situation Room,” Jordan said. “In fact, you know he knew the rules because you said so on page 226.”
Hur replied that his “conclusion as to exactly why the president did what he did is not one that we explicitly address in the report.”
“I think he did tell us,” Jordan responded. “I think you told us, Mr. Hur. Page 231. You said this: ‘President Biden had strong motivations,’ that’s a key word. We’re getting to motive now. ‘President Biden had strong motivations to ignore the proper procedures for safeguarding the classified information in his notebooks.’”
BREAKING IN WASHINGTON – SHOCKING ADMISSION:
Congressman Jim Jordan asks Robert Hur whether he agrees that pride and money were reasons Biden shared classified material with his ghostwriter. His answer, “That language does appear in the report, and we did identify evidence… pic.twitter.com/HtkT2h9ZtM— Simon Ateba (@simonateba) March 12, 2024
“Why did he have strong motivations? Because, next word, because he decided months before leaving office to write a book,” Jordan said. “That was his motive. He knew the rules. He broke them because he was writing a book.”
Rep. Matt Gaetz called out the “double standard” in how Biden and former President Donald Trump were treated as he questioned Hur on the lies of the president.
“What does somebody have to do to get charged with obstruction of justice by you? If deleting the evidence of crimes doesn’t count, what would meet the standard?” the frustrated Florida Republican asked.
BREAKING: Special Counsel Robert Hur ADMITS Joe Biden LIED when Biden said he did not share classified information
GAETZ: “Joe Biden said, ‘I guarantee I did not share classified information.’ That’s not true, is it?”
HUR: “That is inconsistent with the findings.” pic.twitter.com/NyKPjHsozE
— Rep. Matt Gaetz (@RepMattGaetz) March 12, 2024
Rep. Tom McClintock was equally frustrated with Hur’s conclusions and denounced the “unprecedented assault” on democracy that his decision created.
“Mr. Hur, I first want to get this straight: Is it now okay if I take home top secret documents, store them in my garage and read portions of them to friends or associates?” the California Republican began his exchange with the former special counsel.
“Congressman, I’m not here to get into hypotheticals. I’m here to talk about the facts and the work that I did,” Hur responded.
“It was not a hypothetical, this is the issue at hand,” McClintock fired back. “You correctly noted in your report that former presidents and other senior officials have been given wide latitude in their possession of classified information. And I believe your decision not to prosecute Biden for the same offense is consistent with that precedent. But the problem is that precedent changed with the administration’s decision to prosecute Donald Trump.”
Rep. McClintock @RepMcClintock questions Robert Hur, and Robert Hur does the Samba #HurHearing pic.twitter.com/43HtKBxbY3
— MAGA Kitty (@SaveUSAKitty) March 12, 2024
“And the irony is that as president, Trump had full discretion over handling classified material and full discretion in deciding which records to retain. As a senator or vice president, Joe Biden didn’t have that,” the lawmaker pointed out.
“So now we get to this glaring double standard. I think it would be toxic to the rule of law on its face if it was just two ordinary citizens. But the fact that the only person being prosecuted for this offense happens to be the president’s political opponent makes this an unprecedented assault on our democracy,” he argued.
“This is the worst we could expect from a banana republic and I wonder how you square this,” McClintock said.
Hur defended against the congressman’s contention that he had created an age and poor memory “doctrine” to protect Biden.
“The foundation of our justice system is equal justice under law. That’s what gives the law its respect and its legitimacy,” McClintock asserted.
“And without it, the law is simply force devoid of any moral authority,” he concluded. “Justice is depicted as blindfolded for this very reason! It doesn’t matter who comes before her, all are treated equally. You destroy this foundation and the rule of law becomes a sick mockery. It becomes a weapon to wield against political rivals and a tool of despotism. And I am desperately afraid that this decision of the Department of Justice has now crossed a very bright line.”
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Author: Frieda Powers
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