UPI – House Republicans announced Friday they have opened an investigation into the classified documents that were found at President Joe Biden‘s Delaware home and his former Washington office.
In a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland, House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan requested all documents related to the discovery of the documents and Garland’s appointment of special counsel Richard Hur to handle the case.
“The American people deserve transparency and accountability from our most-senior executive branch law enforcement officials,” Jordan said, requesting the Justice Department to provide the documents no later than Jan. 27.
Kentucky Republican Rep. James Comer, who chairs the House Oversight Committee, also sent a letter to the White House requesting additional details about the documents.
On Nov. 4, the National Archives told the Justice Department the White House had notified them that the documents were discovered at the office of the Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement in Washington.
“That office was not authorized for the storage of classified documents,” Garland said. “The prosecutor was also advised that those documents had been secured in an archives facility.”
On Nov. 9, Garland said, the FBI started an assessment consistent with standard protocols to determine whether the classified information had been improperly handled in possible violation of federal law.
Garland said he assigned U.S. Attorney John Lausch Jr. to conduct an initial investigation on Nov. 14. On Dec. 20, Biden’s lawyer informed Lausch that additional classified documents were found in the garage of Biden’s Delaware home. Garland then appointed Hur as special counsel.
“Based on Mr. Lausch’s initial investigation, I concluded that, under the special counsel regulations, it was in the public interest to appoint a special counsel,” Garland said.
