Transcripts of Special Counsel Robert Hur’s interviews with Joe Biden released Tuesday confirm the octogenarian president couldn’t recall basic details about his life, including when his son died or when he served as vice president.
The transcripts support Hur’s assessment that it would be difficult to prosecute Biden for willingly retaining classified information after his vice presidency because he could present himself to a jury as a “well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.” The release of the transcripts put the president’s mental acuity back at center stage ahead of Hur’s Tuesday morning testimony before the House Judiciary Committee.
The transcript, a copy of which was reviewed by the Washington Free Beacon, shows Biden trying to connect his son Beau Biden’s death with his decision to store classified records at the Penn Biden Center. Biden had to consult with his staff to remember the year his son died.
“Even though I’m at Penn, I hadn’t walked away from the idea that I may run for office again. But if I ran again, I’d be running for President,” Biden told Hur during his Oct. 8 interview. “And, and so what was happening, though—what month did Beau die? Oh, God, May 30th.”
After a pause, White House attorney Rachel Cotton said Beau Biden died in 2015.
“Was it 2015 he had died?” Biden said. “It was 2015.”
The transcript shows Biden mentioned his son’s death unprompted, contradicting the president’s claim during a Feb. 8 press conference that Hur raised the subject.
“How in the hell dare he raise that,” Biden said.
Immediately after forgetting the year his son died during his interview with Hur, Biden misremembered when President Donald Trump was elected, asking his staff if his predecessor was elected in November 2017.
An unidentified speaker corrected the president, saying Trump was elected in 2016.
“2016. All right. So—why do I have 2017 here?” Biden responded.
At another point in the interview, Biden couldn’t remember when he served as vice president. “Well, if it was 2013—when did I stop being vice president?”
Cotton had to remind Biden that he left the vice presidency in 2017.
In a statement released ahead of his Tuesday appearance before the House Judiciary Committee, Hur disclaimed that his testimony “will be limited to clarifying information” about his investigation, and that he “will refrain from speculating or commenting on areas outside the scope of the investigation.”
This is a developing story and will be updated to include additional information.
Original News Source – Washington Free Beacon
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