More classified documents stashed away in a private location have been discovered, worsening President Joe Biden's embarrassment following the finding of classified files at his private think tank earlier.
It has not yet been revealed where, or when, the discovery of the files was made. The files in the second batch are from Biden's days as Vice-President to Barack Obama.
On the Backfoot
The president is on the backfoot after discovery of classified documents in the private offices, after having gone aggressively at former President Donald Trump over the classified documents found at his Mar-a-Lago estate.
The Democrat- controlled administration has launched a criminal investigation against Trump, prompting the Republicans to ask if they will do the same with the Biden files.
According to BBC, the files found in the Biden think tank relate to US intelligence memos and briefing materials in connection with Ukraine, Iran and the UK.
White House Refuses to Comment
Meanwhile, the White House press secretary refused to address questions about the classified documents being found at the offices of the think tank, Penn Biden Center, in Washington.
"This is under review by the Department of Justice," she said. "I'm not going to go beyond what the president shared yesterday," press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said.
The first batch of documents were found at the office of the Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement, which is a private, Biden-controlled think tank affiliated with the University of Pennsylvania. The office was opened in Washington, D.C., in 2018, two years after Biden left office as Barack Obama's vice-president. During which time Biden was an honorary faculty at the University of Pennsylvania.
US Attorney General Merrick Garland has ordered an investigation into the incident, and the US attorney in Chicago, John Lausch Jr., will conduct the probe. The document stash came to light when Biden's lawyers found the government materials in November at the private office.
'I Don't Know the Content'
Biden said on Tuesday he was surprised by the discovery of top secret files in his private office but added that he was "co-operating" with the US department of justice.
Speaking at the North American Leaders' Summit in Mexico City, Biden said his lawyers did the right thing. "They did what they should have done. They immediately called the [National Archives]... turned them over to the Archives, and I was briefed about this discovery and surprised to learn that there were any government records that were taken there to that office," he said.
The president also admitted he didn't know the contents of the documents. "But I don't know what's in the documents. My lawyers have not suggested I ask what documents they were," he said.
