House Republican fact-checked after calling President Joe Biden 'a serial classified document hoarder'

22 January 2023

Editor's note: This article has been corrected and updated with additional information.

On Sunday's edition of Face the Nation, CBS moderator Margaret Brennan fact-checked United States Congressman Mike Turner (R-Ohio) after he accused President Joe Biden of stealing and exploiting classified documents that were uncovered during a Federal Bureau of Investigation search of his Wilmington, Delaware home on Friday.

"Clearly, he's, he's become a serial classified document hoarder. Why did he have these? Who did he show them to? I mean, the only reason you can think of as to why anyone would take classified documents out of a classified space at home is to, is to show them to somebody. Who did he show them to?" Turner posited. "This is going to be crucial, I think, to the special counsel's investigation, is why did the president have these documents? Who did he show them to, and is it connected to the Biden family businesses?"

Brennan quickly pointed out that Turner's allegations are not akin to the handfuls of texts found in Biden's house and office – which predate his White House tenure – but rather to the trove of hundreds of top secret materials that were recovered by the FBI at former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida on August 8th.

"Well, you know, the differences, of course, too. I want to talk about the Biden situation, but just to clarify, when you reference President Trump, there were 300 classified documents. There was a warrant. There was refusal to comply in terms of handing things over. And the White House and the president's lawyer are pointing out that in the case of Biden, he granted permission, and this was consensual for the DOJ to come in and search. Does the fact that the Justice Department conducted the search signify anything more to you and give any insight into the sensitivity of the documents?" she asked.

Last week, Attorney General Merrick Garland assigned special counsel Robert Hur – whom Trump appointed as US attorney for the District of Maryland in 2018 – to oversee the Biden probe. Yet Turner, the ranking Republican on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, insisted that the Department of Justice is protecting Biden.

"Sure. Absolutely," he said. "I think this looks more like a cover-up than an investigation."

Brennan questioned that assertion:

Do you have any facts to back up your allegation that he was hoarding things in terms of intention to take classified material?

Turner alluded to the "chain of custody" in his rebuttal:

Well, they didn't fly to his home without him. They went on a train with him from his Senate offices and then in boxes that he was in charge of.

Watch below or at this link.

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