Past presidents and VPS asked to check for files

WASHINGTON — The National Archives has asked former U.S. presidents and vice presidents to recheck their personal records for any classified documents following the news that President Joe Biden and former Vice President Mike Pence had such documents in their possession.

The Archives sent a letter Thursday to representatives of former presidents and vice presidents extending back to Ronald Reagan to ensure compliance with the Presidential Records Act, according to a copy obtained by The Associated Press. The act states that any records created or received by the president are the property of the U.S. government and will be managed by the Archives at the end of an administration.

The Archives sent the letter to representatives of former presidents Donald Trump, Barack Obama, George W. Bush,

Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush and Ronald Reagan, and former vice presidents Pence, Biden, Dick Cheney, Al Gore and Dan Quayle.

Spokespeople for former presidents Trump, Obama, Clinton and former vice presidents Pence, Dick Cheney, Al Gore and Dan Quayle did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Freddy Ford, chief of staff to former President George W. Bush, suggested in his response to the Archives that Bush’s office did not believe a search was necessary, saying, “We understand its purpose and remain confident that no such materials are in our possession.”

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment but the searches by Biden’s attorneys and the FBI appear to fulfill the Archives’ request.

It’s against federal law to have classified documents at an unauthorized location, but it’s only a crime if it was done intentionally.