Dems’ Dim Joe ‘Defense’
Special Counsel Robert Hur concluded that, though now-President Biden “willfully” retained classified docs (some for decades), he shouldn’t be prosecuted because a jury was unlikely to convict a guy who comes off as an “elderly man with a poor memory.” Democrats spent Tuesday’s House Judiciary hearing with Hur pushing him to call this an “exoneration” of the prez. Oh, and bashing him for honestly saying how Biden came off in their interviews.
Jerry Nadler insisted Hur’s report “represents the complete and total exoneration” of Biden (it’s not) and made it “clear that he didn’t lie” (it didn’t). Hank Johnson insisted Hur is a member of the Federalist Society (he’s not) who used “your report to trash and smear President Biden.” “You did disparage the president,” whined Adam Schiff. Pramila Jayapal wasted most of her time pushing for Hur to say “exoneration.”
Look: Hur is a straight shooter straight out of central casting. He gave Biden a way out of any future prosecution, though he made it clear the evidence could warrant a recommendation to prosecute. (He clearly doubted it would serve the public interest to further demean the presidency.)
But rather than be grateful for avoiding a high-profile embarrassment, Democrats can’t stop themselves from venting righteous indignation — which only succeeded in hurting the president’s image further.
Hur took great care to say in his report all he was going to say; the Dems’ badgering only forced him to repeat it — which only spelled out the worst for Biden.
That is: Biden knew perfectly well what the law is on classified docs; it didn’t stop him from taking stuff home back in his Senate days (when he had zero right), nor from knowingly holding on to more docs after he left office as veep: He’s even on tape in 2017 admitting he had classified stuff.
And Hur never said Biden is senile. No: He flagged how confused-seeming the prez got under the prosecutor’s questioning — indeed, the transcript proves Biden is the one who suddenly brings up son Beau’s death when the conversation gets specific, getting upset in what a cynic might see as an excuse for changing the subject.
Since Biden couldn’t go on trial for any classified-doc crimes until after leaving the Oval Office, Hur expects he’d play the same game on the stand, and get away with it. For all the president’s real memory issues, Hur let him off the hook because he’s a clever scoundrel. The Democrats were lucky they didn’t corner him into saying so outright.