Why Didn't Biden Just Burn Those Classified Documents?
On Monday CBS launched a story about classified papers found in a former office of president Biden. I am curious why the story came out and why it came out now.
Attorney General Merrick Garland has assigned the U.S. attorney in Chicago to review documents marked classified that were found at the Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement in Washington, two sources with knowledge of the inquiry told CBS News. The roughly 10 documents are from President Biden's vice-presidential office at the center, the sources said. CBS News has learned the FBI is also involved in the U.S. attorney's inquiry.The material was identified by personal attorneys for Mr. Biden on Nov. 2, just before the midterm elections, Richard Sauber, special counsel to the president confirmed. The documents were discovered when Mr. Biden's personal attorneys "were packing files housed in a locked closet to prepare to vacate office space at the Penn Biden Center in Washington, D.C.," Sauber said in a statement to CBS News.
The story was kept under the wraps for more than two month. Biden's lawyers, who allegedly found the documents, informed the National Archive which took possession them the next day. It then informed the Attorney General who assigned a U.S. attorney and involved the FBI.
That is at least how the story is told.
But I am curious on how much back and forth there was between Biden's lawyers and the White House after the find. That the lawyers did not ask Biden or his handlers how to proceed with the documents before informing the National Archive can be excluded. The alleged find was easy to hide. The National Archive is said to not have known anything about the documents. The lawyers were bound by their attorney client privilege that would have prohibited them from talking about the issue.
By informing the National Archive, which then involved others, it was made inevitable that someone would let the media know about this.
So why weren't those documents just burned up? Why not avoid the scandal that has now been reinforced by a second find of such documents, this time in a garage at Biden's home in Wilmington? Who made these decisions?
Biden is not an honest man when it comes to political issues. He is not a stranger to covering things up.
The decision to let this out, to not cover it up, is so far unexplained. The whole thing can only hurt Biden. It also disables the Democrats of using Trump's withholding of classified papers as a weapon against him.
Was it the very special content of the classified documents that made this move necessary? Or is there something else that we do not yet know about? Something that led to the judgment that the current limit hangout of some dirty linen is better than to have a real scandal come to the public's knowledge.
The whole thing is puzzling.
Posted by b on January 13, 2023 at 14:34 UTC | Permalink
next page »There has been a conspiracy theory for years that Biden would removed from power by Deep State sometime in first term.
Why?
No idea.
Posted by: Mar man | Jan 13 2023 14:40 utc | 2
Staged by his handlers to get rid of him if not immediately, by 2024.
Posted by: AmusedIndian | Jan 13 2023 14:43 utc | 3
Doesn't stop democrats from using it against Trump. Biden won't have a second term I think that's certain even if he's stated he will run again. Ok so let's say Trump is barred from public office and also the same for Biden. See not politically motivated at all we treated them both the same. We all know this is about stopping Trump from becoming president again. Too much on the line for that now. Whatever happens Trump won't be allowed to get the presidency again.
Posted by: Mattermark3 | Jan 13 2023 14:47 utc | 4
Did anyone seriously think Biden would last 2 years in the job?
I guess he is being moved on but he is reluctant.
It would be nice to hope that Deep state feels they can no longer keep bluffing over Ukraine and they need Joe to take the blame.
Posted by: Michael Droy | Jan 13 2023 14:50 utc | 5
Posted by: Mar man | Jan 13 2023 14:40 utc | 2
well, the most obvious reason would be that his dementia is getting worse. one of these days when he wanders off a stage he's going to fall off.
Posted by: pretzelattack | Jan 13 2023 14:50 utc | 6
Perhaps Biden's handlers have determined that he is too much of a liability and are working behind the scenes to engineer his ouster as softly as possible. Pushing him out with a trivial charge of document mishandling is a whole lot better than allowing him to be publicly investigated for corruption and treason via both China and Ukraine. And if you want to position someone else to run in the presidential election of 2024, that person needs to begin the process later this year.
Posted by: TomA | Jan 13 2023 14:51 utc | 7
You may as well ask "Why did Nixon record all of his White House conversations on tape?"
Perhaps politicians use augmented memory to develop schemes?
Posted by: ? | Jan 13 2023 14:51 utc | 8
Gas stoves? The reason they brought gas stoves to take attention away?
Posted by: David Alabama | Jan 13 2023 14:54 utc | 9
Either prepping to get rid of him or handed off to Garland to be buried
& leaked *before* any gop inquests discover them.
Note: these documents date from before this admin.
The docs were top secret, scif level.
As VP, Biden had zero authority to declassify.
Posted by: Mary | Jan 13 2023 14:57 utc | 10
My guess is it provides convenient precedent in Trump's case. They didn't prosecute Hillary, they won't prosecute Biden, and they're not going to prosecute Trump
Posted by: Teapot | Jan 13 2023 14:57 utc | 11
Thanks for covering b.
imo, this is a soft coup or putsch. The goal is to formally make Biden withdraw from the 2024 race for which recent noises have been made about his positive intention to run. Not a good idea as his popularity makes malaise look like a cardio workout.
Or - these documents came to light vis a vis the Hunter Biden investigation and this is a show of 'oh look what we accidentally found - we'll clean that right up" to get ahead of the story.
Either way, Biden is now a lame duck. And we'll see Democrats begin to announce their intentions to run in 2024.
Posted by: gottlieb | Jan 13 2023 14:58 utc | 12
they could have destroyed them, like the CIA destroyed the torture tapes. the swamp moves in mysterious ways sometimes.
Posted by: pretzelattack | Jan 13 2023 15:00 utc | 13
I agree with Anglin's take. Who cares? Nothing will happen.
Posted by: catdog | Jan 13 2023 15:03 utc | 14
It is probably to remove a blackmail chance. Burning the documents would have created witnesses. Not reporting and hiding them also.
Also, the special counsel “ongoing investigation” creates a lawfare excuse to barricade them from any other investigation, by e.g. the new House, about the content of those and similar documents. The intelligence state will do everything to shield past facts about deals with Ukraine from sunlight.
Posted by: alek_a | Jan 13 2023 15:06 utc | 15
Pelosi was asked to comment on Biden and classified documents. She laughed while eating a cookie, didn't stop from walking. Like the boy's laptop. No problem.
Posted by: rk | Jan 13 2023 15:09 utc | 16
Remember, Biden is not the acting president. Biden is an errand boy, he is the public face of some group of billionaires - Soros, Zuckerberg, Gates, bozos, whatever. Biden is a drooling moron but that's a feature not a bug: he will reliably do what he is told - as he has for about half a century- and ultimately his senility will be used to deflect the blame for what is really the result of deliberate malice.
IMHO this whole documents thing is a circus, designed to distract us from important things like the third-world invasion of the United States. Like the Trump document thing, or Russiagate, or whatever. This circus will go in circles drawing the oxygen away from discussion of more important issues, and ultimately Biden will not be forced out of office and nothing important will change. And if Biden does leave office, so what? He'll just be replaced by another pliant corporate lickspittle whore like Harris. Biden doesn't matter. He could be dead and stuffed and nailed to the chair in the Oval Office for all that he matters.
Posted by: TG | Jan 13 2023 15:15 utc | 17
Isn't there a rumour that Biden is determined to seek re-election and Democrat top brass are just as determined that does not happen?
Posted by: Mart | Jan 13 2023 15:17 utc | 18
If the Democrats wished to get Biden out of the '24 race, why would they go through all this folderol to accomplish this? Wouldn't it be a lot easier and less embarassing for someone on the DNC to go up to Biden privately, and tell him that he is making too many gaffes, that he seems to be having an increasing level of dementia, and that for the good of the Party, he needs to step aside?
Antoinetta III
Posted by: Antoinetta III | Jan 13 2023 15:18 utc | 19
Thanks for this thread, b :-)
According to Google Bibi became acting PM of "Israel" in December. So my guess is that Bibi is getting ready to remind HIS Congress Critters who's the boss. If you want to know why he started with Sleepy you'd have to ask Bibi.
Posted by: Hoarsewhisperer | Jan 13 2023 15:21 utc | 20
I just hope they don't have to reopen Alcatraz to safely house Old Joe, Hunter, Hellery, Nancy, and numerous other evil Dems. And its rumored some of those top secret Docs were Dr Jill's Christmas recipes!
Posted by: Dee Plorable | Jan 13 2023 15:23 utc | 21
Biden (and Trump for that matter) couldn't make a peanut butter sandwich but "people"/media/"politicians" expect him to properly file away some documents? Lol :D
So: yes!
Sensitive/classified information is all over the place at all times due to simple reasons of practicality and as long as none of it was "illegally" (hah!) acquired it's utterly unsurprising to find some documents forgotten (or simply left behind) here and there and everywhere no matter if it's Biden or Trump or anyone else (like anyone working for them).
It can happen by accident even in functional, democratic, representative, governments never mind blood-drenched hellholes like the US.
US "politicians" and "elites" are "high maintenance" which means they always have teams of people continually cleaning up after them.
They have teams of people erecting TEMPEST-proof tents and whatnot whenever required.
Yet Biden is personally in charge of whatever piece of paper he's not holding nor reading but which perhaps at most has an executive summary (for the executive!) that might be spoonfed to him by some minder?
People just have no clue at all do they? About anything.
·
Don't truly care except for agreeing it's a farce.
Posted by: Sunny Runny Burger | Jan 13 2023 15:26 utc | 22
Old Joe doesnt even know what zip code he is on.
Its his lawyers who decided this.
Why? Probably just optics. They still want to go hard at Trump while saying Joes was just an honest mistake.
Regardless we will NEVER know the truth.
Posted by: Comandante | Jan 13 2023 15:26 utc | 23
Why Didn't Biden Just Burn Those Classified Documents?
Well, they want to ban the stoves and started with their ones - so the burning option was already off the table... Just kidding.
My personal guess: Some parts of the US elites work to put Biden on the back burner as they know they need another candidate in 2024. However, others try to thwart this. The document "found" is part of these groups' infighting...
Posted by: Seneschal | Jan 13 2023 15:30 utc | 24
It's hilarious that all of the US news networks have a clip of Sleepy telling all and sundry what a naughty boy Trump has been and there's NO excuse...
Posted by: Hoarsewhisperer | Jan 13 2023 15:32 utc | 25
They are going to use it as an excuse for him to resign at the end of this month, without validating the narrative that his mind is gone, so that Princess Kameltoe can take over and still cheat her way through two more election cycles.
Posted by: Oldcutlas | Jan 13 2023 15:39 utc | 26
The National Archive is said to not have known anything about the documents.
Can you prove it? What are the risks of them having a record?
Posted by: Testing | Jan 13 2023 15:39 utc | 27
Biden has an out.
Biden: What is this thing you are talking. Y'all say I am senile, have dementia. So what, I forgot and Iforgot is my password. How are the boys doing in Ukraine..I mean the 101st?
Move on. It's a nothing burger made with pink slime. Garland is on it. See how quickly he appointed a special counsel?
No more questioning, OK.
In other news on main street where life goes on. $$$ Billions for UKR and MIC bank accounts overflow. 10% to the usual suspects.
While,
Inflation rips. Kroger and Whole Foods are limiting purchase of eggs.
Who can afford to shop at Whole Foods is a separate question.
Every inch you step you're taxed. Billionaires have a way not to pay.
People on minimum hourly pay can't save for retirement. Rents are not affordable in the great USA. Homelessness.
A neighbour of my dentist fell ill on a visit to USA, less than two weeks in the hospital was $1 million. He had a room. Who has a million $$ laying around, spare change? Those sleeping on cots in the materials supply room or ER at US$9,300-$13,750 paper day. Not a typo. Exceptional USA sure it is.
Those bitching about healthcare in Canada STFU. My friend's Mom was just released from hospital there; spent 27 days - heart related observation. Costs? filling the tank to visit her.
Posted by: Likklemore | Jan 13 2023 15:40 utc | 28
Why not burn? Hubris? Certainty you will never be caught. And certainty that if caught you walk away regardless. Because who believes the gloom and doomers? And where is there an honest prosecutor or an honest judge? When you own the entire system there is no need to worry.
This crew does not write good scripts any longer. They have been living in a fantasy land of public relations, propaganda and total media control for so long they can't tell the difference between a good story and a bad story. As Hillary said, why does it matter?
Posted by: oldhippie | Jan 13 2023 15:49 utc | 29
Great analysis. No doubt, there are multiple things going on.
1. Biden was closely associated with the US-engineered 2014 ‘Revolution of Dignity’, aka Maidan coup and the most Russia-phobic/fascistic groups in Ukraine, Poland and Baltic states. Biden allocated over $110 billion of US taxpayer money to Ukraine in 2022.
2. US taxpayers have spent over $20 trillion supporting post-911 military debacles in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria, Yemen and Eastern Europe/Ukraine. Since 911, the Pentagon deployed thousands of US troops and spent over $2 trillion of taxpayer money supporting the military campaign in Afghanistan. In 2021, Joe Biden oversaw the removal of all remaining US troops from Afghanistan, tacitly admitting this campaign was a military and economic disaster for the American empire. A similar fate awaits the US/NATO in Ukraine.
3. Throughout his circa 5 decades of ‘public service’, Joe Biden from corporate-friendly Delaware, has been a dependable representative of the State, carrying water for the Pentagon, Military contractors, large banks, energy and insurance companies and Wall St. In 2020, the Biden/Harris ticket was the clear choice of the financial elite, as their campaign garnered the majority of Wall St. donations, including Michael Bloomberg’s $100 million pledge. Predictably, the Biden/Harris team have not disappointed their financial backers. Indeed, the ‘world's 10 richest billionaires doubled their wealth since the COVID-19 pandemic started in early 2020, with inequality now reaching "outrageous" levels, according to anti-poverty charity Oxfam’ (Link: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/billionaires-double-wealth-covid-pandemic). The Democrats survived the 2022 election cycle without getting slaughtered. Joe Biden is old with declining mental ability, routinely seen during his press conferences. It appears there are factions in Washington who believe Joe Biden has outlived his usefulness as a servant of financial capital and view him as an increasing political liability. In addition, the ongoing investigations into Hunter Biden’s involvement and financial compensation from the Ukrainian oil and gas company Burisma Holdings are further complicating Biden’s tenure as President. The ongoing investigations into these documents can serve as a basis for derailing any thoughts about Biden running for reelection in 2024.
See- Biden classified docs, why Ukraine? Soledar cauldron. G7 double oil price caps. Ban gas stoves. By Alex Christoforou The Duran Jan 11, 2023;
https://theduran.com/biden-classified-docs-why-ukraine-soledar-cauldron-g7-double-oil-price-caps-ban-gas-stoves-u-1/
I believe that it would be amusing to see what's actually in these classified documents and to understand how publishing their contents would not endanger US national security one little bit. . . "President Biden had eggs and bacon for breakfast yesterday. . ."
Posted by: Don Bacon | Jan 13 2023 16:02 utc | 31
Assuming there were several lawyers involved with 'finding' the documents it's possible burning was suggested but not unanimously agreed on.
Posted by: dh | Jan 13 2023 16:11 utc | 32
Just like some commenter the other day talked about the world needing more Cowbell, this Biden classified document situation just needs more Wag The Dog and all will be well again......don't look behind the curtain and pay close attention to all the action in front of the curtain.
Posted by: psychohistorian | Jan 13 2023 16:13 utc | 33
it's a nothing burger possibly to use as some excuse for him to back out of running in 2024. but also, it's a huge distraction on a day Russia made a big win in Soledar. maybe a 'look over there' move since people are starting to get it ukraine is not winning.
Posted by: annie | Jan 13 2023 16:27 utc | 35
I heard that they found some more of Biden's classified documents on some ice cream truck.
Posted by: Gerald | Jan 13 2023 16:28 utc | 36
IMO, Paul @30 is barking up the correct tree--Father Biden is being targeted to cover for the more explosive scandal of Son Hunter. What's on the laptop and other evidence is far more damaging to many more D-Party people. Dad is old and becoming more useless daily. The problem with impeachment and conviction is Kamela, Biden's insurance just as Quayle was insurance for GHW Bush. The Ds need to keep the laptop out of the picture while stringing out Biden's impeachment process as long as possible. Plus, the Ds really don't mind that McCarthy is an ubber-hawk on China. But lurking in the background is the ongoing dysfunctional Fed policy that can doom the Duopoly.
If someone or some group just wanted Biden gone, “health reasons” would have been a plausible and much softer landing to end his career than creating a scandal. Esp one that basically immunizes Trump…after all the drama created by the FBI and others, to take him down.
Posted by: DoDger007 | Jan 13 2023 16:31 utc | 38
And people really think this is real?
Joe is capable of this mentally?
Imho the evidence got planted and found, looks like they dont need or want him a second term?
Hunter Biden is sure still too hot for massmedia, too many important names connected to him, but slowly disposing Joe i can see that.
They can do whatever they want, with they i mean the swamp master, the mass media controller and owner, they can boost or drop anyone they want.
Posted by: Kati | Jan 13 2023 16:32 utc | 39
Just yesterday I had my first exposure to the interesting concept of a limited hangout. CJ Hopkins used it in talking about newly leaked covid information.
Posted by: Larry Gates | Jan 13 2023 16:34 utc | 40
Hadn't thought much about this recent revelation, so thanks, B, for doing the thinking!
Lots of insightful and funny comments, too.
---
Likklemore | Jan 13 2023 15:40 utc | 28
"Who can afford to shop at Whole Foods is a separate question."
I know Randy Marsh can! But apart from him, I don't know...
---
As to the field of potential Dem candidates for the coming presidential election...
Joseph Biden would like to, but won't be allowed. Same goes for his VP, Kamala Harris. I think many, many others can be excluded as potential candidates as well because SHE will have to be, well, a) female and b) a person of color. In my mind, that only leaves Michelle Obama and the other Mrs Rice (Susan Rice instead of Condy Rice). There are persistant rumors that Susan Rice is the one running the Biden Clown Show backstage, on behalf of the Obama network.
Posted by: Scotch Bingeington | Jan 13 2023 16:44 utc | 41
From TASS, Classified files row in US is warmup ahead of election campaign — experts.
Posted by: David Levin | Jan 13 2023 16:46 utc | 42
I remember hearing in 2021 that Macron had said that Biden would be taken out after Jan. 2024, so that his replacement could have 10 years in office, counting the last 2 of this term and two re-elections.
At the time I thought "No way they can keep this senile perverted buffoon propped up for two years", but I was wrong.
It seems they have done it.
If you want to know their plans, just watch how the Mighty Wurlitzer of propaganda spins this the next couple of weeks.
They will tell everyone what to think about this.
Posted by: wagelaborer | Jan 13 2023 16:48 utc | 43
a few things..
first - everything is classified in the usa as top secret and has been for some time...
second - what are the chances these ''classified'' docs were planted to make biden look bad?? hard for us to know and it isn't that i think biden is not a creep and worse... on the surface, the story is very fishy.. just getting to all this and will have to read others comments..
Posted by: james | Jan 13 2023 16:50 utc | 44
Is Kamala Harris really their choice? We'll see.
Nixon thought that Agnew was his impeachment insurance, but he was gone within weeks when the Deep State decided to take out Nixon.
Again, we can watch the propaganda machine to see if they want her, or if they will develop a scandal that takes her out first.
Or a convenient plane crash. Or she could develop a severe case of covid. The possibilities are endless.
Posted by: wagelaborer | Jan 13 2023 16:52 utc | 45
The Deep State are preparing us for POTUS Kamala, the first female US president.
I for one am ready, for her combination of femininity and colour, and look forward to seeing her mastery put to good use, to make America great again.
Posted by: Featherless | Jan 13 2023 17:00 utc | 46
Posted by: Teapot @ 11
"My guess is it provides convenient precedent in Trump's case. They didn't prosecute Hillary, they won't prosecute Biden, and they're not going to prosecute Trump."
That's definitely what will happen.
It should be pretty obvious that the only reason the public is being informed that Biden had these documents is to provide another scripted ending to yet another kayfabe wrestling bout between the "deep state" and Trump.
For those who are a little slow in figuring out the ending of these wrestling matches - the "deep state" never wins.
Posted by: jinn | Jan 13 2023 17:02 utc | 47
wagelaborer @45--
Agnew resigned before the Watergate Hearings and was replaced by Ford who then became the first unelected POTUS.
As per an RT report, the Rs are going after the Afghan withdrawal debacle by subpoenaing State Department docs, thus widening the frontal assault on Biden.
it is possible as @ annie | Jan 13 2023 16:27 utc | 35 -suggests - distraction from the dynamic in ukraine, but a much bigger issue is the hunter biden laptop and they keep that under wraps.. why? both point to ukraine dynamic, so that is maybe why..
@ Likklemore | Jan 13 2023 15:40 utc | 28
you'd have to live in canada to appreciate the fact the dynamics of the last 2 years of covid have either been a direct attempt to take down public health care in canada, or all that is happened is looking like it is headed in the same direction... but, you are right - canada health system is still infinitely better then what is happening to the south of us.. it is just a concern for it being in jeopardy that seems very real at this time..
Posted by: james | Jan 13 2023 17:03 utc | 50
It certainly of interest that the presumed discovery of these documents was not publicized at the time, which was ahead of the midterm elections. Also, the last two sitting U.S. Presidents - Trump and Biden - are now currently under investigation by Special Counsels. This appears to create a great deal of leverage to DOJ bureaucrats, particularly as these two men are understood to be front-running candidates for the next federal presidential election.
It is probably true that the U.S. over-classifies government papers, but the hysteria generated over Trump's retention of documents has overwhelmed any sober analysis. Partisan Democrats assumed an absolutist position over Trump - fuelled by exaggerated speculations on the document contents, not to mention the dawn FBI raid - and now they are somewhat trapped by their own rhetoric. It is a partisan shitshow, while whatever it is going on behind the curtain remains entirely opaque.
Posted by: jayc | Jan 13 2023 17:07 utc | 51
My two-cents is that its a nothing burger: a red herring to distract the normies from the Twitter Files, the Hunter Biden laptop, the war in Ukraine, etc. You know, the real stories that have the real scandals embedded in them.
Posted by: Monos | Jan 13 2023 17:08 utc | 52
he'll just fall back on the "frost/nixon" line that "it's not illegal when the president does it!" or the old "all ex-presidents get intel briefings etc etc". think tanks already come up with all the dumbass "ideas" that inspire dumbass legislation from dumbass "lawmakers". also, if the democrat hive didn't care about hunter's laptop this won't even hold their attention between yoga classes.
all the "derp deep state" talk seems odd since biden has been a useful sock puppet for them over several decades. if they were going to target anyone it would be MAGAtards in congress since their "philosophy" of "less taxes > everything in the world EVER" is an actual threat to the shenanigans in "ukraine".
Posted by: the pair | Jan 13 2023 17:09 utc | 53
Whatever about the papers in the garage, those found at Penn U could cause trouble for more people than Biden.
From the info available, Biden was hardly ever there, (he spent more time at the family business), but others, particularly Blinken, appear to have had more of a day to day involvement in the place.
But who is going to ask him?
Posted by: Orchard1 | Jan 13 2023 17:14 utc | 54
Just a Point of Information that the new Speaker of the House is 3rd in line for Presidency, just after Harris.
Wag The Dog
Posted by: psychohistorian | Jan 13 2023 17:14 utc | 55
I'm not sure you can just burn them. Most classified documents I've handled in my career have been signed out to people - there is a record of their existence and who currently has them. The odds of someone looking at an old list and noticing something was never returned are small but they're there.
Posted by: ian | Jan 13 2023 17:16 utc | 56
Me thinks it's a twofer for the deep state. They get to push #JoeMentia out and keep the #PumpkinFurher from getting back in. Both of whom are very prone to letting the truth slip out on occasion but for different reasons.
Posted by: ZimInSeattle | Jan 13 2023 17:21 utc | 57
Thanks for the analysis b, and for all the commentators (commenters? Whatever) I haven’t quite read them all yet, but based on b’s commentary and what I read from others, I am now asking: did Uncle Joe commit to something in Mexico that faces opposition?
For example, about the uprising in Brazil, MK Bhadrakumar wrote, “Significantly, the tone of President Biden’s condemnation of the rioting in Brasilia was most aggressive.” And “Lula accused agribusiness and illegal mining mafias of financing this coup. Biden’s climate programme and the tragic fate of the Amazon River are joined at the hips.”
This possibility would mean the docs were planted, if Biden is the target.
Posted by: Bruised Northerner | Jan 13 2023 17:34 utc | 58
#28 STFU about health care costs in Canada. Amen to that. 15 annual physicals in Canada and not a dime. Physicals with Aetna crap in the usOfa, they keep raising the numbers of the labs (and less labs than in Canada) that I have to pay for. That is for going to the doctor once a year for preventive medicine.
I sat with lots of mentally challenged people in hospitals in Canada as they improved or died, never a bill except for cable or the ambulance.
It used to be on average Canadian women lived 3 years longer than usOfa women. Same thing for men. Now Canadian women are approaching 3-1/2 years longer, the differential for men is approaching 4 years. Somehow when you convert that to days it seems even bigger.
I suppose off topic rant, but those evil moral runts Hillary as 1rst ladeee and Biden for decades blocked any real health care reform because, hey, they are evil. Here's to him sitting alone with his wife in a version of San Clemente (a la nixon and pat) and his son in jail.
Posted by: paxmark1 | Jan 13 2023 17:42 utc | 59
No attorney-client privilege if attorney participated in crime. So once the attorney saw the docs, they became criminally liable if they didn't report it.
Posted by: N | Jan 13 2023 17:44 utc | 60
As b. says this counterbalances and neutralizes Trump's own prosecutable secret document mess--but that's small potatoes, if another inferior look for America's presidential helmsmanship.
There's a bit of hurry-up happening here.
I'd guess Biden;s gone by the 4th of July or so--not from this warning shot, but because Biden's person has passed 50% of his way down to 0%.
He's reached his expiration date more quickly than anticipated and continues making the US's leadership image as much a joke as his all-thumbs-no-brains predecessor. With Harris in the wings, there is an embarrassment of riches of available incompetents.
Posted by: Elmagnostic | Jan 13 2023 17:56 utc | 61
Since no one knows what is going on behind the scenes, speculation is a complete waste of time.
But almost certainly this is some sort of Deep State operation. Whether it's to mess with Biden, or distract from the loss of Soledar in Ukraine, or some other reason, is completely unknown. As some people on Twitter have suggested, it's on a par with Russiagate, the Trump documents, or Hillary's private server incident. The only difference is how it might be treated. Hillary got off scot-free, Trump was disparaged.
I'm not going to waste any more time on it until a lot more "facts" - if there are any real facts as opposed to made-up bullshit - are known.
Posted by: Richard Steven Hack | Jan 13 2023 17:56 utc | 62
Since no one knows what is going on behind the scenes, speculation is a complete waste of time.
But almost certainly this is some sort of Deep State operation. Whether it's to mess with Biden, or distract from the loss of Soledar in Ukraine, or some other reason, is completely unknown. As some people on Twitter have suggested, it's on a par with Russiagate, the Trump documents, or Hillary's private server incident. The only difference is how it might be treated. Hillary got off scot-free, Trump was disparaged.
I'm not going to waste any more time on it until a lot more "facts" - if there are any real facts as opposed to made-up bullshit - are known.
Posted by: CharlesLutherThanos | Jan 13 2023 17:57 utc | 63
Yes, that CJ Hopkins piece (substack) on 'limited hangouts' is a good compliment to this one by b.
Possible win-wins:
1a. As mentioned above, dismantling Biden will serve to prevent more disclosure of really bad deeds as revealed on Hunter's laptop and already out there.
1b. More importantly, however, dismantling Biden for mishandling classified docs will set a precedent disqualifying Trump from running. So Biden's family is protected and further revelations precluded whilst also Trump is banished from office once and for all. Both sides AND the Establishment benefit. Win-Win-Win.
2. No need for a good Dem candidate. The Dems will be in the doghouse for a little while as Twitter and social media recalibrate back to seeming more central than partisan whilst still controlling metanarratives quite effectively thank you very much. With Trump out of the running, 'they' can put in a good RINO. They might even be generous and let Santos in. He does many things conservatives like such as resisting the worst excesses of the neomarxist 'woke' agenda, but is an Establishment Man through and through aligned with Intelligence, Finance, MIC etc, in short an ideal President. The Deplorables will be assured (again) that their anti-corporate anti-Deep State 'getting our country back' aspirations will be fulfilled and so will (again) not muster resistance rather dwell in hopium-enfused states of positive expectations which (again) will not be realized.
The Establishment gets to keep 'patriots' engaged and invested in the current faux republic. Nothing changes. Deplorables get to believe that democracy is on the rise and they are getting their republic back. Win-win.
3. Wild Card scenario: Biden is the Great Reset candidate. I know some here think it's a silly notion, but there are some very unsilly forces behind it even if how they describe the Reset is misleading. But one way or another there is a globally coordinated push to junk rights-based nation states onto the trash heap of history in favor of some sort of soft fascist technocracy more or less following the dynamically successful Chinese model and probably with some sort of World Government (HQ'd in Kiev or Jerusalem?). In this sort of global emergency context perhaps there won't be a 2024 US election, rather something altogether different. Or perhaps a delay due to second pandemic or other emergency which never goes away, with perhaps at some point a major new United Nations World Peace development which Trump and Biden's exits will have helped usher in as the entire two-party system is discredited as hopelessly inept and long past its due date (which is true btw).
Yes, #3 is unlikely, but in any case the amount of 'limited hangouting' we can all endure is itself limited. At some point even the dullards will begin to sense that the only stories they keep hearing about are about how corrupt everyone running their countres are to the point that the ability of the Establishment to keep selling the notion that America and other Western countries are viable, successful nations, progressive places to live and work etc., will deteriorate beyond repair. Indeed, we are close to that point already which is why maybe Biden will be the last pretend President in a pretend Republic and soon a new model will be trotted out. Long shot, but...
Biden can slip away with silly paper-shuffling charges instead of 10 percent for the Big Guy super corruption involving son Hunter Crack Head Pedo.
There will be entertainment.
We have seen that Impeachment is really no penalty at all. Just entertainment.
Posted by: Chaka Khagan | Jan 13 2023 18:10 utc | 65
Posted by: psychohistorian | Jan 13 2023 17:14 utc | 55
Ah!
Posted by: Tim | Jan 13 2023 18:11 utc | 66
I’m voting for nothingburger. Too much if a national loss of face if a real or shadow president is punished for anything.
This much said, if someone like De Santis gets the R nomination and Trump follows through on his threat to run third party, we may well get four more years of Biden (or four of Mayo Petebot, Camel Toes, or the Hillary monster).
Posted by: malenkov | Jan 13 2023 18:24 utc | 67
Kamala was last seen wandering around the offices of the FBI saying "Who do I have to f--k to become President?" So far, no takers. That's a joke, son, that's a joke.
Posted by: G. Poulin | Jan 13 2023 18:29 utc | 68
This is all Putin's fault!
Too many people will believe that.
Posted by: Fred | Jan 13 2023 18:30 utc | 69
TomA@7
Good analysis. Soft landing in removing B. from the platform before the Republican investigations can get down, deep and serious. Though this strategy is somewhat of an "own goal", it's about the best the Dems can do for now. Then there's the little matter of the designated successor, Kamala's Foote, who got the blessings by S.F. Mayor Willie Brown, big in the Cali. Dem machine, by her expertise as a private lap-dancer for Hizzonor.
Posted by: aristodemos | Jan 13 2023 18:39 utc | 70
It seems that b and many of the first 66 comments here have exactly nailed the significance of the current scandal that is blowing up around Biden. Democrats have for at least the last year are living in terror that Biden's dementia is going to take down the entire Democrat ticket
Posted by: Toivos | Jan 13 2023 18:43 utc | 71
Whoops, I hit the wrong key.
In any case what we are seeing here with Biden is that the establishment Democratic Party is in the process of taking out Biden before he even begins to try running again for a second term. It is Biden's closest "aids", if anyone has noticed, that are releasing the most damaging information. These are all people whose loyalty are with the Party, not with Biden.
Poor Democrats, if they blow up Biden, then that leaves Kamela Harris. Talk about jumping out of the frying pan into the fire!
Posted by: Toivos | Jan 13 2023 18:51 utc | 72
Featherless@46
The prospect of Kamala's Foote assuming the Oval Orfice is amusing beyond comprehension. Klueless Kamala at a press conference where she announces the shipment of 300 Abrams MBT's along with a dozen Pat-riot missile systems to the Puppet Regime in Kiev is accomplished during several outbursts of inane giggling along with leering winks at the cameras.
Word is "Gravitas". The total lack of that substance by Kamala's Foote is simply representative of the massive devolution of American cultural reality. It's all Showbizz now, featuring a clown circus that even Central Casting could not top.
Posted by: aristodemos | Jan 13 2023 18:57 utc | 73
[8]
John Kennedy started the practice of taping in Oval Office
Nixon did it because he did not trust Kissinger
Posted by: Paul Greenwood | Jan 13 2023 19:01 utc | 74
Feeling constantly manipulated by everything appearing in info-kiosks of established broadcasters, one thing we might all agree on: Whatever the real story behind this quite elaborate kerfuffle may be, it will never be wrapped up in a rubberband and delivered to thee.
Meanwhile, observers such as MacGregor are very worried about what's going to happen in Washington immediately after the fall of Bakhmut, which looks impending. The moment, coming soon to a theater near you, when optimistic Ukrainian optics completely collapse -- a hundred billion bucks, and all I got was this lousy t-shirt. That's the time MacGregor expects overwhelming pressure on the US military to do something stupid. "We must do something!" patriots will wail.
Posted by: Aleph_Null | Jan 13 2023 19:07 utc | 75
James @ 50
Although you guys are valued posters...with the exception of O.K....it constantly amuses and bemuses me to witness the reality that you still call your country "Canada".
After closely following the trucker motorcade into Ottawa and the many high-fives they received along the way and how their so positive intermingled with the general public there...and their overall human-ness...all to be devastated by imported goons and horseback police assaulting the protestors of the JAB, as endangering those who took the MRna injections...we witnessed the FACT of a police state apparatus forcibly crushing the dissenters.
Though I have some wonderful memories of "true north strong and free" on several expeditions of a couple hundred miles up to "The Peg" (my closest city of any size...a mere couple hundred miles from my Northwoods Minnesota home) with memories of having serendipitously taking in the first ever Winnipeg Folk Festival in the summer of '74; I pledged when the nasty little co-dictators of your now degraded land...Trudy and Freeland...lowered the boom on peaceful opposition by the truckers and their supporters that from that day on...your country in my estimation will, until the people of your land kick out the frikken Governor General and turn over those Crown lands to the newly established Republic...that the proper name for that Dominion until such time as its independence from the Crown and the Bank$ters will be CANUCKISTAN.
Posted by: aristodemos | Jan 13 2023 19:14 utc | 76
Spoliation is almost always a bigger challenge than the underlying issues evidenced, because if it comes out that you destroyed evidence, and if more than one person is involved, it very possibly could, you can't just point to the evidence and say, "but it was just a nothing-burger, a venial peccadillo, nothing more" (as Biden's c̶l̶e̶a̶n̶-̶u̶p̶-̶c̶r̶e̶w̶ lawyers are doing). Instead the opposition can inflate the significance of what is not there to see, and anything you say will make it worse, because, after all, all your opponents need to do is ask, "Why did you destroy it if it was not important?"
Lawyers understand this, and Biden studied law, even if he did not take the bar exam, is senile, and has never been competent at anything but pretending to be a regular Joe.
Posted by: Hermit | Jan 13 2023 19:21 utc | 77
psychohistorian@55
Just a reminder. After the Ford and Rockefeller messes, the PTB took it upon themselves to introduce a new Constitutional Amendment (I forget the numbers after the first ten, the now heavily assaulted Bill of Rights) which made for the introjection of a new Vice President, should the former one have ascended to higher orfice.
Imagine the turmoil in Congre$$ should the Democrat party attempt to slip the likes of Hillary into the #2 slot via Constitutional legerdemain should the Kamala's Foote ascend into her personal dream of heaven. Many may take the whole toodledeedoo quite serious, leading to a lot of talk of such developments as secession and/or a second civil war.
Posted by: aristodemos | Jan 13 2023 19:23 utc | 78
Scorpion@63
You raise some very interesting perspectives. Food for thought. Thanks.
Posted by: aristodemos | Jan 13 2023 19:30 utc | 79
I stumbled across this web site series of articles, which is dated (2018), in a comment on another web site-it may explain the extreme influence of the intell branch in the dimo side of the uniparty ; not to say it is also not in the repub side of the uniparty as well but maybe not yet quite as predominent:
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2018/03/07/dems-m07.html
it summarizes the efforts to run former intell officers as candidates in the dimo party. A large number of the dimo candidates in 2018 came from intell backgrounds, i.e. neo cons.
It is yet to be seen whether the new composition of the House will shift back to some degree of normalcy if that is even possible.
Posted by: Taras77 | Jan 13 2023 19:46 utc | 80
All the whining about the "third world invasion" of the United States which, itself is a third world country and directly responsible - both Democrats and Republicans - for the wave of migrants/refugees fleeing Venezuela, Peru and elsewhere. Just as Uncle Scam was directly responsible for the waves of Vietnamese and Laotian refugees, followed by Muslims from Somalia, Iraq and Afghanistan. And un-discussed in the corporate MSM and especially "conservative" MSM is that for the most part, the border wall construction continues (where they don't have some environmental excuse or angry landowners), the same policies at the border apply, children are still in cages and separated from their families, and there is absolutely no actual difference in immigration policy between Obama, Trump and Brandon.
TL/DR: If you're really against the third world invasion of the USA then you can blame Trump as much or more than you can blame Killary and Obama. It was only a matter of time before the Venezuelans started fleeing the horrific economic sanctions and boot on their collective necks. Welcome to America!
Posted by: Tom_Q_Collins | Jan 13 2023 19:57 utc | 81
Perhaps it is not so much the fact that these "classified" documents were found in a vacant office or in Biden's garage that is important, but the timing of this news that is important. The news had to be released now, and not before anything else (including the midterms), because of something else happening that is not to the United States' advantage.
The coup against newly elected Brazilian President Lula did not go the way it was probably expected to. The West finally realised Juan Guaido had no chance of ever overthrowing Nicolas Maduro's govt in Venezuela. The new President in Peru is now facing possible overthrow herself after usurping Castillo. The Russians have claimed success in battles in Bakhmut and Soledar that have cost the lives of tens of thousands of Ukrainian soldiers, a result that the US State Dept is trying to dismiss in vain. All these and other failures or disasters the US govt has had a hand in must be covered up somehow and the blame put on someone. Maybe the news about the discovery of the documents comes as a blessing in disguise to the Deep State operators, to distract public attention and to set up Biden as a scapegoat.
Posted by: Jen | Jan 13 2023 20:05 utc | 82
@ Tom_Q_Collins
To be brutally frank: I’d rather have the third world invasion than most of my red white and blue neighbors.
Posted by: malenkov | Jan 13 2023 20:05 utc | 83
As unpopular as my take will be, sometimes it's better to do the right thing even if you don't think you'll get caught.
Posted by: Mike Adamson | Jan 13 2023 20:07 utc | 84
80
Honduras was a biggie. Keeps on giving. The coup instituted by Regime Obama, Hellharpy Clinton, and friend Lanny Davis was extremely destructive.
Parents are not going to tolerate well - their children in constant danger of being shot and killed or worse. By criminals, soldiers and police. Total chaos in Honduras of no concern to the sociopaths that created it.
Posted by: Chaka Khagan | Jan 13 2023 20:21 utc | 85
I think this is a nothing-burger. In a month time, no one will remember those files even existed.
More importantly, what’s up with the price of eggs in US? A US American colleague tells me a local grocer — I think called Stop & Shop — was charging $9 for a dozen eggs. Yikes.
I am sure in a week or two, those eggs will be going bad due to lack of sales — he said the shelf was full—, and will have to be marked down for sales, so, why mark up in the first place?
Posted by: Sakineh Bagoom | Jan 13 2023 20:21 utc | 86
@ Sakineh Bagoom
Huge and largely unreported Asian flu epidemic in the USA. Slaughtered laying hens can’t lay eggs.
Posted by: malenkov | Jan 13 2023 20:28 utc | 87
As for the documents in Bidens VP office that he was unaware of, his lawyers rightly returned them immediately to the National Archive. How does this compare with Trump knowingly not returning classified documents.
As for documents found in his home and personal library, this perplexes me. He is President. How does this differ from Trump having classified documents at Mar-a-Lago while President?
There does seem to be an agenda here, whether its psyop or distraction, perhaps a move to oust Biden for mental insufficiency, I don't know. Imagine Kamala as President? Be interesting to see what demon gets the VP role
Posted by: Pete22 | Jan 13 2023 21:08 utc | 88
My take on this is that in truth there are certainly classified documents all over Washington, misplaced, hidden, stolen, held by either close administration staff or cabinet secretaries or even members of Congress. In other words the aghastitude about Trump's documents is in truth simply more of what has been going on for years. I still find myself baffled nobody seems to care about how these super secret documents can go missing for months and years and not have alarm bells screaming all over the place, which suggests to me that in truth the whole system is pretty sloppy. This may be Biden or his staff being careless, yes. This may also be something planted on Biden, a just in case to reveal if needed and now it is deemed needed. This may simply be the start of the exposure that classified documents are wandering everywhere, a true scandal, now being revealed. It does seem clear to me that this news means Trump will never be prosecuted for taking documents, and the more widespread this seems and is shown, the more protected he is.
This all may simply be that the system, whatever that is, has grown entirely sick and tired of all these old geezers running things and they are all being tossed aside. I really like the idea that this document thing will see both Biden and Trump barred from office forever, that sort of makes sense to me....
Posted by: Boomheist | Jan 13 2023 21:14 utc | 89
Posted by: malenkov | Jan 13 2023 20:05 utc | 82
No comment other than that I grew up in a white minority city in Texas and knew many 1st and 2nd generation immigrants. The vast majority of them were better people than my neighbors when I briefly lived in Florida.
Posted by: Tom_Q_Collins | Jan 13 2023 21:20 utc | 90
All Illusions are inherently uncertain. (puzzling)....of this I can be certain.
Posted by: Zickster | Jan 13 2023 21:22 utc | 91
@63 scorpion
Largely agree, thx.
It should always be remembered that the culture war advocated by a lot of the RINOs (largely operating in America's south, Florida, et. al) were meant entirely to provide a pressure release for the built-up contradictions that have made living in globalist America a very painful burden.
You can fight the culture wars and leave the globalist menace largely intact. But if you strike at the globalist menace, the culture war is won by extension of it being a product of the globalist menance.
So we should stick to what works: close the border, destroy the cartels, decouple from China (reinvigorate manufacturing), and bring home all foreign troops .
Posted by: NemesisCalling | Jan 13 2023 21:25 utc | 92
My take, it's advancing the plot in that potential kompromat is now secured in the hands of those best versed at using it. Why save files? Either CYA or leakable ammo to keep your assets in check. Trump's files only have value if they help him target his enemies or contribute to his business. Now the symmetry is set.
Then again, perhaps the existence of the alleged files has been leaked for the purpose of creating the pretext for placing them in protective custody. After all, can anyone say that, off-campus security being what it is, the materials have not already been successfully juiced. Timing? There is the loaded question.
Posted by: Stumpy | Jan 13 2023 21:25 utc | 93
Like NY mayor being removed for sexual impropriety when it shoulda been murder. (Covid+ to LTC homes)
This is the lesser crime don’t talk about the real crime.
Put another way.
These aren’t the droids your looking for.
Posted by: Tannenhouser | Jan 13 2023 21:30 utc | 94
Seems to me that the destruction of these documents would made any person an « accessory-after-the-fact ».
An accessory after the fact is someone who assists someone who has committed a criminal offense after the person has committed it, knowing the person committed the offense, with the intent to help him avoid punishment.
Giving back the documents to Joe Biden would have been risky too, I guess (I have no expertise in common law, but it seems logical).
Posted by: Leuk | Jan 13 2023 21:32 utc | 95
"Huge and largely unreported Asian flu epidemic in the USA. Slaughtered laying hens can’t lay eggs."
malenkov@86
Avian flu?
Posted by: bevin | Jan 13 2023 21:34 utc | 96
It reminds me when I was a wee lad of 12, and my dad took me to his office in 1966. He was a military officer, Poland, and one curious device was for destroying documents: it was not shredding paper but rather turning paper to pulp. For this reason it always amazes me why Americans are so backward in destroying documents, "pulper" look quite compact and potentially, portable. Much less problematic than an incinerator.
That said, it surprises me that
1. One uses attorneys to "packing files".
2. "Personal attorneys" did not ask Biden what to do. Seems that they were not really "personal".
Perhaps there is some code how to handle documents that were in possession of highly ranked officials, and WHO can handle them. These attorneys were civil servants detailed to serve the president personally, not guys from a friendly law office.
Posted by: Piotr Berman | Jan 13 2023 21:37 utc | 97
Tucker Carlson postulates that this is to remove Biden from running again in 2024. It only came out after he announced that he would be running.
It's a little more than that, though. The Democrats want to get rid of Biden, but they don't want Congress able to subpoena the papers, so they appointed a special counsel so it could be an "ongoing investigation" which would stop any Congressional oversight.
But it is also a distraction. Maybe people will not notice the fall of Soledar or its importance (after all John Kirby said that it was of little importance).
We can make guesses, but the real plan will only show itself in hindsight.
Posted by: Belle | Jan 13 2023 21:42 utc | 98
@ Tannenhouser
You mean NY governor, not mayor, but your point is well taken.
Posted by: malenkov | Jan 13 2023 21:47 utc | 99
@Tom_Q_Collins
Believe me, I hear you. To me the deciding factor is whether the immigrant wants to do an honest day’s work.
Posted by: malenkov | Jan 13 2023 21:49 utc | 100
The comments to this entry are closed.
Mike Whitney has an article at unz speculating that this is a deep state move to get him to commit troops to ukraine which he has been resisting.
Posted by: CB | Jan 13 2023 14:40 utc | 1