Hur hearing drew Biden as 'entitled career politician' as report showed his memoir was a 'motive': GOP reps
The chairmen of the two committees leading Tuesday's joint hearing featuring former special counsel Robert Hur sounded off on Fox News' "Hannity" later that evening.
House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., offered mixed reviews of former special counsel Robert Hur and his testimony before Congress after he declined to recommend charges against President Biden over his retention of classified information.
Comer said Tuesday he appreciated some of Hur's product in his report, but added there are too many questions surrounding Biden's decades-long behavior regarding the handling of classified documents.
"We're going to still try to get answers so we can actually hold people accountable," Comer said on "Hannity."
"What we saw today was an entitled career politician who believes he's above the law, and we also see a government that's always turned a blind eye to protect Joe Biden," he said.
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Comer pointed out stark differences between Biden's handling of classified information, as host Sean Hannity reported some of the president's documents hearkened back to his Senate career when he would not have been permitted to handle some of them outside a secure SCIF facility.
The lawmaker pointed to how classified information handled by former President Trump was largely kept in locked areas of his Mar-a-Lago compound, while Biden's — according to Hur's report — was found dispersed among the University of Delaware, the Penn Biden Center in Washington, and the president's Greenville, Del., garage.
"These documents that Joe Biden had were not behind a locked door. I asked Hur that, and he confirmed that in his testimony they were scattered all over the place. We don't know who all had access to those documents."
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Meanwhile, the other Republican chairman leading Tuesday's hearing, Jim Jordan of Ohio, discussed how determining a motive in cases of unlawful retention of classified information is often key.
"He disclosed classified documents to an individual who did not have a security clearance, but he did have part of the contract for the $8 million to be the ghostwriter for Joe Biden's book," Jordan said, referring to Mark Zwonitzer, who worked on Biden's memoir "Promise Me, Dad."
"You always go to motive. When there's unlawful activity, what was the motive? And special counsel Hur was clear: The motive was the book," Jordan continued.
He cited Biden's decades in government as proof he "knew the rules" regarding sharing or securing classified information.
"… but he willfully, knowingly violated those because he was writing a book," Jordan said.
Calling out another alleged double standard in favor of entrenched politicians, Jordan pointed out the last three major candidates for president — Biden, Hillary Clinton and Trump — all faced investigation for mishandling classified documents, but that only the latter was charged.
Jordan said Trump's prosecution is even more egregious given it is led by Jack Smith, whom he said has shown a proclivity to doggedly pursue Republicans. Smith previously prosecuted former Virginia Republican Gov. Bob McDonnell in the early 2010s.
McDonnell previously told Fox News his three-year probe was "painful" and that he knew the law was on his side as the Supreme Court unanimously vacated Smith's conviction against him.
