Hur report renews concerns over Biden's fitness for office

Special counsel Robert Hur determined, in a report made public Thursday, that President Joe Biden willfully retained sensitive materials but declined to pursue charges against him.

"Our investigation uncovered evidence that President Biden willfully retained and disclosed classified materials after his vice presidency when he was a private citizen," the report stated. 

It "would be difficult to convince a jury that they should convict him — by then a former president well into his eighties — of a serious felony that requires a mental state of willfulness," Hur went on. "Mr. Biden would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory."

He further recalled Biden's difficulty recalling basic facts about his life during his interview with him, amid other notes. The discussion of Biden's mental state and poor memory subsequently renewed concerns over his fitness for office.

Minnesota Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips, who is challenging Biden for the party nomination, told Fox News that "[t]he Report simply affirms what most Americans already know, that the President cannot continue to serve as our Commander-in-Chief beyond his term ending January 20, 2025."

"Already facing the lowest approval numbers in modern history and losing in each of the key battleground states, this Report has all but handed the 2024 election to Donald Trump if Joe Biden is the Democratic nominee - and I invite fellow Democrats to face the truth," he continued.

Trump National Spokeswoman Liz Harrington, meanwhile, contended the report was a sign that the DOJ was warning Biden to leave.

"You know, I think they just gave the signal. They just said, 'get out, or else' I mean, this is pretty blatant," she said on the "Just the News, No Noise" television show. "You have your own justice department that's already do your bidding, and tried to arrest your number one political opponent on fake trumped up charges that you yourself are guilty of. And now they're telling you, 'oh, never mind, who is actually running the country. Joe Biden can't remember when he was vice president.' That's definitely a signal and it's not looking good."

Hoover Institute Senior Fellow Victor Davis Hanson, for his part, opined that Hur's determination undercut Biden's qualifications to lead the nation.

"Biden is Too Demented to Be Found Guilty of Crimes,  But Not Too Demented to Be President?" he asked. "Special Counsel Robert Hur just found Joe Biden was guilty of violating national security laws in removing classified documents— after examining then Senator and Vice President Biden’s some 15-year habit of removing classified files to his offices and residences, where they were stored in unsecured fashion. Period. End of story."

He then contended that a disinterested prosecutor would have indicted Biden and left it to the jury to decide whether Biden's mental ability should be a consideration.

"The Left, Hur, and others believe that someone who has lost his faculties and who would not be allowed to drive a semi-truck, teach a class, diagnose a patient, argue a case, wire a house, or cook a hamburger is nevertheless fit enough to run the United States of America," he asserted.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter.