WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday slammed the report by a Justice Department special counsel into Joe Biden's mishandling of classified documents that raised questions about the president's memory, calling it “politically motivated” and “gratuitous," as the White House said the president would take steps to safeguard classified materials during presidential transitions.

The report from&nbsp;<a href="https://www.justice.gov/sco-hur">Robert Hur</a>, the former Maryland U.S. Attorney selected by Attorney General Merrick Garland to investigate Biden found evidence that Biden willfully held onto and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-ghostwriter-mark-zwonitzer-classified-documents-case-8ad6e560c2eb54e25db149a2d01ad545">shared with a ghostwriter</a>&nbsp;highly classified information, but laid out why he did not believe the evidence met the standard for criminal charges, including a high probability that the Justice Department would not be able to prove Biden’s intent beyond a reasonable doubt.

<a href="https://www.justice.gov/storage/report-from-special-counsel-robert-k-hur-february-2024.pdf">Click here to read&nbsp;</a>the special counsel report

The White House has said Biden erred in having the documents in his home and Ian Sams, a spokesperson for the counsel's office, said Biden would soon name a task force “to ensure that there are better processes in place” to protect classified materials when administrations change.

The report described the 81-year-old Democrat’s memory as “hazy,” “fuzzy,” “faulty,” “poor” and having “significant limitations.” It noted that Biden could not recall defining milestones in his own life such as when his son Beau died or when he served as vice president.

Taking a question from a reporter at the conclusion of a gun violence prevention event at the White House, Harris said that as a former prosecutor, she considered Hur's comments "gratuitous, inaccurate, and inappropriate.”

She noted that Biden's two-day sit-down with Hur occurred just after the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on Israel, where more than 1,200 people were killed and about 250 were taken hostage — including many Americans.

“It was an intense moment for the commander in chief of the United States of America," Harris said, saying she spent countless hours with Biden and other officials in the days that followed and he was “on top of it all.”

She added that "the way that the president's demeanor in that report was characterized could not be more wrong on the facts and clearly politically motivated, gratuitous.”

Harris concluded saying a special counsel should have a "higher level of integrity than what we saw.”

WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday slammed the report by a Justice Department special counsel into Joe Biden's mishandling of classified documents that raised questions about the president's memory, calling it “politically motivated” and “gratuitous," as the White House said the president would take steps to safeguard classified materials during presidential transitions.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Vice President Kamala Harris: &quot;The way that the president&#39;s demeanor in that report was characterized could not be more wrong on the facts, and clearly, politically motivated, gratuitous.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/AvmRf9hLO4">pic.twitter.com/AvmRf9hLO4</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1756034019362255086?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 9, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>The report from&nbsp;<a href="https://www.justice.gov/sco-hur">Robert Hur</a>, the former Maryland U.S. Attorney selected by Attorney General Merrick Garland to investigate Biden found evidence that Biden willfully held onto and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-ghostwriter-mark-zwonitzer-classified-documents-case-8ad6e560c2eb54e25db149a2d01ad545">shared with a ghostwriter</a>&nbsp;highly classified information, but laid out why he did not believe the evidence met the standard for criminal charges, including a high probability that the Justice Department would not be able to prove Biden’s intent beyond a reasonable doubt.<a href="https://www.justice.gov/storage/report-from-special-counsel-robert-k-hur-february-2024.pdf">Click here to read&nbsp;</a>the special counsel reportThe White House has said Biden erred in having the documents in his home and Ian Sams, a spokesperson for the counsel's office, said Biden would soon name a task force “to ensure that there are better processes in place” to protect classified materials when administrations change.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1707478982378.png" alt="Page from the special counsel's report that highlight's Biden's memory challenges.- U.S. Department of Justice" />
 <figcaption>Page from the special counsel's report that highlight's Biden's memory challenges.- U.S. Department of Justice</figcaption>
 </figure>The report described the 81-year-old Democrat’s memory as “hazy,” “fuzzy,” “faulty,” “poor” and having “significant limitations.” It noted that Biden could not recall defining milestones in his own life such as when his son Beau died or when he served as vice president.Taking a question from a reporter at the conclusion of a gun violence prevention event at the White House, Harris said that as a former prosecutor, she considered Hur's comments "gratuitous, inaccurate, and inappropriate.”She noted that Biden's two-day sit-down with Hur occurred just after the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on Israel, where more than 1,200 people were killed and about 250 were taken hostage — including many Americans.“It was an intense moment for the commander in chief of the United States of America," Harris said, saying she spent countless hours with Biden and other officials in the days that followed and he was “on top of it all.”She added that "the way that the president's demeanor in that report was characterized could not be more wrong on the facts and clearly politically motivated, gratuitous.”Harris concluded saying a special counsel should have a "higher level of integrity than what we saw.”

🎥VP slams 'politically motivated' report on Biden, classified docs

MARINE CORPS AIR STATION MIRAMAR, Calif. —The five deceased Marines from the CH-53E helicopter mishap on February 6, have been identified, according to a statement from the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing.

The decorated Marines were assigned to Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 361, Marine Aircraft Group 16, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing and were based at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego.

The Super Stallion vanished late Tuesday night on its way back to Miramar from Creech Air Force Base during&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/california-storms-atmospheric-river-383921ec5cc4b41a0b454b236476da5a">a historic storm</a>. The craft was discovered Wednesday morning near the mountain community of Pine Valley.

Lance Cpl. Donovan Davis, 21, of Olathe, Kansas, a CH-53E helicopter crew chief.&nbsp; Davis enlisted in the Marine Corps on September 3, 2019, and was promoted to the rank of Lance Corporal on January 1, 2024. His decorations include the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal, and a Sea Service Deployment Ribbon.

Sgt. Alec Langen, 23, of Chandler, Arizona, a CH-53E helicopter crew chief. Langen enlisted in the Marine Corps on September 14, 2017, and was promoted to the rank of Sergeant on October 1, 2022. His decorations include the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, Good Conduct Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal, and two Sea Service Deployment Ribbons.

Capt. Benjamin Moulton, 27, of Emmett, Idaho, a CH-53E helicopter pilot. Moulton commissioned in the Marine Corps on March 29, 2019, and was promoted to the rank of Captain on August 1, 2023. His decorations include the National Defense Service Medal.

Capt. Jack Casey, 26, of Dover, New Hampshire, a CH-53E helicopter pilot. Casey commissioned in the Marine Corps on May 16, 2019, and was promoted to the rank of Captain on September 1, 2023. His decorations include the National Defense Service Medal.

Capt. Miguel Nava, 28, of Traverse City, Michigan, a CH-53E helicopter pilot.&nbsp;Nava commissioned in the Marine Corps on May 26, 2017, and was promoted to the rank of Captain on November 1, 2021. His decorations include the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal and Sea Service Deployment Ribbon.

“We have been confronted with a tragedy that is every service family’s worst fear,” said Lt. Col. Nicholas J. Harvey, commanding officer of HMH-361. “Our top priority now is supporting the families of our fallen heroes, and we ask for your respect and understanding as they grieve. The Flying Tigers family stands strong and includes the friends and community who have supported our squadron during this challenging time. We will get through this together.”

At the time of the mishap, the CH-53E and crew were conducting routine flight training. The mishap is currently under investigation.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1707503351008.png" alt="Lance Cpl. Donovan Davis, 21, of Olathe, Kan., served as a CH-53E helicopter crew chief. Courtesy of 3rd MAW Communication Strategy and Operations" />
 <figcaption>Lance Cpl. Donovan Davis, 21, of Olathe, Kan., served as a CH-53E helicopter crew chief. Courtesy of 3rd MAW Communication Strategy and Operations</figcaption>
 </figure>MARINE CORPS AIR STATION MIRAMAR, Calif. —The five deceased Marines from the CH-53E helicopter mishap on February 6, have been identified, according to a statement from the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing.The decorated Marines were assigned to Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 361, Marine Aircraft Group 16, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing and were based at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego.The Super Stallion vanished late Tuesday night on its way back to Miramar from Creech Air Force Base during&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/california-storms-atmospheric-river-383921ec5cc4b41a0b454b236476da5a">a historic storm</a>. The craft was discovered Wednesday morning near the mountain community of Pine Valley.The identities of the Marines are&nbsp;Lance Cpl. Donovan Davis, 21, of Olathe, Kansas, a CH-53E helicopter crew chief.&nbsp; Davis enlisted in the Marine Corps on September 3, 2019, and was promoted to the rank of Lance Corporal on January 1, 2024. His decorations include the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal, and a Sea Service Deployment Ribbon.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1707503381530.png" alt="Sgt. Alec Langen, 23, of Chandler, Ariz., served as a CH-53E helicopter crew chief. Courtesy of 3rd MAW Communication Strategy and Operations" />
 <figcaption>Sgt. Alec Langen, 23, of Chandler, Ariz., served as a CH-53E helicopter crew chief. Courtesy of 3rd MAW Communication Strategy and Operations</figcaption>
 </figure>Sgt. Alec Langen, 23, of Chandler, Arizona, a CH-53E helicopter crew chief. Langen enlisted in the Marine Corps on September 14, 2017, and was promoted to the rank of Sergeant on October 1, 2022. His decorations include the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, Good Conduct Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal, and two Sea Service Deployment Ribbons.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1707503174301.png" alt="Capt. Benjamin Moulton, 27, of Emmett, Idaho, served as a CH-53E helicopter pilot. Courtesy of 3rd MAW Communication Strategy and Operations" />
 <figcaption>Capt. Benjamin Moulton, 27, of Emmett, Idaho, served as a CH-53E helicopter pilot. Courtesy of 3rd MAW Communication Strategy and Operations</figcaption>
 </figure>Capt. Benjamin Moulton, 27, of Emmett, Idaho, a CH-53E helicopter pilot. Moulton commissioned in the Marine Corps on March 29, 2019, and was promoted to the rank of Captain on August 1, 2023. His decorations include the National Defense Service Medal.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1707503278410.png" alt="Capt. Jack Casey, 26, of Dover, N.H., served as a CH-53E helicopter pilot. Courtesy of 3rd MAW Communication Strategy and Operations" />
 <figcaption>Capt. Jack Casey, 26, of Dover, N.H., served as a CH-53E helicopter pilot. Courtesy of 3rd MAW Communication Strategy and Operations</figcaption>
 </figure>Capt. Jack Casey, 26, of Dover, New Hampshire, a CH-53E helicopter pilot. Casey commissioned in the Marine Corps on May 16, 2019, and was promoted to the rank of Captain on September 1, 2023. His decorations include the National Defense Service Medal.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1707503310587.png" alt="Capt. Miguel Nava, 28, of Traverse City, Mich., served as a CH-53E helicopter pilot. Courtesy of 3rd MAW Communication Strategy and Operations" />
 <figcaption>Capt. Miguel Nava, 28, of Traverse City, Mich., served as a CH-53E helicopter pilot. Courtesy of 3rd MAW Communication Strategy and Operations</figcaption>
 </figure>Capt. Miguel Nava, 28, of Traverse City, Michigan, a CH-53E helicopter pilot.&nbsp;Nava commissioned in the Marine Corps on May 26, 2017, and was promoted to the rank of Captain on November 1, 2021. His decorations include the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal and Sea Service Deployment Ribbon.“We have been confronted with a tragedy that is every service family’s worst fear,” said Lt. Col. Nicholas J. Harvey, commanding officer of HMH-361. “Our top priority now is supporting the families of our fallen heroes, and we ask for your respect and understanding as they grieve. The Flying Tigers family stands strong and includes the friends and community who have supported our squadron during this challenging time. We will get through this together.”At the time of the mishap, the CH-53E and crew were conducting routine flight training. The mishap is currently under investigation.

Kansan among 5 Marines who died in helicopter crash

BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/tim-carpenter/">TIM CARPENTER</a>.&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Reflector</a>

TOPEKA — Gov. Laura Kelly signed legislation expanding a Kansas tax credit to incentivize purchase of services or goods from vendors employing individuals with disabilities and creating a program to help businesses make the transition to paying people with disabilities at least minimum wage.

The reforms designed to improve job prospects of Kansans with disabilities was contained in Senate Bill 15, which last month cleared the Senate 34-0 and the House 117-1.

“Kansans with disabilities deserve a fair wage for the work they perform,” Kelly said. “I’m signing this bipartisan legislation to create more opportunities for people with disabilities, grow our workforce and ensure every Kansan can work with dignity and respect.”

Under the law, businesses that paid Kansans with disabilities less than minimum wage wouldn’t be eligible for the disability employment tax credit. The aggregate amount of tax credits under the program would be $8 million in the tax years 2024 through 2028.

The $1 million matching grant program would help sheltered workshop employers permitted to offer a subminimum wage evolve into an integrated employment environment where workers were paid minimum wage, said Rep. Sean Tarwater, a Stilwell Republican.

State grants for help provide pay raises for people with disabilities must be matched dollar-for-dollar by sheltered workshop employers.

“By incentivizing businesses that purchase products from companies with integrated workforces, we are creating more jobs for Kansans with disabilities,” Tarwater said. “This spurs local economies across the state as the workforce grows.”

The bill defined workshop employers as private, nonprofit, state or local government institutions employing people with intellectual, developmental or physical disabilities.

In addition, the law eliminated a requirement Kansans with disabilities work a minimum number of hours to qualify for health insurance coverage.

“The Disability Employment Act and the sheltered workshop transition grant program is a win-win for Kansans with disabilities and businesses,” said Martha Gabehart, executive director of the Kansas Commission on Disability Concerns.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1707502020553.png" alt="File photo Gov. Laura Kelly during a an event in KCK last month" />
 <figcaption>File photo Gov. Laura Kelly during a an event in KCK last month</figcaption>
 </figure>BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/tim-carpenter/">TIM CARPENTER</a>.&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Reflector</a>TOPEKA — Gov. Laura Kelly signed legislation expanding a Kansas tax credit to incentivize purchase of services or goods from vendors employing individuals with disabilities and creating a program to help businesses make the transition to paying people with disabilities at least minimum wage.The reforms designed to improve job prospects of Kansans with disabilities was contained in Senate Bill 15, which last month cleared the Senate 34-0 and the House 117-1.“Kansans with disabilities deserve a fair wage for the work they perform,” Kelly said. “I’m signing this bipartisan legislation to create more opportunities for people with disabilities, grow our workforce and ensure every Kansan can work with dignity and respect.”Under the law, businesses that paid Kansans with disabilities less than minimum wage wouldn’t be eligible for the disability employment tax credit. The aggregate amount of tax credits under the program would be $8 million in the tax years 2024 through 2028.The $1 million matching grant program would help sheltered workshop employers permitted to offer a subminimum wage evolve into an integrated employment environment where workers were paid minimum wage, said Rep. Sean Tarwater, a Stilwell Republican.State grants for help provide pay raises for people with disabilities must be matched dollar-for-dollar by sheltered workshop employers.“By incentivizing businesses that purchase products from companies with integrated workforces, we are creating more jobs for Kansans with disabilities,” Tarwater said. “This spurs local economies across the state as the workforce grows.”The bill defined workshop employers as private, nonprofit, state or local government institutions employing people with intellectual, developmental or physical disabilities.In addition, the law eliminated a requirement Kansans with disabilities work a minimum number of hours to qualify for health insurance coverage.“The Disability Employment Act and the sheltered workshop transition grant program is a win-win for Kansans with disabilities and businesses,” said Martha Gabehart, executive director of the Kansas Commission on Disability Concerns.

Kan. governor signs bill boosting job prospects for people with disabilities with tax credits, wage grants

JACKSON COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a suspect on drug allegations.

Just after 4p.m. February 6, a Sheriff’s Deputy conducted a traffic stop on a Ford Taurus for a traffic infraction on Q. Road just south of 150th Road in rural Jackson County, according to Sheriff Tim Morse.

 During the course of the traffic stop, a Jackson County Sheriff K-9 was deployed and alerted to the presence of illegal drug contraband within the vehicle. 

The driver, Earl Harrison Ireland III, 41, of Topeka was arrested and booked into the Jackson County Jail for possession of methamphetamine and possession of drug paraphernalia.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1707412519310.png" alt="Ireland photo Jackson Co." />
 <figcaption>Ireland photo Jackson Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>JACKSON COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a suspect on drug allegations.Just after 4p.m. February 6, a Sheriff’s Deputy conducted a traffic stop on a Ford Taurus for a traffic infraction on Q. Road just south of 150th Road in rural Jackson County, according to Sheriff Tim Morse. During the course of the traffic stop, a Jackson County Sheriff K-9 was deployed and alerted to the presence of illegal drug contraband within the vehicle. The driver, Earl Harrison Ireland III, 41, of Topeka was arrested and booked into the Jackson County Jail for possession of methamphetamine and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Kansas deputy found methamphetamine in man's car

LAFAYETTE COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities made a potentially deadly discovery Wednesday.

According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, a trooper with the help of K9 Kobi, seized 4 pounds of fraudulent pain pills just east of Kansas City Lafayette County, according to a social media report.

The patrol reminded, "one pill can kill," seven of ten pills like these contain fentanyl, killing 2,180 people in 2022 in Missouri.&nbsp;&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1707412754752.png" alt="Photo MSHP" />
 <figcaption>Photo MSHP</figcaption>
 </figure>LAFAYETTE COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities made a potentially deadly discovery Wednesday.According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, a trooper with the help of K9 Kobi, seized 4 pounds of fraudulent pain pills just east of Kansas City Lafayette County, according to a social media report.The patrol reminded, "one pill can kill," seven of ten pills like these contain fentanyl, killing 2,180 people in 2022 in Missouri.&nbsp;&nbsp;

1 pill can kill: Troopers seize 4 pounds of fake pain pills

WASHINGTON (AP) — The longstanding concerns about President Joe Biden's age and memory intensified on Thursday after the release of a&nbsp;special counsel's report investigating his possession of classified documents.

(click below to watch Biden's exchange with reporters)

The report described the 81-year-old Democrat's memory as “hazy,” “fuzzy,” “faulty,” “poor" and having “significant limitations.” It noted that Biden could not recall defining milestones in his own life such as when his son Beau died or when he served as vice president.

“My memory is fine,” Biden responded Thursday night from the White House, where he grew visibly angry as he denied forgetting when his son died. Beau Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/general-news-d8f69eb645d74b7886387f713981b739">died of brain cancer in 2015</a>&nbsp;at the age of 46.

While Biden will not face charges for mishandling classified documents, the report’s assertions about his memory could undermine Biden’s message to voters that he can manage the government and safeguard the country. Voters are already going into this year’s election with&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-donald-trump-government-and-politics-ede57ce56fdf7958addec2cf9ef5e0de">severe misgivings about Biden’s age</a>, having scrutinized his gaffes, his coughing, his slow walking and even a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-us-secret-service-jill-delaware-government-and-politics-d039291d372a38982b533d05d18d7a6f">tumble off his bicycle</a>.

Yet even as Biden defended himself, he committed another gaffe while discussing the Israel-Hamas War and mistakenly referred to Egypt’s leader Abdel Fattah El-Sissi as “the president of Mexico."

In ruling out prosecution of Biden over his retention of highly classified materials as a private citizen, the report from special counsel Robert Hur suggested he would seem too feeble to prosecute: “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.”

Biden said the report's descriptions of his memory and his son's death were “extraneous commentary” that “had no place in this report.” About his son's death, Biden said, “How in the hell dare he raise that?”

“Frankly, when I was asked the question, I thought to myself, it wasn’t any of their damn business,” he said. “Every Memorial Day we hold a service remembering him, attended by friends and family and the people who loved him. I don’t need anyone, I don’t need anyone to remind me when he passed away.”

In response to reporters' questions about his memory, Biden disputed the report's statements and said he's “the most qualified person in this country to be president.”

The White House also pushed back on the characterizations of Biden's memory in a Feb. 5 letter from the president's lawyers that was published in Hur's report. The letter argues that Biden's “inability to recall dates or details of events that happened years ago is neither surprising nor unusual,” particularly about when certain documents were packed or moved.

“We do not believe that the report’s treatment of President Biden’s memory is accurate or appropriate,” the letter said. “The report uses highly prejudicial language to describe a commonplace occurrence among witnesses: a lack of recall of years-old events. Such comments have no place in a Department of Justice report.”

It is not unusual for the subjects of government investigations to say they don't recall an event or a conversation in order to avoid issues such as perjury. The special counsel did not release the transcript of the interviews with Biden, so some context is unclear. Former President Donald Trump, the current Republican front-runner, has boasted of his own vast memory but has also at times said in legal proceedings that he does not recall certain events.

Biden noted in a statement issued Thursday that he had sat for five hours of interviews with Hur's team over two days on Oct. 8 and 9, “even though Israel had just been attacked on October 7th and I was in the middle of handling an international crisis.”

In&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-age-poll-trump-2024-620e0a5cfa0039a6448f607c17c7f23e">an August poll</a>&nbsp;by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs, 77% of U.S. adults said Biden is too old to be effective for four more years. It was one of the rare sources of bipartisan agreement during a politically polarized era, with 89% of Republicans and 69% of Democrats saying Biden’s age is a problem.

The release of the report overlapped with recent Biden speeches in which he mistakenly claimed to talk with European leaders — France’s Francois Mitterrand and Germany’s Helmut Kohl — who had, in fact, not held office since the 1990s and had died several years ago.

The 77-year-old Trump also faces questions about recent memory lapses. In a January speech, Trump&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nikki-haley-trump-mental-fitness-pelosi-522c3cddcaf7b85df5a64658c5041e96">mistakenly and repeatedly</a>&nbsp;confused former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, his major opponent for the GOP nomination, with Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.

Pelosi was the House speaker during the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection by Trump’s supporters who were seeking to stop the certification of the 2020 election results. Trump said it was Haley who led the House and alleged she should have done more to secure it.

But Republican critics were quick to pile on Thursday as the special counsel's report became public.

Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn., said on X, formerly Twitter, that the report was “alarming” and it's clear that Biden “does not have the cognitive ability to be President.”

“If you’re too senile to stand trial, then you’re too senile to be president. Joe Biden is unfit to lead this nation,” said Alex Pfeiffer, a spokesman for Make America Great Again Inc., the main super PAC backing Trump's candidacy.

Shortly before the special counsel's report was publicly released, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was playing down Biden's gaffes at the daily news briefing. Jean-Pierre said the slip-ups are “common” for most public figures, including those younger than Biden.

“It happens to all of us,” said Jean-Pierre, who noted she herself has misspoken, as has House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La.

Jean-Pierre tried to say that the public's attention should be focused more on the substance of what Biden was saying about how world leaders are worried about Trump's possible return to the White House.

And Congressional Black Caucus Chairman Steven Horsford, D-Nev., on Thursday dismissed concerns about Biden’s mental acuity after the president’s mix-ups earlier this week.

“I was with the president on Sunday,” Horsford said, referring to Biden’s Nevada visit. “The president is very well suited to be our commander-in-chief and we’re going to continue to focus on the issues that the American people are focused on.”

WASHINGTON (AP) — The longstanding concerns about President Joe Biden's age and memory intensified on Thursday after the release of a&nbsp;special counsel's report investigating his possession of classified documents.(click below to watch Biden's exchange with reporters)<div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=314&href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FWhiteHouse%2Fvideos%2F690627529895091%2F&show_text=false&width=560&t=243" width="560" height="314" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowFullScreen="true"></iframe></div>The report described the 81-year-old Democrat's memory as “hazy,” “fuzzy,” “faulty,” “poor" and having “significant limitations.” It noted that Biden could not recall defining milestones in his own life such as when his son Beau died or when he served as vice president.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1707478982378.png" alt="Page from the special counsel's report that highlight's Biden's memory challenges.- U.S. Department of Justice" />
 <figcaption>Page from the special counsel's report that highlight's Biden's memory challenges.- U.S. Department of Justice</figcaption>
 </figure>“My memory is fine,” Biden responded Thursday night from the White House, where he grew visibly angry as he denied forgetting when his son died. Beau Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/general-news-d8f69eb645d74b7886387f713981b739">died of brain cancer in 2015</a>&nbsp;at the age of 46.While Biden will not face charges for mishandling classified documents, the report’s assertions about his memory could undermine Biden’s message to voters that he can manage the government and safeguard the country. Voters are already going into this year’s election with&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-donald-trump-government-and-politics-ede57ce56fdf7958addec2cf9ef5e0de">severe misgivings about Biden’s age</a>, having scrutinized his gaffes, his coughing, his slow walking and even a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-us-secret-service-jill-delaware-government-and-politics-d039291d372a38982b533d05d18d7a6f">tumble off his bicycle</a>.Yet even as Biden defended himself, he committed another gaffe while discussing the Israel-Hamas War and mistakenly referred to Egypt’s leader Abdel Fattah El-Sissi as “the president of Mexico."In ruling out prosecution of Biden over his retention of highly classified materials as a private citizen, the report from special counsel Robert Hur suggested he would seem too feeble to prosecute: “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.”Biden said the report's descriptions of his memory and his son's death were “extraneous commentary” that “had no place in this report.” About his son's death, Biden said, “How in the hell dare he raise that?”“Frankly, when I was asked the question, I thought to myself, it wasn’t any of their damn business,” he said. “Every Memorial Day we hold a service remembering him, attended by friends and family and the people who loved him. I don’t need anyone, I don’t need anyone to remind me when he passed away.”In response to reporters' questions about his memory, Biden disputed the report's statements and said he's “the most qualified person in this country to be president.”The White House also pushed back on the characterizations of Biden's memory in a Feb. 5 letter from the president's lawyers that was published in Hur's report. The letter argues that Biden's “inability to recall dates or details of events that happened years ago is neither surprising nor unusual,” particularly about when certain documents were packed or moved.“We do not believe that the report’s treatment of President Biden’s memory is accurate or appropriate,” the letter said. “The report uses highly prejudicial language to describe a commonplace occurrence among witnesses: a lack of recall of years-old events. Such comments have no place in a Department of Justice report.”It is not unusual for the subjects of government investigations to say they don't recall an event or a conversation in order to avoid issues such as perjury. The special counsel did not release the transcript of the interviews with Biden, so some context is unclear. Former President Donald Trump, the current Republican front-runner, has boasted of his own vast memory but has also at times said in legal proceedings that he does not recall certain events.Biden noted in a statement issued Thursday that he had sat for five hours of interviews with Hur's team over two days on Oct. 8 and 9, “even though Israel had just been attacked on October 7th and I was in the middle of handling an international crisis.”In&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-age-poll-trump-2024-620e0a5cfa0039a6448f607c17c7f23e">an August poll</a>&nbsp;by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs, 77% of U.S. adults said Biden is too old to be effective for four more years. It was one of the rare sources of bipartisan agreement during a politically polarized era, with 89% of Republicans and 69% of Democrats saying Biden’s age is a problem.The release of the report overlapped with recent Biden speeches in which he mistakenly claimed to talk with European leaders — France’s Francois Mitterrand and Germany’s Helmut Kohl — who had, in fact, not held office since the 1990s and had died several years ago.The 77-year-old Trump also faces questions about recent memory lapses. In a January speech, Trump&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nikki-haley-trump-mental-fitness-pelosi-522c3cddcaf7b85df5a64658c5041e96">mistakenly and repeatedly</a>&nbsp;confused former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, his major opponent for the GOP nomination, with Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.Pelosi was the House speaker during the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection by Trump’s supporters who were seeking to stop the certification of the 2020 election results. Trump said it was Haley who led the House and alleged she should have done more to secure it.But Republican critics were quick to pile on Thursday as the special counsel's report became public.Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn., said on X, formerly Twitter, that the report was “alarming” and it's clear that Biden “does not have the cognitive ability to be President.”“If you’re too senile to stand trial, then you’re too senile to be president. Joe Biden is unfit to lead this nation,” said Alex Pfeiffer, a spokesman for Make America Great Again Inc., the main super PAC backing Trump's candidacy.Shortly before the special counsel's report was publicly released, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was playing down Biden's gaffes at the daily news briefing. Jean-Pierre said the slip-ups are “common” for most public figures, including those younger than Biden.“It happens to all of us,” said Jean-Pierre, who noted she herself has misspoken, as has House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La.Jean-Pierre tried to say that the public's attention should be focused more on the substance of what Biden was saying about how world leaders are worried about Trump's possible return to the White House.And Congressional Black Caucus Chairman Steven Horsford, D-Nev., on Thursday dismissed concerns about Biden’s mental acuity after the president’s mix-ups earlier this week.“I was with the president on Sunday,” Horsford said, referring to Biden’s Nevada visit. “The president is very well suited to be our commander-in-chief and we’re going to continue to focus on the issues that the American people are focused on.”

🎥 President Biden answers questions on his age, memory

ELLIS COUNTY —The Hays Police Department is investigating a criminal case of animal cruelty, according to a social media report.

Police are asking for the public’s help in finding the owner or owners of this young male puppy that was in poor health and placed in a box next to two large dumpsters on Wednesday in the 1500 block of Old Highway 40 bypass in Hays.

The puppy was taken to an area vet clinic where it tested positive for parvovirus.

If you recognize this puppy or know who may have owned the puppy, please contact the Hays Police Department at 785-625-1030.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1707483650332.png" alt="photo Hays Police" />
 <figcaption>photo Hays Police</figcaption>
 </figure>ELLIS COUNTY —The Hays Police Department is investigating a criminal case of animal cruelty, according to a social media report.Police are asking for the public’s help in finding the owner or owners of this young male puppy that was in poor health and placed in a box next to two large dumpsters on Wednesday in the 1500 block of Old Highway 40 bypass in Hays.The puppy was taken to an area vet clinic where it tested positive for parvovirus.If you recognize this puppy or know who may have owned the puppy, please contact the Hays Police Department at 785-625-1030.

Police asking for help with report of alleged animal cruelty

LAS VEGAS (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Former President Donald Trump</a>&nbsp;won Nevada’s Republican presidential caucuses Thursday after he was the only major candidate to compete, winning his third straight state as he tries to secure his party's nomination.

<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nevada-donald-trump-nikki-haley-none-candidates-d5ce36684eb7e41d7d2e74c6957e9196">Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley</a>, his last major rival still in the race, skipped the caucuses even though they are the only contest in Nevada that counts toward the GOP nomination. Haley cited what she considered an unfair process favoring Trump and instead ran in Nevada’s symbolic state-run presidential primary on Tuesday, when she finished behind the “none of these candidates” option.

Trump will win most, if not&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nevada-caucuses-trump-delegates-race-call-winner-4cd8b5b299b89fec69c2185269f7ff12">all, of the state’s 26 delegates</a>. He needs to accrue 1,215 delegates to formally clinch the party’s nomination and could reach that number in March.

From Nevada, the GOP contest pivots to the South Carolina primary in Haley's home state on Feb. 24. Trump remains popular in the deeply conservative state but Haley, who won two elections as South Carolina’s governor, is hoping her local roots give her an edge. Trump is eyeing a massive delegate haul during the March 5 Super Tuesday contests, which would move him closer to becoming the GOP’s presumptive nominee.

Trump, delivering a brief victory speech in Las Vegas, basked in reports of long lines in the Western state and told his supporters he was eager to declare victory in the upcoming South Carolina primary.

“We're leading everybody," he said. "Is there any way we can call the election for next Tuesday? That's all I want.”

Though Trump has been the front-runner, Nevada’s caucuses were seen as especially skewed in his favor due to the intense grassroots support caucuses require candidates to harness around a state in order to win. Nevada’s state party gave him a greater edge last year when it barred candidates from running both in the primary and caucuses and also restricted the role of super PACs like the groups that were key to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ campaign before he dropped out.

Caucuses typically require voters to show up for an in-person meeting at a certain day or time, while elections can offer more flexibility to participate, with polls open for most of the day on Election Day along with absentee or early voting. Nevada Republicans said they wanted certain rules in place like a requirement that participants show a government-issued ID.

Trump's supporters waited in long lines Thursday. At one caucus site at a Reno-area elementary school, a line of nearly 1,000 people stretched around the corner and down the street 20 minutes after the caucuses opened.

Voters in line, some of whom were wearing Trump hats and shirts, said they came out to back the former president in a contest that would give him a third straight win in the Republican presidential race.

“I think it’s about backing Trump up and giving him the support that he needs. And to let people know that we’re supporting him,” said Heather Kirkwood, 47.

Trump has long been immensely popular among Nevada Republicans, but he had other perceived advantages among the party’s key figures. Nevada GOP Party Chair Michael McDonald and the state’s Republican National Committeeman Jim DeGraffenreid were among six Republicans in the state&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/fake-electors-nevada-indictment-ba84be72465e635dbaadc312a9632fc8">indicted</a>&nbsp;on felony charges that they were so-called fake electors who sent certificates to Congress falsely claiming Trump won Nevada in 2020. The chairman of the Republican Party in Clark County — the largest county, which is home to Las Vegas — was another of the six so-called fake electors.

Republicans are increasingly converging behind Trump while he&nbsp;<a href="https://projects.apnews.com/features/2023/trump-investigations-civil-criminal-tracker/index.html">faces a deluge of legal problems</a>, including 91 criminal charges in four separate cases. Trump is flexing his influence both in Congress — where&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/congress-border-security-bill-ukraine-b386eae0c4947497da931870dbcb28a0">Republicans rejected a border security deal</a>&nbsp;after he pushed against it — and at the Republican National Committee, as chairwoman Ronna McDaniel&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ronna-mcdaniel-rnc-chair-trump-979f357db73ca5505f12f91977f55b3b">could resign in the coming weeks</a>&nbsp;after he publicly questioned whether she should stay in the job.

Trump still faces unprecedented jeopardy for a major candidate. A&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-capitol-riot-presidential-immunity-appeal-46c2d7fc7807cd3262764d35e47f390e">federal appeals panel ruled this week</a>&nbsp;that Trump can face trial on charges that he plotted to overturn the results of the 2020 election, rejecting his claims that he is immune from prosecution. The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-trump-insurrection-2024-election-0baac5ba0c1868e437e365af17eeab24">heard arguments</a>&nbsp;in a case trying to keep Trump from the 2024 presidential ballot over his efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss. The justices sounded broadly skeptical of the effort.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1707480079314.png" alt="Trump, delivered a brief victory speech in Las Vegas-image courtesy CSPAN" />
 <figcaption>Trump, delivered a brief victory speech in Las Vegas-image courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
 </figure>LAS VEGAS (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Former President Donald Trump</a>&nbsp;won Nevada’s Republican presidential caucuses Thursday after he was the only major candidate to compete, winning his third straight state as he tries to secure his party's nomination.<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nevada-donald-trump-nikki-haley-none-candidates-d5ce36684eb7e41d7d2e74c6957e9196">Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley</a>, his last major rival still in the race, skipped the caucuses even though they are the only contest in Nevada that counts toward the GOP nomination. Haley cited what she considered an unfair process favoring Trump and instead ran in Nevada’s symbolic state-run presidential primary on Tuesday, when she finished behind the “none of these candidates” option.Trump will win most, if not&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nevada-caucuses-trump-delegates-race-call-winner-4cd8b5b299b89fec69c2185269f7ff12">all, of the state’s 26 delegates</a>. He needs to accrue 1,215 delegates to formally clinch the party’s nomination and could reach that number in March.From Nevada, the GOP contest pivots to the South Carolina primary in Haley's home state on Feb. 24. Trump remains popular in the deeply conservative state but Haley, who won two elections as South Carolina’s governor, is hoping her local roots give her an edge. Trump is eyeing a massive delegate haul during the March 5 Super Tuesday contests, which would move him closer to becoming the GOP’s presumptive nominee.Trump, delivering a brief victory speech in Las Vegas, basked in reports of long lines in the Western state and told his supporters he was eager to declare victory in the upcoming South Carolina primary.“We're leading everybody," he said. "Is there any way we can call the election for next Tuesday? That's all I want.”Though Trump has been the front-runner, Nevada’s caucuses were seen as especially skewed in his favor due to the intense grassroots support caucuses require candidates to harness around a state in order to win. Nevada’s state party gave him a greater edge last year when it barred candidates from running both in the primary and caucuses and also restricted the role of super PACs like the groups that were key to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ campaign before he dropped out.Caucuses typically require voters to show up for an in-person meeting at a certain day or time, while elections can offer more flexibility to participate, with polls open for most of the day on Election Day along with absentee or early voting. Nevada Republicans said they wanted certain rules in place like a requirement that participants show a government-issued ID.Trump's supporters waited in long lines Thursday. At one caucus site at a Reno-area elementary school, a line of nearly 1,000 people stretched around the corner and down the street 20 minutes after the caucuses opened.Voters in line, some of whom were wearing Trump hats and shirts, said they came out to back the former president in a contest that would give him a third straight win in the Republican presidential race.“I think it’s about backing Trump up and giving him the support that he needs. And to let people know that we’re supporting him,” said Heather Kirkwood, 47.Trump has long been immensely popular among Nevada Republicans, but he had other perceived advantages among the party’s key figures. Nevada GOP Party Chair Michael McDonald and the state’s Republican National Committeeman Jim DeGraffenreid were among six Republicans in the state&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/fake-electors-nevada-indictment-ba84be72465e635dbaadc312a9632fc8">indicted</a>&nbsp;on felony charges that they were so-called fake electors who sent certificates to Congress falsely claiming Trump won Nevada in 2020. The chairman of the Republican Party in Clark County — the largest county, which is home to Las Vegas — was another of the six so-called fake electors.Republicans are increasingly converging behind Trump while he&nbsp;<a href="https://projects.apnews.com/features/2023/trump-investigations-civil-criminal-tracker/index.html">faces a deluge of legal problems</a>, including 91 criminal charges in four separate cases. Trump is flexing his influence both in Congress — where&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/congress-border-security-bill-ukraine-b386eae0c4947497da931870dbcb28a0">Republicans rejected a border security deal</a>&nbsp;after he pushed against it — and at the Republican National Committee, as chairwoman Ronna McDaniel&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ronna-mcdaniel-rnc-chair-trump-979f357db73ca5505f12f91977f55b3b">could resign in the coming weeks</a>&nbsp;after he publicly questioned whether she should stay in the job.Trump still faces unprecedented jeopardy for a major candidate. A&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-capitol-riot-presidential-immunity-appeal-46c2d7fc7807cd3262764d35e47f390e">federal appeals panel ruled this week</a>&nbsp;that Trump can face trial on charges that he plotted to overturn the results of the 2020 election, rejecting his claims that he is immune from prosecution. The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-trump-insurrection-2024-election-0baac5ba0c1868e437e365af17eeab24">heard arguments</a>&nbsp;in a case trying to keep Trump from the 2024 presidential ballot over his efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss. The justices sounded broadly skeptical of the effort.

Trump wins Nevada’s Republican caucuses

KANSAS CITY —A&nbsp; 7-year-old girl injured in a crash on Monday died of her injuries.

Just before 5p.m. February 5, a Chevrolet Suburban was eastbound on 23rd Street Trafficway at Stark Avenue, according to KC Police Captain Jake Becchina.

The SUV traveled&nbsp; off the road to the right onto the soft dirt shoulder. The driver overcorrected, causing the SUV to go into a broad slide. It slid across the center median where it was struck on the passenger side by a westbound Ford F150.

EMS transported both drivers and a juvenile passenger of the Suburban&nbsp; to local hospitals. The girl was transported in critical condition and she died Thursday, according to Becchina.&nbsp; Police have not released names of the those involved as the investigation continues.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1707424975795.png" alt="Scene of the Monday crash photo courtesy Fox4Kansas CIty" />
 <figcaption>Scene of the Monday crash photo courtesy Fox4Kansas CIty</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY —A&nbsp; 7-year-old girl injured in a crash on Monday died of her injuries.Just before 5p.m. February 5, a Chevrolet Suburban was eastbound on 23rd Street Trafficway at Stark Avenue, according to KC Police Captain Jake Becchina.The SUV traveled&nbsp; off the road to the right onto the soft dirt shoulder. The driver overcorrected, causing the SUV to go into a broad slide. It slid across the center median where it was struck on the passenger side by a westbound Ford F150.EMS transported both drivers and a juvenile passenger of the Suburban&nbsp; to local hospitals. The girl was transported in critical condition and she died Thursday, according to Becchina.&nbsp; Police have not released names of the those involved as the investigation continues..

7-year-old dies three days after injured in KC-area crash

WASHINGTON (AP) — Special Counsel Robert Hur on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-hur-garland-classified-documents-836b99fe9cbef9ba7d32602f4928efec" target="_blank">Thursday released his long-awaited report on President Joe Biden’s handling of classified documents</a>, and it’s not great news for the president on multiple fronts. The report concludes that no criminal charges against Biden are warranted. But it also says there was evidence that Biden “willfully” retained and disclosed highly classified materials when he was a private citizen. And it highlights his confusion and “significantly limited” recall of events related to the documents.&nbsp;

Some takeaways from the 345-page report:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.justice.gov/storage/report-from-special-counsel-robert-k-hur-february-2024.pdf">Click here to read&nbsp;</a>the report

Biden can breathe easier knowing he won’t face criminal charges for his handling of the documents. But the Hur report nonetheless does damage to Biden’s case that he brings normalcy to the presidency&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-classified-documents-trump-side-by-side-fb2c4ebccdbdbb9039c1c5e227b1da53" target="_blank">after the chaos of Trump’s tenure.</a>

Images of federal agents finding a classified Biden memo on Afghanistan from his time as vice president stashed in his Delaware garage work against the Democratic president’s argument that he’s a more competent chief executive and a more careful steward of the nation’s secrets than Trump.

<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-justice-department-indictment-classified-documents-miami-182ac44fde89767bc0c3e634f61686bd" target="_blank">Trump is under criminal indictment for knowingly hanging</a>&nbsp;on to to classified records at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida and resisting turning them over, perhaps the most damning — and stickiest — of the four criminal cases against him. Biden, for his part, faces no charges.

Weeks after the FBI searched Trump’s private residence and turned up classified documents, Biden slammed his predecessor as “totally irresponsible.”

As Biden ramps up his&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-nevada-primary-trump-2024-presidential-election-a7900c2fdb926e50c8bea31b4dadd210" target="_blank">2024 reelection campaign</a>&nbsp;— and his case against Trump — he’s not likely to try that argument again.

BIDEN’S HAZY MEMORY RAISES NEW QUESTIONS ABOUT AGE

The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/jill-biden-joe-age-president-voters-d99f320b78dd63c60f2617979f776542" target="_blank">81-year-old Biden was already dogged</a>&nbsp;by questions about whether he’s too old to serve a second term. The special counsel report will hardly be helpful to Biden on that count.

Hur noted that “Mr. Biden’s memory was significantly limited” in interviews with the special counsel office as well as with a ghostwriter that Biden worked with.

In his interview with the special counsel’s office, Hur writes, Biden twice appeared confused about when his term as vice president ended.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-politics-us-national-security-council-donald-trump-united-states-government-e8c56297702daf253b9e0fcb45e17b6c" target="_blank">The report notes that Biden,</a>&nbsp;who speaks frequently about his son Beau’s death, could not remember “even within several years” when he died.

“And his memory appeared hazy when describing the Afghanistan debate that was once so important to him,” the report said. “Among other things, he mistakenly said he ‘had a real difference’ of opinion with General Karl Eikenberry, when, in fact, Eikenberry was an ally whom Mr. Biden cited approvingly in his Thanksgiving memo to President Obama.”

<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-age-poll-trump-2024-620e0a5cfa0039a6448f607c17c7f23e" target="_blank">Polls have shown that many Americans,</a>&nbsp;including Democrats, have concerns about Biden’s age. He would be 86 at the end of his second term if reelected.

Biden was absolved of criminal behavior, but it’s Trump who may benefit.

The Republican former president, who is on a glidepath to his party’s nomination this year, has been charged with dozens of felony counts related to his handling of classified materials stored at his Florida estate after leaving the White House. Trump has been crying foul on the campaign trail for much of the last year, noting that Biden had also stored classified materials in his garage.

Thursday’s report will have little bearing on Trump’s legal case, but it makes his political argument stronger.

There are, of course, stark differences between how&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-politics-united-states-government-812ef44a5333f6d93423a67a683fa024" target="_blank">Trump and Biden navigated their classified document cases</a>. Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-classified-documents-justice-4c657c8d19e3b1f232952a266eccc9b6" target="_blank">cooperated with</a>&nbsp;authorities. Trump fought them to the point that the investigators had to get a court order to search his home in Florida after he repeatedly rebuffed requests for the documents.

Still, Trump can now cite special counsel Robert Hur’s finding that Biden retained and disclosed highly classified materials. And Trump can at least muddy the Democrats’ argument that he alone represents a threat to democracy. Trump campaign spokesman Jason Miller simply shared a smiley face in one social media post responding to Hur’s report.

But Trump still has another important hurdle: special counsel Jack Smith’s investigation in Washington that charges Trump with crimes for his role in the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.

An embattled candidate Trump was struggling under the weight of mounting political crises on the eve of the general election that year when federal prosecutors made an unusual announcement about his Democratic opponent’s handling of classified documents:&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/events-united-states-presidential-election-ae7656186b9745578a217f427cdc64cf" target="_blank">Hillary Clinton’s emails.</a>

In late October of 2016, FBI Director James Comey announced that Clinton would not face criminal charges, but had made a “serious error of judgment” in her handling of State Department emails on her private email server. It was a legal victory for her.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/8353b04435574d89b182fe1c7181fc77" target="_blank">But the politics were bad for Democrats.</a>

Some are convinced that Comey’s decision to criticize Clinton so openly — even while ruling out criminality — ultimately enabled Trump’s victory.

<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-indictment-clinton-classified-documents-republican-claims-7681bc9807ecd8bc37fd3f39b9756cc7" target="_blank">The timing is dramatically different this time.</a>

Comey’s announcement was just 11 days before the 2016 general election, while Thursday’s comes nine months before Election Day 2024. That gives Biden’s campaign a lot more time to do what Clinton could not — convince voters that the legal victory is what matters.

During his interview with special counsel investigators, Biden was “emphatic’ that his notebooks were “my property.”

“Every president before me has done the exact same thing,” he said.

The statement had echoes of former president Donald Trump, who has been charged with illegally possessing classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate after he left office.

“Under the Presidential Records Act, which is civil not criminal, I had every right to have these documents,”&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-indictment-presidential-records-act-1df64502d1640076690fac52638daebf" target="_blank">Trump has said.</a>

Sounds similar, but there are some differences. Trump was arguing that large swaths of presidential records were his personal property. Biden was making a specific claim about personal writings, for which there is legal precedent.

Investigators said that Biden mentioned that former President Ronald Reagan kept diaries in his home and that contemporaneous evidence from the investigators suggested that Biden believed he could keep the notebooks at home.

That’s true.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reaganlibrary.gov/archives/reagans-daily-diary" target="_blank">Reagan left the White House in 1989 with eight years’ worth of handwritten diaries</a>&nbsp;though they contained top secret information, investigators said. Those documents came up during criminal litigation in the late 1980s and were referred to by the justice department as “personal records.”

Trump, though, has been accused of purposefully hanging on to boxes of documents even after National Archives requested they be returned,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-mar-a-lago-government-and-politics-9e8d683afe87389407950af7ccfdbdd6" target="_blank">forcing FBI agents to come to his estate to take them.</a>&nbsp;The documents were military secrets and details of the U.S. nuclear capabilities that prosecutors argue he sought to keep as mementos, prosecutors said.

The special counsel’s report takes what seems at times gratuitous aim at Biden’s memory and mental capability as it lays out the ways in which the president could mount a hypothetical defense had he been charged with a crime.

It reports: “We have also considered that, at trial, 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.”

Why so harsh? The Justice Department is in a precarious position, investigating Biden,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/hunter-biden" target="_blank">his son Hunter</a>&nbsp;and also Donald Trump on separate accusations, all during the 2024 presidential campaign. Trump has repeatedly claimed that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-indictment-justice-department-takeover-democracy-threats-7b399ab628db7330ed99fac8c3784170" target="_blank">federal investigators are out to send him to jail for political revenge</a>. And Attorney General Merrick Garland has taken great pains to insulate the department from Trump’s attacks and demonstrate prosecutorial independence.

As such, he selected&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/classified-documents-biden-home-wilmington-33479d12c7cf0a822adb2f44c32b88fd" target="_blank">Robert Hur, a Republican former U.S. attorney appointed by Trump</a>&nbsp;to oversee the investigation into whether Biden mishandled classified documents. The appointment came amid&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-classified-documents-justice-department-2119e67415055cb16851d85b4c412534" target="_blank">special counsel Jack Smith’s</a>&nbsp;investigation of Trump’s handling of classified documents and the former president’s role in the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol.

The dings at Biden’s memory were blasted as cheap, false shots by Biden’s attorney and White House lawyers, who said the report uses prejudicial words to describe “a commonplace occurrence among witnesses: a lack of recall of years-old events.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1707440857861.png" alt="President Biden angrily pushed back at special counsel's report that questioned his memory-photo White House" />
 <figcaption>President Biden angrily pushed back at special counsel's report that questioned his memory-photo White House</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — Special Counsel Robert Hur on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-hur-garland-classified-documents-836b99fe9cbef9ba7d32602f4928efec" target="_blank">Thursday released his long-awaited report on President Joe Biden’s handling of classified documents</a>, and it’s not great news for the president on multiple fronts. The report concludes that no criminal charges against Biden are warranted. But it also says there was evidence that Biden “willfully” retained and disclosed highly classified materials when he was a private citizen. And it highlights his confusion and “significantly limited” recall of events related to the documents.&nbsp;<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">🚨 BREAKING: President Biden was not charged in the classified documents case because the DOJ found him too cognitively impaired to stand trial. According to Special Counsel Hur’s report, Joe Biden did not remember when he was Vice President or when his son Beau passed away.…&mdash; Rep. Jake LaTurner (@RepLaTurner) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepLaTurner/status/1755718652731564085?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 8, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Special counsel: the President is a criminal, but mentally unfit to stand trial. Quite a pitch for Biden to take to voters&mdash; Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) <a href="https://twitter.com/HawleyMO/status/1755754859008012665?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 9, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">&quot;Our investigation uncovered evidence that President Biden willfully retained and disclosed classified materials after his vice presidency when he was a private citizen.&quot; No charges for the Big Guy. The two-tiered justice system hard at work. <a href="https://t.co/hun1wVA1HW">https://t.co/hun1wVA1HW</a>&mdash; Dr. Roger Marshall (@RogerMarshallMD) <a href="https://twitter.com/RogerMarshallMD/status/1755701352179671223?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 8, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">“Too mentally incompetent to stand trial” is not exactly a winning campaign slogan for Joe Biden. <a href="https://t.co/xp0kDGxqwP">pic.twitter.com/xp0kDGxqwP</a>&mdash; Eric Schmitt (@Eric_Schmitt) <a href="https://twitter.com/Eric_Schmitt/status/1755732596170834020?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 8, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Who will be the first patriotic Democrat in Congress to state the obvious and - for the good of the country - invoke the 25th Amendment&mdash; Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) <a href="https://twitter.com/HawleyMO/status/1755755438992150696?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 9, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Some takeaways from the 345-page report:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.justice.gov/storage/report-from-special-counsel-robert-k-hur-february-2024.pdf">Click here to read&nbsp;</a>the report<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1707478982378.png" alt="Page from the special counsel's report that highlight's Biden's memory challenges.- U.S. Department of Justice" />
 <figcaption>Page from the special counsel's report that highlight's Biden's memory challenges.- U.S. Department of Justice</figcaption>
 </figure>Biden can breathe easier knowing he won’t face criminal charges for his handling of the documents. But the Hur report nonetheless does damage to Biden’s case that he brings normalcy to the presidency&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-classified-documents-trump-side-by-side-fb2c4ebccdbdbb9039c1c5e227b1da53" target="_blank">after the chaos of Trump’s tenure.</a>Images of federal agents finding a classified Biden memo on Afghanistan from his time as vice president stashed in his Delaware garage work against the Democratic president’s argument that he’s a more competent chief executive and a more careful steward of the nation’s secrets than Trump.<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-justice-department-indictment-classified-documents-miami-182ac44fde89767bc0c3e634f61686bd" target="_blank">Trump is under criminal indictment for knowingly hanging</a>&nbsp;on to to classified records at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida and resisting turning them over, perhaps the most damning — and stickiest — of the four criminal cases against him. Biden, for his part, faces no charges.Weeks after the FBI searched Trump’s private residence and turned up classified documents, Biden slammed his predecessor as “totally irresponsible.”As Biden ramps up his&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-nevada-primary-trump-2024-presidential-election-a7900c2fdb926e50c8bea31b4dadd210" target="_blank">2024 reelection campaign</a>&nbsp;— and his case against Trump — he’s not likely to try that argument again.<h2>BIDEN’S HAZY MEMORY RAISES NEW QUESTIONS ABOUT AGE</h2>The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/jill-biden-joe-age-president-voters-d99f320b78dd63c60f2617979f776542" target="_blank">81-year-old Biden was already dogged</a>&nbsp;by questions about whether he’s too old to serve a second term. The special counsel report will hardly be helpful to Biden on that count.Hur noted that “Mr. Biden’s memory was significantly limited” in interviews with the special counsel office as well as with a ghostwriter that Biden worked with.In his interview with the special counsel’s office, Hur writes, Biden twice appeared confused about when his term as vice president ended.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-politics-us-national-security-council-donald-trump-united-states-government-e8c56297702daf253b9e0fcb45e17b6c" target="_blank">The report notes that Biden,</a>&nbsp;who speaks frequently about his son Beau’s death, could not remember “even within several years” when he died.“And his memory appeared hazy when describing the Afghanistan debate that was once so important to him,” the report said. “Among other things, he mistakenly said he ‘had a real difference’ of opinion with General Karl Eikenberry, when, in fact, Eikenberry was an ally whom Mr. Biden cited approvingly in his Thanksgiving memo to President Obama.”<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-age-poll-trump-2024-620e0a5cfa0039a6448f607c17c7f23e" target="_blank">Polls have shown that many Americans,</a>&nbsp;including Democrats, have concerns about Biden’s age. He would be 86 at the end of his second term if reelected.<h2>BIDEN CASE GIVES TRUMP AN ARGUMENT</h2>Biden was absolved of criminal behavior, but it’s Trump who may benefit.The Republican former president, who is on a glidepath to his party’s nomination this year, has been charged with dozens of felony counts related to his handling of classified materials stored at his Florida estate after leaving the White House. Trump has been crying foul on the campaign trail for much of the last year, noting that Biden had also stored classified materials in his garage.Thursday’s report will have little bearing on Trump’s legal case, but it makes his political argument stronger.There are, of course, stark differences between how&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-politics-united-states-government-812ef44a5333f6d93423a67a683fa024" target="_blank">Trump and Biden navigated their classified document cases</a>. Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-classified-documents-justice-4c657c8d19e3b1f232952a266eccc9b6" target="_blank">cooperated with</a>&nbsp;authorities. Trump fought them to the point that the investigators had to get a court order to search his home in Florida after he repeatedly rebuffed requests for the documents.Still, Trump can now cite special counsel Robert Hur’s finding that Biden retained and disclosed highly classified materials. And Trump can at least muddy the Democrats’ argument that he alone represents a threat to democracy. Trump campaign spokesman Jason Miller simply shared a smiley face in one social media post responding to Hur’s report.But Trump still has another important hurdle: special counsel Jack Smith’s investigation in Washington that charges Trump with crimes for his role in the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.<h2>ECHOES OF 2016</h2>The parallels are striking.An embattled candidate Trump was struggling under the weight of mounting political crises on the eve of the general election that year when federal prosecutors made an unusual announcement about his Democratic opponent’s handling of classified documents:&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/events-united-states-presidential-election-ae7656186b9745578a217f427cdc64cf" target="_blank">Hillary Clinton’s emails.</a>In late October of 2016, FBI Director James Comey announced that Clinton would not face criminal charges, but had made a “serious error of judgment” in her handling of State Department emails on her private email server. It was a legal victory for her.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/8353b04435574d89b182fe1c7181fc77" target="_blank">But the politics were bad for Democrats.</a>Some are convinced that Comey’s decision to criticize Clinton so openly — even while ruling out criminality — ultimately enabled Trump’s victory.<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-indictment-clinton-classified-documents-republican-claims-7681bc9807ecd8bc37fd3f39b9756cc7" target="_blank">The timing is dramatically different this time.</a>Comey’s announcement was just 11 days before the 2016 general election, while Thursday’s comes nine months before Election Day 2024. That gives Biden’s campaign a lot more time to do what Clinton could not — convince voters that the legal victory is what matters.<h2>MY PROPERTY</h2>During his interview with special counsel investigators, Biden was “emphatic’ that his notebooks were “my property.”“Every president before me has done the exact same thing,” he said.The statement had echoes of former president Donald Trump, who has been charged with illegally possessing classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate after he left office.“Under the Presidential Records Act, which is civil not criminal, I had every right to have these documents,”&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-indictment-presidential-records-act-1df64502d1640076690fac52638daebf" target="_blank">Trump has said.</a>Sounds similar, but there are some differences. Trump was arguing that large swaths of presidential records were his personal property. Biden was making a specific claim about personal writings, for which there is legal precedent.Investigators said that Biden mentioned that former President Ronald Reagan kept diaries in his home and that contemporaneous evidence from the investigators suggested that Biden believed he could keep the notebooks at home.That’s true.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reaganlibrary.gov/archives/reagans-daily-diary" target="_blank">Reagan left the White House in 1989 with eight years’ worth of handwritten diaries</a>&nbsp;though they contained top secret information, investigators said. Those documents came up during criminal litigation in the late 1980s and were referred to by the justice department as “personal records.”Trump, though, has been accused of purposefully hanging on to boxes of documents even after National Archives requested they be returned,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-mar-a-lago-government-and-politics-9e8d683afe87389407950af7ccfdbdd6" target="_blank">forcing FBI agents to come to his estate to take them.</a>&nbsp;The documents were military secrets and details of the U.S. nuclear capabilities that prosecutors argue he sought to keep as mementos, prosecutors said.<h2>KNIVES OUT AT JUSTICE DEPARTMENT</h2>The special counsel’s report takes what seems at times gratuitous aim at Biden’s memory and mental capability as it lays out the ways in which the president could mount a hypothetical defense had he been charged with a crime.It reports: “We have also considered that, at trial, 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.”Why so harsh? The Justice Department is in a precarious position, investigating Biden,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/hunter-biden" target="_blank">his son Hunter</a>&nbsp;and also Donald Trump on separate accusations, all during the 2024 presidential campaign. Trump has repeatedly claimed that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-indictment-justice-department-takeover-democracy-threats-7b399ab628db7330ed99fac8c3784170" target="_blank">federal investigators are out to send him to jail for political revenge</a>. And Attorney General Merrick Garland has taken great pains to insulate the department from Trump’s attacks and demonstrate prosecutorial independence.As such, he selected&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/classified-documents-biden-home-wilmington-33479d12c7cf0a822adb2f44c32b88fd" target="_blank">Robert Hur, a Republican former U.S. attorney appointed by Trump</a>&nbsp;to oversee the investigation into whether Biden mishandled classified documents. The appointment came amid&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-classified-documents-justice-department-2119e67415055cb16851d85b4c412534" target="_blank">special counsel Jack Smith’s</a>&nbsp;investigation of Trump’s handling of classified documents and the former president’s role in the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol.The dings at Biden’s memory were blasted as cheap, false shots by Biden’s attorney and White House lawyers, who said the report uses prejudicial words to describe “a commonplace occurrence among witnesses: a lack of recall of years-old events.”<h2>___</h2>

Kan., Mo. lawmakers respond to Biden, special counsel report

JERUSALEM —A tensions continue to escalate in the Middle East, U.S. warships are busy responding to threats.

Between 5 a.m. – 9 p.m. (Sanaa time) Thursday, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces conducted seven self-defense strikes against four Houthi unmanned surface vessels (USV) and seven mobile anti-ship cruise missiles that were prepared to launch against ships in the Red Sea.

CENTCOM identified these missiles and USVs in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen and determined they presented an imminent threat to U.S. Navy ships and merchant vessels in the region.

Meanwhile, the leader of Yemen’s Houthi rebels said his forces will keep up their monthslong campaign of attacks on vessels in the Red Sea over Israel’s war in Gaza against Hamas.

"Food, medicine and humanitarian air should reach all different parts of Gaza. If not, we will carry on our operations,” said Abdel Malek al-Houthi, a Yemeni politician who serves as the leader of the Iran-backed rebel movement, in a televised speech Thursday.

The war in Gaza has caused a humanitarian catastrophe, and northern areas remain largely cut off from humanitarian aid.

Al-Houthi said the U.S. and British militaries had launched a total of 86 air and naval strikes on Yemen this week.

However, al-Houthi said the retaliatory strikes would not achieve their intended goal of disabling the group's abilities, and said the attacks were Washington's attempt to save face.

“Carrying on with strikes won’t do the U.S., Britain or Israel any good,” al-Houthi said.

In recent weeks, the U.S. and the U.K., backed by other allies, have launched airstrikes targeting Houthi missile arsenals and launch sites for its attacks.

The barrage of U.S., coalition and militant attacks in the Middle East are compounding fears that Israel’s war in Gaza could escalate into a wider regional conflict.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1707179984034.png" alt="File image from the U.S. attack Feb. 2- U.S. Central Command" />
 <figcaption>File image from the U.S. attack Feb. 2- U.S. Central Command</figcaption>
 </figure>JERUSALEM —A tensions continue to escalate in the Middle East, U.S. warships are busy responding to threats.Between 5 a.m. – 9 p.m. (Sanaa time) Thursday, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces conducted seven self-defense strikes against four Houthi unmanned surface vessels (USV) and seven mobile anti-ship cruise missiles that were prepared to launch against ships in the Red Sea.CENTCOM identified these missiles and USVs in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen and determined they presented an imminent threat to U.S. Navy ships and merchant vessels in the region.Meanwhile, the leader of Yemen’s Houthi rebels said his forces will keep up their monthslong campaign of attacks on vessels in the Red Sea over Israel’s war in Gaza against Hamas."Food, medicine and humanitarian air should reach all different parts of Gaza. If not, we will carry on our operations,” said Abdel Malek al-Houthi, a Yemeni politician who serves as the leader of the Iran-backed rebel movement, in a televised speech Thursday.The war in Gaza has caused a humanitarian catastrophe, and northern areas remain largely cut off from humanitarian aid.Al-Houthi said the U.S. and British militaries had launched a total of 86 air and naval strikes on Yemen this week.However, al-Houthi said the retaliatory strikes would not achieve their intended goal of disabling the group's abilities, and said the attacks were Washington's attempt to save face.“Carrying on with strikes won’t do the U.S., Britain or Israel any good,” al-Houthi said.In recent weeks, the U.S. and the U.K., backed by other allies, have launched airstrikes targeting Houthi missile arsenals and launch sites for its attacks.The barrage of U.S., coalition and militant attacks in the Middle East are compounding fears that Israel’s war in Gaza could escalate into a wider regional conflict.

U.S. warships conduct self defense strikes in Red Sea

CLOUD COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating a suspect in connection with a violent incident in Cloud County.

Just before 2a.m. Saturday, police and EMS responded to report of a disturbance that started and escalated inside the American Legion, 506 Washington Street in Concordia, according to Police Lt. Devin Anderson.

First responders found four stabbing victims from the altercation on the sidewalk.

Concordia EMS provided medical attention to the victims while officers secured the crime scene and arrested&nbsp;24-year-old Nathan Robinson of Concordia. 

Robinson has been charged with four counts of attempted second degree murder and aggravated battery, according to the Cloud County Attorney's office.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1707412300575.png" alt="Robinson-photo&nbsp; Cloud Co. Sheriff" />
 <figcaption>Robinson-photo&nbsp; Cloud Co. Sheriff</figcaption>
 </figure>CLOUD COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating a suspect in connection with a violent incident in Cloud County.Just before 2a.m. Saturday, police and EMS responded to report of a disturbance that started and escalated inside the American Legion, 506 Washington Street in Concordia, according to Police Lt. Devin Anderson.First responders found four stabbing victims from the altercation on the sidewalk.Concordia EMS provided medical attention to the victims while officers secured the crime scene and arrested&nbsp;24-year-old Nathan Robinson of Concordia. Robinson has been charged with four counts of attempted second degree murder and aggravated battery, according to the Cloud County Attorney's office.

Kansas man charged after 4 stabbed outside American Legion

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden “willfully” retained and disclosed highly classified materials when he was a private citizen, including documents about military and foreign policy in Afghanistan and other sensitive national security matters, according to a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.justice.gov/storage/report-from-special-counsel-robert-k-hur-february-2024.pdf">Justice Department report</a>&nbsp;that nonetheless says no criminal charges are warranted for him or anyone else.

<a href="https://www.justice.gov/storage/report-from-special-counsel-robert-k-hur-february-2024.pdf">Click here to read </a>the special council report

The report from&nbsp;<a href="https://www.justice.gov/sco-hur">special counsel Robert Hur</a>, released Thursday, represents a harshly critical assessment of Biden’s handling of sensitive government materials, but also details the reasons why he should not be charged with the crime.

The findings will likely blunt his ability to forcefully condemn Donald Trump, Biden's likely opponent in November's presidential election, over a criminal indictment charging the former president with illegally hoarding classified records at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.

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

Hur’s report says evidence suggests that many of the classified documents recovered by investigators at the Penn Biden Center, in parts of Biden’s Delaware home, and in his Senate papers at the University of Delaware were retained by “mistake.”

Biden said in a statement that he was “pleased” the special counsel had “reached the conclusion I believed all along they would reach — that there would be no charges brought in this case and the matter is now closed.”

He made a point of saying that he sat for five hours of in-person interviews over two days on Oct. 8 and 9, “even though Israel had just been attacked on October 7th and I was in the middle of handling an international crisis."

“I just believed that’s what I owed the American people so they could know no charges would be brought and the matter closed,” Biden said.

The report comes after a yearlong investigation into the improper retention of classified documents by Biden, from his time as a senator and as vice president, that were found at his Delaware home, as well as at a private office that he used in between his service in the Obama administration and becoming president.

The investigation into Biden is separate from special counsel Jack Smith’s inquiry into the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-classified-documents-37a360519244eb3c211a56cd9355adc8">handling of classified documents by Trump</a>&nbsp;after Trump left the White House. Smith’s team has charged Trump with illegally retaining top secret records at Mar-a-Lago home and then obstructing government efforts to get them back. Trump has said he did nothing wrong.

After Biden's lawyers uncovered classified documents at his former office, Biden's representatives promptly contacted the National Archives to arrange their return to the government. The National Archives notified the FBI, which opened an investigation. Biden made his homes available to agents to conduct thorough searches, and that is how the most sensitive documents came to the attention of the Justice Department.

Hur assessed that the evidence did not support that Biden willfully retained some of the classified documents that were recovered — including the ones at the Penn Biden Center that sparked the probe.

Biden could not have been prosecuted as a sitting president, but Hur’s report states that he would not recommend charges against Biden regardless.

“We would reach the same conclusion even if Department of Justice policy did not foreclose criminal charges against a sitting president,” the report said.

Part of the report centers on Biden’s handling of classified documents about Afghanistan — specifically, the Obama administration’s decision to send additional troops there — that he retained after he left office as vice president in his Delaware home. Biden preserved materials documenting his opposition to the troop surge, including a 2009 classified handwritten memo to then-President Barack Obama.

“These materials were proof of the stand Mr. Biden took in what he regarded as among the most important decisions of his vice presidency,” the report said.

The documents have classification markings up to the Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information Level and were found in a box in Biden’s Delaware garage “that contained other materials of great significance to him and that he appears to have personally used and accessed.”

Photographs included in the report showed some of the classified Afghanistan documents stored in a worn cardboard box stored in his garage, apparently in a loose collection with other household items, including a ladder and a wicker basket.

Classified documents from the Obama administration were also found in Biden’s basement den, according to the report. Classified documents from his time in the Senate in the 1970s and 1980s were also found in his garage.

Despite signs that Biden knowingly retained and disclosed classified materials, Hur’s report said criminal charges were not merited for multiple reasons. Those include the fact that as vice president, and during his subsequent presidency when the Afghanistan records were found, “he had the authority to keep classified documents at his home.”

As part of the probe, investigators reviewed a recording of a February 2017 conversation between Biden and his ghostwriter in which, referring to the 2009 memo to Obama, Biden said that he had “just found all the classified stuff downstairs.” Biden was renting a home in Virginia at the time and consolidated his belongings in Delaware when he moved out in 2019. Prosecutors believe that Biden’s comment was a reference to the same classified records that FBI agents later found in his Delaware home.

Though the best case for charges could involve his possession of the Afghanistan documents as a private citizen, prosecutors said, it was possible that Biden could have found those records at his Virginia home in 2017 and then forgotten about them soon after.

“This could convince some reasonable jurors that he did not retain them willfully,” the report.

The report said there was some evidence to suggest that Biden knew he could not keep classified handwritten notes at home after leaving office, citing his deep familiarity “with the measures taken to safeguard classified information and the need for those measures to prevent harm to national security.” Yet his kept notebooks containing classified information in unlocked drawers at home.

“He had strong motivations to do so and to ignore the rules for properly handing the classified information in his notebooks,” the report said. “He consulted the notebooks liberally during hours of discussions with his ghostwriter and viewed them as highly private and valued possessions with which he was unwilling to part.”

While the report removes legal jeopardy for the president, it is nonetheless is an embarrassment for Biden, who placed competency and experience at the core of his rationale to voters to send him to the Oval Office.

“Mr. Biden was known to remove and keep classified material from his briefing books for future use, and his staff struggled — and sometimes failed — to retrieve those materials,” the report states. “And there was no procedure at all for tracking some of the classified material Mr. Biden received outside of his briefing books”

In declining to prosecute Biden, Hur’s office also cited what it said was Biden’s “limited memory” both during his 2017 recorded conversations with the ghostwriter and in an interview with investigators last year.

“Given Mr. Biden’s limited precision and recall during his interviews with his ghostwriter and with our office, jurors may hesitate to place too much evidentiary weight on a single eight-word utterance to his ghostwriter about finding classified documents in Virginia, in the absence of other, more direct evidence.”

“We have also considered that, at trial, 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,” investigators wrote.

There is recent Justice Department precedence for criminal charges against individuals accused of sharing classified information with biographers or ghostwriters. Gen. David Petraeus pleaded guilty to doing exactly that in 2015 and was sentenced to probation.

Yet in this instance, prosecutors say, Biden could have plausibly believed that the notebooks were his personal property and belonged to him, even if they contained classified information.

In an interview with prosecutors, the report said, Biden was emphatic with investigators that the notebooks were “my property” and that “every president before me has done the exact same thing.”

White House lawyer Richard Sauber said Biden takes classified information seriously and “strives to protect it,” but making mistakes when packing documents at the end of an administration can be a common occurrence, as the report noted.

“We disagree with a number of inaccurate and inappropriate comments in the special counsel’s report. Nonetheless, the most important decision the special counsel made — that no charges are warranted — is firmly based on the facts and evidence,” Sauber said.

Biden’s personal attorney Bob Bauer accused the special counsel of violating “well-established’ norms and “trashing” the president.

“The special counsel could not refrain from investigative excess, perhaps unsurprising given the intense pressures of the current political environment. Whatever the impact of those pressures on the final report, it flouts department regulations and norms,” he said in a statement.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/2/1707437029020.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden “willfully” retained and disclosed highly classified materials when he was a private citizen, including documents about military and foreign policy in Afghanistan and other sensitive national security matters, according to a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.justice.gov/storage/report-from-special-counsel-robert-k-hur-february-2024.pdf">Justice Department report</a>&nbsp;that nonetheless says no criminal charges are warranted for him or anyone else.<a href="https://www.justice.gov/storage/report-from-special-counsel-robert-k-hur-february-2024.pdf">Click here to read </a>the special council reportThe report from&nbsp;<a href="https://www.justice.gov/sco-hur">special counsel Robert Hur</a>, released Thursday, represents a harshly critical assessment of Biden’s handling of sensitive government materials, but also details the reasons why he should not be charged with the crime.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/1/1673546739694.png" alt="Biden backing his Corvette into the garage next to stacks of boxes where classified documents were found-image from a 2020 Biden for President campaign ad&nbsp;" />
 <figcaption>Biden backing his Corvette into the garage next to stacks of boxes where classified documents were found-image from a 2020 Biden for President campaign ad&nbsp;</figcaption>
 </figure>The findings will likely blunt his ability to forcefully condemn Donald Trump, Biden's likely opponent in November's presidential election, over a criminal indictment charging the former president with illegally hoarding classified records at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.“Our investigation uncovered evidence that President Biden willfully retained and disclosed classified materials after his vice presidency when he was a private citizen," Hur wrote.Hur’s report says evidence suggests that many of the classified documents recovered by investigators at the Penn Biden Center, in parts of Biden’s Delaware home, and in his Senate papers at the University of Delaware were retained by “mistake.”Biden said in a statement that he was “pleased” the special counsel had “reached the conclusion I believed all along they would reach — that there would be no charges brought in this case and the matter is now closed.”He made a point of saying that he sat for five hours of in-person interviews over two days on Oct. 8 and 9, “even though Israel had just been attacked on October 7th and I was in the middle of handling an international crisis."“I just believed that’s what I owed the American people so they could know no charges would be brought and the matter closed,” Biden said.The report comes after a yearlong investigation into the improper retention of classified documents by Biden, from his time as a senator and as vice president, that were found at his Delaware home, as well as at a private office that he used in between his service in the Obama administration and becoming president.The investigation into Biden is separate from special counsel Jack Smith’s inquiry into the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-classified-documents-37a360519244eb3c211a56cd9355adc8">handling of classified documents by Trump</a>&nbsp;after Trump left the White House. Smith’s team has charged Trump with illegally retaining top secret records at Mar-a-Lago home and then obstructing government efforts to get them back. Trump has said he did nothing wrong.After Biden's lawyers uncovered classified documents at his former office, Biden's representatives promptly contacted the National Archives to arrange their return to the government. The National Archives notified the FBI, which opened an investigation. Biden made his homes available to agents to conduct thorough searches, and that is how the most sensitive documents came to the attention of the Justice Department.Hur assessed that the evidence did not support that Biden willfully retained some of the classified documents that were recovered — including the ones at the Penn Biden Center that sparked the probe.Biden could not have been prosecuted as a sitting president, but Hur’s report states that he would not recommend charges against Biden regardless.“We would reach the same conclusion even if Department of Justice policy did not foreclose criminal charges against a sitting president,” the report said.Part of the report centers on Biden’s handling of classified documents about Afghanistan — specifically, the Obama administration’s decision to send additional troops there — that he retained after he left office as vice president in his Delaware home. Biden preserved materials documenting his opposition to the troop surge, including a 2009 classified handwritten memo to then-President Barack Obama.“These materials were proof of the stand Mr. Biden took in what he regarded as among the most important decisions of his vice presidency,” the report said.The documents have classification markings up to the Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information Level and were found in a box in Biden’s Delaware garage “that contained other materials of great significance to him and that he appears to have personally used and accessed.”Photographs included in the report showed some of the classified Afghanistan documents stored in a worn cardboard box stored in his garage, apparently in a loose collection with other household items, including a ladder and a wicker basket.Classified documents from the Obama administration were also found in Biden’s basement den, according to the report. Classified documents from his time in the Senate in the 1970s and 1980s were also found in his garage.Despite signs that Biden knowingly retained and disclosed classified materials, Hur’s report said criminal charges were not merited for multiple reasons. Those include the fact that as vice president, and during his subsequent presidency when the Afghanistan records were found, “he had the authority to keep classified documents at his home.”As part of the probe, investigators reviewed a recording of a February 2017 conversation between Biden and his ghostwriter in which, referring to the 2009 memo to Obama, Biden said that he had “just found all the classified stuff downstairs.” Biden was renting a home in Virginia at the time and consolidated his belongings in Delaware when he moved out in 2019. Prosecutors believe that Biden’s comment was a reference to the same classified records that FBI agents later found in his Delaware home.Though the best case for charges could involve his possession of the Afghanistan documents as a private citizen, prosecutors said, it was possible that Biden could have found those records at his Virginia home in 2017 and then forgotten about them soon after.“This could convince some reasonable jurors that he did not retain them willfully,” the report.The report said there was some evidence to suggest that Biden knew he could not keep classified handwritten notes at home after leaving office, citing his deep familiarity “with the measures taken to safeguard classified information and the need for those measures to prevent harm to national security.” Yet his kept notebooks containing classified information in unlocked drawers at home.“He had strong motivations to do so and to ignore the rules for properly handing the classified information in his notebooks,” the report said. “He consulted the notebooks liberally during hours of discussions with his ghostwriter and viewed them as highly private and valued possessions with which he was unwilling to part.”While the report removes legal jeopardy for the president, it is nonetheless is an embarrassment for Biden, who placed competency and experience at the core of his rationale to voters to send him to the Oval Office.“Mr. Biden was known to remove and keep classified material from his briefing books for future use, and his staff struggled — and sometimes failed — to retrieve those materials,” the report states. “And there was no procedure at all for tracking some of the classified material Mr. Biden received outside of his briefing books”In declining to prosecute Biden, Hur’s office also cited what it said was Biden’s “limited memory” both during his 2017 recorded conversations with the ghostwriter and in an interview with investigators last year.“Given Mr. Biden’s limited precision and recall during his interviews with his ghostwriter and with our office, jurors may hesitate to place too much evidentiary weight on a single eight-word utterance to his ghostwriter about finding classified documents in Virginia, in the absence of other, more direct evidence.”“We have also considered that, at trial, 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,” investigators wrote.There is recent Justice Department precedence for criminal charges against individuals accused of sharing classified information with biographers or ghostwriters. Gen. David Petraeus pleaded guilty to doing exactly that in 2015 and was sentenced to probation.Yet in this instance, prosecutors say, Biden could have plausibly believed that the notebooks were his personal property and belonged to him, even if they contained classified information.In an interview with prosecutors, the report said, Biden was emphatic with investigators that the notebooks were “my property” and that “every president before me has done the exact same thing.”White House lawyer Richard Sauber said Biden takes classified information seriously and “strives to protect it,” but making mistakes when packing documents at the end of an administration can be a common occurrence, as the report noted.“We disagree with a number of inaccurate and inappropriate comments in the special counsel’s report. Nonetheless, the most important decision the special counsel made — that no charges are warranted — is firmly based on the facts and evidence,” Sauber said.Biden’s personal attorney Bob Bauer accused the special counsel of violating “well-established’ norms and “trashing” the president.“The special counsel could not refrain from investigative excess, perhaps unsurprising given the intense pressures of the current political environment. Whatever the impact of those pressures on the final report, it flouts department regulations and norms,” he said in a statement.Trump responded to the report in a statement as he traveled to Nevada for Thursday evening’s Republican caucuses. “THIS IS A TWO-TIERED SYSTEM OF JUSTICE!” he said in a statement, claiming the Biden case was “100 times different and more severe than mine.”“I did nothing wrong, and I cooperated far more. What Biden did is outrageously criminal - He had 50 years of documents, 50 times more than I had, and “WILLFULLY RETAINED” them,” Trump added, once again claiming “ELECTION INTERFERENCE!”White House lawyers and Biden’s personal attorney were given the opportunity to review and comment on the report. Biden chose not to assert executive privilege over any portion of the report, White House counsel’s office spokesman Ian Sams said.