White House hits back at ‘gratuitous remarks’ about Joe Biden after report calls president’s memory ‘poor’
The White House has said “gratuitous remarks” about Joe Biden’s memory are “wrong and inaccurate” after a report called the president’s mental capacity into question.
Ian Sams, a spokesman for the White House legal counsel’s office, hit back after special counsel Robert Hur’s ruling on the president’s handling of classified documents described his memory as “significantly limited”.
Vice President Kamala Harris also criticised the findings, telling reporters on Friday: “The way that the president’s demeanour in that report was characterised could not be more wrong on the facts and [is] clearly politically motivated.”
It comes after the 400-page report repeatedly made reference to the president’s “hazy” and “poor” memory, and claimed he could not remember in interviews when he was vice president or when his son, Beau Biden, had died.
While justice department official Mr Hur chose not to bring criminal charges against Mr Biden, his comments prompted the 81-year-old to hold a fractious press conference the same night.
Speaking at the White House on Friday, Mr Sams was asked if anything was being done to address concerns about the president. He fired back: “I have a lot of issues with the contents of that question.
“Unfortunately the gratuitous remarks… have naturally caught headlines and all of your attention. They’re wrong and they’re inaccurate.”
Pic: AP
He added: “On page five of the report… it says: ‘Mr Biden’s memory was significantly limited’… But elsewhere in the report he says: ‘we expect the evidence of Mr Biden’s state of mind to be compelling’, pointing to him providing, quote, ‘clear’ and ‘forceful’ testimony.
“That’s his comments on his state of mind later in the report. So I think it’s important to take the report in its totality.”
Mr Sams also accused Mr Hur’s of “veer[ing] all over the place”. He added: “I can just say that as you’ve heard from the vice president, you’ve heard from members of congress yesterday talking but their recent interactions with the president…
“We just reject that this is true. I think that it does raise questions about the gratuitousness and it makes you wonder why that’s in there.”
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‘Shortage of evidence’
The White House spokesman also noted that on page two “the report argues that the president wilfully retained [classified] materials”.
He said: “But buried way later on page 215, the report says, and I quote, ‘there is, in fact, a shortage of evidence on these points’. Two hundred pages later.
“Put simply, this case is closed because the facts and the evidence don’t support the theories here.”
Mr Sams also announced that Biden will appoint a task force to review the handling of classified documents during the transition of power between presidential administrations, and added that “every administration for the last half a century” has had problems with the transfer of files.
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Mr Hur’s report came following a string of gaffes in recent days by Mr Biden.
On Monday, he confused French President Emmanuel Macron with Francois Mitterrand, who died in 1996, and on Tuesday appeared to forget the name Hamas while discussing the war in Gaza.
Mr Biden also mixed up former chancellor Angela Merkel with one of her predecessors Helmut Kohl on Wednesday. A White House spokesperson said afterwards: “Many people, elected officials… they can misspeak sometimes.”
Police in Tennessee have discovered 14 improvised explosive devices in a man’s home as they were arresting him, the local sheriff’s office said.
Officers were executing a warrant in the home of Kevin Wade O’Neal in Old Fort, about 45 miles (70km) east of Chattanooga, after he had threatened to kill public officials and law enforcement personnel in Polk County.
After arresting the 54-year-old, officers noticed “something smouldering” in the bedroom where he was found.
Kevin Wade O’Neal. Pic: Polk County Sheriff’s Office
On closer inspection, they discovered an improvised explosive device and evacuated the house until bomb squad officers arrived at the scene.
Fourteen devices were found inside the property – none of which detonated.
Improvised explosive devices were found in Kevin Wade O’Neal’s home. Pic: Polk County Sheriff’s Office
Kevin Wade O’Neal’s home in Old Fort, Tennessee. Pic: Polk County Sheriff’s Office
O’Neal was charged with 11 counts of attempted first-degree murder, corresponding to nine officers and two other people inside the property when the suspect tried to detonate the devices.
He also faces 14 counts of prohibited weapons and one count of possession of explosive components.
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O’Neal is being held at the Polk County jail and his bond is yet to be determined.
Donald Trump says he has ordered two nuclear submarines to be positioned in the “appropriate regions” in a row with former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev.
It comes after Mr Medvedev, who is now deputy chair of Russia‘s Security Council, told the US president on Thursday to remember Moscow had Soviet-era nuclear strike capabilities of last resort.
On Friday, Mr Trump wrote on social media: “Based on the highly provocative statements of the Former President of Russia, Dmitry Medvedev, who is now the Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, I have ordered two Nuclear Submarines to be positioned in the appropriate regions, just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that.
“Words are very important, and can often lead to unintended consequences, I hope this will not be one of those instances. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”
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Trump: ‘We’re going to protect our people’
Speaking outside the White House later in the day, Mr Trump was asked about why he had moved the submarines and replied: “We had to do that. We just have to be careful.
“A threat was made and we didn’t think it was appropriate, so I have to be very careful. So I do that on the basis of safety for our people. A threat was made by a former president of Russia and we’re going to protect our people.”
The spat between Mr Trump and Mr Medvedev came after the US president warned Russia on Tuesday it had “10 days from today” to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine or face tariffs, along with its oil buyers.
Moscow has shown no sign that it will agree to Mr Trump’s demands.
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On Thursday, Mr Medvedev reminded Mr Trump that Russia possessed a Soviet-era automated nuclear retaliatory system – or “dead hand”.
Mr Medvedev, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, was referring to a secretive semi-automated Soviet command system designed to launch Russia’s missiles if its leadership was taken out in a decapitating strike.
He made the remarks after Mr Trump told him to “watch his words” after Mr Medvedev said the US president’s threat of hitting Russia and its oil buyers with punitive tariffs was “a game of ultimatums” and added that “each new ultimatum is a threat and a step towards war” between Russia and the US.
Dmitry Medvedev. Pic: Reuters
Mr Medvedev served as Russia’s president from 2008 and 2012, when Mr Putin was barred from seeking a third consecutive term, but then stepped aside to let him run again.
As deputy chair of Russia’s Security Council, he has become known for his provocative and inflammatory statements since Moscow invaded Ukraine in 2022.
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