Newly released Biden audio recordings include references to ‘classified’ material and struggles with memory

https://lite.cnn.com/2026/07/27/politics/biden-audio-clips-ghost-writer-classified

-36 points · 22 comments · view on lemmy.world

22 Comments

hydrashok@sh.itjust.works · 31 pts · 27d

Damn that’s crazy! Where are the Epstein files?

Archangel1313@lemmy.ca · 15 pts · 27d (11 replies)

Wait. So, that's what Republicans have been crying about all this time? That he showed his own hand-written notes about some classified stuff, to his biographer?

The way they went on and on about it, I just assumed he had boxes and boxes of top secret documents just stacked up in a bathroom in his basement, or something. Now that would have been bad.

givesomefucks@lemmy.world · -3 pts · 27d (10 replies)

The way they went on and on about it, I just assumed he had boxes and boxes of top secret documents just stacked up in a bathroom in his basement, or something. Now that would have been bad.

What about a random college office he hadn't been to in years?

On November 2, 2022, Biden's attorneys discovered the first set of classified documents in a locked closet at the Penn Biden Center; they reported them that day to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), which retrieved them the next day. The classified documents included intelligence material and briefing memos on Ukraine, Iran and the United Kingdom.[7] In coordination with the Justice Department (DOJ), Biden's attorneys discovered a second set of documents at Biden's home on December 20, followed by several more on January 9 and January 12, 2023. Biden's personal attorney said on January 21 that the Justice Department discovered six items containing classification markings during a consensual search of his home the previous day, some of which dated to his tenure in the Senate; investigators also seized some of Biden's handwritten notes from his vice presidency.[8]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Biden_classified_documents_incident

The notes were something different.

But does that clear your threshold for a big deal?

They did find more in his home, not sure if it was a basement or bathroom tho.

But again, the VP notes were in addition to those two bigger issues.

Archangel1313@lemmy.ca · 5 pts · 27d (9 replies)

Obviously him having any actual documents is a much bigger deal, and well worth investigating. What I was specifically being sarcastic about was this latest push to release these recordings between him and his biographer. I listened to James Comer going off about how Biden should have been criminally prosecuted for even having them, let alone discussing their contents with anyone else.

The hypocrisy here, is that every single Republican who thinks this way, will all unanimously agree that what Trump did with classified documents is somehow not worth prosecution.

At the very least, what Biden did should have resulted in him being stripped of his security clearance, and barred him from ever holding a position in government that requires that level of security clearance. Period.

And it should have been the same for Trump. Period.

givesomefucks@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 27d (8 replies)

The hypocrisy here, is that every single Republican who thinks this way, will all unanimously agree that what Trump did with classified documents is somehow not worth prosecution.

While true...

I'm struggling to find the difference in what you were doing.

Or the people who defended Hillary's server.

If we let the actions of Republicans excuse the actions of neoliberals, then neoliberals won't win elections.

Dem voters have higher standards, and frankly that's a good thing, because if it wasn't true we'd be absolutely fucked. It would mean that anything short of Trump would be acceptable, and the oligarchs would not overshoot that bar.

It's only bad when the DNC is corrupt, and that stopped being true like 17 months ago.

I held my nose and voted Kamala, but enough people didn't that it made the voting members of the DNC pivot away from neoliberalism. If Kamala would have won she'd have named the DNC chair instead.

They would have handed 2028 to her, and she'd have handed the DNC back to them.

Then in 2032 they'd have rigged the primary again, and by that time a Republican would likely win.

Then, in 2036 the voting members of the DNC would have had their next say in chair.

For real, shit looks dark and gloomy, but this is the path to a FDR style Dem in 2028, trump losing to Kamala would have likely pushed that back a decade.

Long story short:

It makes no sense for voters to keep defending the shit neoliberals pulled when the voting members of the DNC already stopped over a year ago.

Cut them lose and let them go.

Admit their failings and say "vote in the next primary and help us get someone better".

CaliforniaSober@lemmy.ca · 0 pts · 27d (4 replies)

“Hur dur… but voters should recognize issues with conservatives, yet Neo-libs are the problems yada yada yada, all Dems suck.”

All while the gop has broken laws…

“it’s the DNC that deserves to get called out. Cause Neo libs are bad so nothing else matters they all count blah blah blah nothing matters neo-libs are Satan but I won’t talk about goo but yada yada Biden sucks but I won’t talk about Trump yada yada Neo libs hur dur mouth foam…”

Just fucking stop.

givesomefucks@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 27d (3 replies)

I explicitly said the DNC had pivoted away from neoliberalism...

It’s only bad when the DNC is corrupt, and that stopped being true like 17 months ago.

I held my nose and voted Kamala, but enough people didn’t that it made the voting members of the DNC pivot away from neoliberalism

Why are you defending the DNC that pulled all the bullshit in 2024?

It seems like you don't understand that when the chair changes, it's essentially the same as a new person becoming president, just with zero oversight or accountability.

That's the only way it makes sense someone would be honestly conflating the two.

I hate making assumptions though, can you let me know if that's what happened here?

CaliforniaSober@lemmy.ca · -1 pts · 27d (2 replies)

You should totally keep adding names, terms, and pretending there’s some sort of intersectional group that meets your definition of villain. “ I mention this and Leo lib that plus my feelings of this…”

Reality is your comments are worth nothing and you have less than nothing to offer otherwise.

It’s Neo this and Neo that! The lib this and lib that! It doesn’t matter if people lean liberal! Neo lib this and that!

Keep on with “the chair” and keep whining but reality is past that and you should honestly stop. Youve nothing to add so just honestly… STOP!

Not just stop but Neo-stop!

givesomefucks@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 27d

It’s Neo this and Neo that! The lib this and lib that! It doesn’t matter if people lean liberal! Neo lib this and that!

...

Are you honestly trying to pretend that Modern American neoliberalism doesn't exist?

Like, you're acting like I made it up...

The Rise and Fall of the Neoliberal Order analyses the history of a political order that emerged in the United States in the 1970s and 1980s, dominated American politics in the 1990s and 2000s, and fractured during the 2010s when Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders rose to prominence. Its power was built on an array of donors, policy entrepreneurs, and politicians that coalesced under Reagan. That coalition overturned the regulatory regime and ideological hegemony of New Deal order that had dominated American politics for forty years and made neoliberalism America’s dominant creed of political economy. The book argues that neoliberalism is a better term than conservatism for understanding the politics of this era. At the same time, it reworks the meaning and significance of neoliberalism. First, it insists that neoliberalism was much closer in character to the ideology of 19th century classical liberalism than is commonly acknowledged. Second, it argues that an elite-driven model for understanding neoliberalism is not sufficient to understand this ideology’s broad appeal; one must also reckon with how its promise of individual freedom drew both working-class Americans and erstwhile New Leftists to its banner. Third, the book identifies the collapse of the Soviet Union and of its legitimating ideology—communism—as critical factors in the neoliberal order’s triumph and restores the centrality of the Cold War to an understanding of our time. The book concludes with an analysis about how the problems left unsolved by the neoliberal order paved the way for Donald Trump’s rise and triumph.

https://academic.oup.com/book/41850?login=false

It's a thing...

Archangel1313@lemmy.ca · 0 pts · 27d (2 replies)

I'll quote myself here, since you probably missed the last part of my comment...

At the very least, what Biden did should have resulted in him being stripped of his security clearance, and barred him from ever holding a position in government that requires that level of security clearance. Period.

And it should have been the same for Trump. Period.

In my opinion, that should also have applied to Hillary Clinton, as well. And, as I said...that is the minimum that should happen when someone in government "mishandles" classified information. But, that term also Implies some kind of accidental or mistaken action has taken place.

Like Hillary, using a private server out of a sense of convenience, rather than an emphasis on security. She should have known better, especially as she was someone that represented a high-value target for foreign intelligence gathering efforts. That's the entire reason why government officials are supposed to use government systems for all their official business...so that their communications can be monitored for intrusions or tampering.

Or Biden, who took some of his work home with him, and clearly forgot to bring it back again. Even the special prosecutor in charge of investigating him, came to the conclusion that nothing nefarious was intended in retaining those documents. Biden's case was definitely worse than what Hillary did, but still doesn't rise to the level of "criminal intent".

But, then you have Trump's case. The reason why this is different, is because of what Trump did, when government officials tried to get the documents he retained, back from him. Not only did he refuse to return them after months of efforts by the National Archives to get them back...he instructed his personal attorney to lie to them and say that he never had them, even though he knew he did. He then had some employees move the documents from one location to another in order to try and avoid returning them. Then he claimed that they belonged to him, once they were finally recovered using a federal search warrant.

Anyone who claims that these cases are "all the same" needs to pull their heads out of their asses. The biggest and largely the only difference between a mistake and a crime, is intent. I can say this without a shred of hypocrisy, because that distinction is an objective fact. The hypocrisy arises from pretending that it isn't.

givesomefucks@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 27d (1 reply)

Or Biden, who took some of his work home with him,

When did he live in a closet at Penn?

Anyone who claims that these cases are “all the same” needs to pull their heads out of their asses

I never did that.

Two things can be unacceptable even though one is worse...

Obviously

Archangel1313@lemmy.ca · 2 pts · 27d

When did he live in a closet at Penn?

"Taking your work home with you" is a figure of speech. The point being, he didn't seem to be intentionally retaining documents beyond his term in office.

One of the biggest factors in determining intent in cases like these, is "cooperation". The very least any one of these people can do when it becomes clear that they've held onto something they shouldn't have, is to give it back with an acknowledgement that "mistakes were made".

That still should result in losing their security clearance, at least. Because anyone handling classified information that carelessly, should not be allowed to handle it anymore.

reddig33@lemmy.world · 7 pts · 27d

Is Jake Tapper furiously working on a book sequel at the release of this news? It’s not like Biden is our president any longer. Maybe Tapper can do a follow up on Regan’s dementia while he’s at it.

BrianTheeBiscuiteer@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 27d

So we shouldn't let geriatric old men be President? Yeah, no argument here.

0ndead@infosec.pub · 5 pts · 27d

Crazy how Trump is even older and struggles more with his memory.

Proprietary_Blend@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 27d

Fake noose

SaltyAmerican@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 27d

Anyone paying attention when he first announced he was running knew he had issues with mental decline. But the VBNMW crowd insisted it was a stutter and elected him

newton@feddit.online · 3 pts · 27d

OK,maga

CaliforniaSober@lemmy.ca · 2 pts · 27d (2 replies)

Are there “References” to him taking boxes of classified info and storing it in an unsecured bathroom at a public resort?

Fuck this noise.

If Hillary should be crucified over a server then by that same metric Biden has done nothing and Trump thus qualifies as the greatest traitor of all time.

baronvonj@piefed.social · 2 pts · 27d (1 reply)

Bush and Cheney already did the private email domain thing before Hillary and "lost" over 5 million emails.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bush_White_House_email_controversy

So when the GOP acted like it was some huge unprecedented thing when she did it, they were already being lying hypocrites shits about it then.

CaliforniaSober@lemmy.ca · 1 pts · 27d

Oh yea bush just fried an email server and the GOP never batted an eye.

gAlienLifeform@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 26d

Wish they would've investigated him this aggressively when he was running for office, if we had a competent president who wasn't a fucking asshole to his own voters we probably wouldn't be dealing with Trump 2.0 now