FBI finds no classified documents in search of Biden’s Rehoboth Beach home

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

• FBI agents searched President Biden’s Delaware beach home in Rehoboth Beach and found no documents marked classified, Biden’s personal lawyer Bob Bauer said.
• Bauer added that the FBI “took for further review some materials and handwritten notes that appear to relate to his time as Vice President.”
• The Department of Justice is currently investigating the discovery of classified materials at Biden’s think tank in Washington, D.C., and at his Wilmington residence.

The FBI did not find any documents with classified markings during its Wednesday search of President Joe Biden’s home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. The search is a part of the ongoing investigation into his handling of classified documents, according to Biden’s personal lawyer Bob Bauer.

“The DOJ took for further review some materials and handwritten notes that appear to relate to his time as Vice President,” Bauer said in a statement.

The search lasted more than threes hours, starting from 8:30 a.m. until noon, according to Bauer.

Bauer added that the Rehoboth search was consistent with a previous search at Biden’s other Delaware residence in Wilmington earlier last month.

Biden’s attorney confirmed that the FBI search happened early Wednesday, saying: “Under DOJ’s standard procedures, in the interests of operational security and integrity, it sought to do this work without advance public notice, and we agreed to cooperate.”

“The search today is a further step in a thorough and timely DOJ process we will continue to fully support and facilitate,” he added.

The Rehoboth search is the third known process tied to Biden’s handling of classified documents. Attorney General Merrick Garland last month appointed a special counsel to investigate the matter further.

Biden’s lawyers in November discovered classified documents at the Penn Biden Center from his time as vice president. The White House only disclosed the discovery in January. After the revelation, the FBI conducted a 13-hour search at the president’s home in Wilmington, Delaware and found additional classified files.

Bipartisan lawmakers call for reforms to the classified document system following the series of discoveries of government records, including at former Vice President Mike Pence’s home in Indiana late last month.

Former President Trump is also under investigation by the Department of Justice into his handling of classified documents which were found at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.

Source: NBC News