A new set of secret federal documents have been discovered by the aides to US Vice President Joe Biden at a second location, adding to the White House’s mounting political embarrassment.
The first cache was discovered at Mr. Biden’s post-vice-presidential private office in Washington, D.C.
The US Department of Justice is investigating the situation.
There is a criminal investigation into Donald Trump for allegedly handling classified documents improperly.
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On Wednesday, it remained unclear when or where Biden’s staff discovered the extra batch of documents.
Only this week has the first batch of roughly 10 documents been made public after it was found in November at the Penn Biden Center, a think tank close to the White House.
These documents apparently contain US intelligence notes and briefing materials about the UK, Iran, and Ukraine.
Regarding the recently found batch, the White House has not yet made any remarks. Earlier on Wednesday, during her regular press conference, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre declined to respond to inquiries concerning the initial cache of documents.
The Department of Justice is looking into this, she said. I won’t add anything to what the president said yesterday.
On Tuesday, Mr. Biden stated that the discovery of the files had “surprised” him and that he was “cooperating” with the law department’s investigation.
The debate occurs when a new Republican majority in the US House of Representatives scrutinizes the Democratic president.
According to James Comer, the incoming chairman of the House Oversight Committee, “oversight and accountability are coming now that Democrats no longer have one-party rule in Washington.”
The committee is looking into the president and his family, and part of that investigation will involve asking the White House to provide records and correspondence pertaining to the classified files.
The US National Archives must receive all White House records, including those that are secret, once an administration has left office.
Trump supporters are furious with the FBI’s investigation.
When Mr. Biden’s predecessor’s Florida residence was investigated by FBI agents in August of last year, they found over 10,000 documents that Mr. Trump had neglected to give to the National Archives.
Before the FBI arrived at Mar-a-Lago, the justice department had issued a demand for the return of the secret documents.
More than 300 documents with classified markings, including 18 marked top secret, were retrieved by federal officials from the golf club in Palm Beach.
The secret documents were found at the think tank, according to the White House, and Mr. Biden’s attorneys immediately notified the National Archives. The agency then picked up the documents the following morning.
