There was an air of Florida, this Wednesday, January 11, at the University of Pennsylvania. Joe Biden’s former office, from when he was vice president under Barack Obama, has little in common with Mar-a-Lago, Donald Trump’s villa. But in one, as in the other, were found state documents, which were not reported to the national archives. “I was surprised to learn that documents related to the government had been taken to this office. But I don’t know what it contains,” said the American president, during a press briefing.
Too late. Here is Joe Biden caught up in the irresponsibility of his predecessor at the head of the United States, while the Republicans have just created a commission to investigate… the investigations of the FBI and the prosecutors. The scandal, however very different on the legal level from that which agitated the Trump camp, opens the first act of two years of new political and legal battles, between the Republicans and the Biden administration, according to Anne Deysine, professor emeritus at the University of Paris-Nanterre, and Americanist.
L’Express: When you read the facts, you can’t help but think of the documents found at Trump’s house after the FBI search in August. Are the two cases of the same degree of seriousness?
Anne Deysin: No, these are very different cases, in scope and chronology. Donald Trump had more than 300 documents at home, including classified information on China and Iran, as well as nuclear secrets, according to the press. Above all, he refused to return the documents, despite a summons to give them. That’s why a search was approved.
Conversely, Joe Biden’s lawyers claim to have immediately notified the national archives of the dozen documents found. The latter did not have to notify Joe Biden of the absence of these documents, moreover they were locked in a secure cupboard. Not anywhere in Florida. This attitude is very different, one can hardly blame Joe Biden for the obstruction of justice and the Espionage Act. But, it is certain that the Republicans will try to instrumentalize the affair.
“When will the FBI search Joe Biden’s many residences, or even the White House?” Trump reacted. A search, is it possible?
There is no legal reason to search Joe Biden. It’s not a walk in the park. The FBI would have to ask a judge for this, and the judge would have to give the go-ahead. Again, unlike Donald Trump, Joe Biden returned the papers on time. What’s more, the FBI is under Biden’s orders, and Joe Biden made sure to appoint someone to investigate the matter. A way to stifle the controversy, before the case explodes in his face, on the political level.
How are the Republicans taking over the case?
This is just one of the cases that will be highlighted during the next two years of Joe Biden’s mandate. The most extreme wing of elected Republicans says they want more transparency and investigate the administration. This is what they will do, even if the elements are missing. This allows them to exist, on social networks and on Fox News, in a loop that is virtuous to them.
The Trumpist wing notably accuses the Biden administration of having instrumentalized the FBI in the search of Donald Trump. A position defended by Jim Jordan, loyal to Trump, who, following a stormy compromise between the moderate wing and the Trumpists, has just been appointed to head a commission to investigate… the investigations of the prosecutors and the FBI. We can therefore expect a new judicial component more broadly, on Biden’s son, on the management of Covid-19, or even on the withdrawal from Afghanistan.
However, I await the reaction of the moderate wing of the Republicans. Some Republicans, who are not pro-Trump, are finding it increasingly embarrassing. They are rare among elected officials, but they exist in the country, in the electorate. Perhaps they will refrain from relegitimizing Trump?
Biden had called Trump “irresponsible” following the search of his villa. This time, it is he who is at fault. Will the Democrats emerge weakened when part of the elections was played on the respectability of this camp?
Politically, the case is annoying, that’s for sure. One element in particular can hurt the Democrats’ defense. The administration learned of the existence of these documents on November 2 and did not reveal the affair before the midterm elections, no doubt for fear of a negative impact on the outcome of the poll. This is a point that will be reproached to them, it is their responsibility. For the moment, the Republicans have not stepped up to the plate on this aspect, but it will not be long.
The Democrats are relatively en bloc behind Joe Biden, since they have been in opposition in the House of Representatives, following the midterm elections. There are no dissenting voices, but it is possible that in the long term, among the Democrats, or the Republicans, Joe Biden will be criticized for not having verified that he did not have confidential documents, and that everything was in order on his side, after the Mar-a-Lago scandal. They probably did not imagine that this was possible in their own camp.