comment: >
  
  It is the retention of classified documents after being in office. US law does consider intent to retain into whether its a criminal matter.
context: I hope Obama, Clinton and Bush ask to have National Archive staff scrub their offices too. All this stuff should be digital these days with better scrub tools. >
  
  The reason they aren't digital is because its harder for spies to obtain them. However, that was under the guise of spies not being in office capable of taking them. >
  
  
  The reason they aren't digital is because its harder for spies to obtain them.
  
  Wait…do you think these documents were created on a typewriter? >
  
  There's a massive difference between printing a hard copy from a computer with no network access and transferring documents digitally.
  Some of these documents were likely handwritten or had handwritten notations on them, some come from sanitized computers like I mentioned above, and some are likely printouts of digital communications/reports that were previously sent digitally. We haven't heard much information about these documents other than that they were marked classified. >
  
  Even back in the 90's there were red networks and black networks, red for classified stuff black for everyday things. They were air gapped, some rooms were not even allowed to have black network cables run through them. All classified printers do the tracking thing snyou know who, what, and when something is printed. 
  I will say I haven't been in that business in 25 years but I hope things haven't gotten worse since I left. >
  
  This is just going to pour more fuel on the fire. >
  
  If it helps, conservatives were going to continue to lose their minds regardless of what Biden did or didn't do. >
  
  I just want conservative media to stop endlessly repeating the lie that the VP has no authority to declassify.  It's written in plain English that the VP (as well as multiple other high level positions) can declassify top secret information in the Executive Order that dictates how classified material is handled.
  Yes, there's a process that material has to go through for declassification, but the VP has the authority to start that process.  You've even got Mike Pence, a damn former VP, going out on Fox and saying the VP has no authority to declassify.  Dude doesn't even know his former responsibilities and duties.  Jesus, the Trump administration was such a shitshow full of ignorant and unqualified idiots.
  Edit:  Executive Order 13526 dictates how all classified information shall be designated, handled, and declassified. >
  
  There are certain things that can't be declassified at all iirc, by the president, vpresident, or any individual person, telepathically or not. I think nuclear secrets are an example. >
  
  Yes, that Executive Order (EO 13526) sets out a completely different set of rules for classified nuclear information. >
  
  And as a democrat, I think he should be held accountable for it if it’s found that he broke the law. 
  But that’s the difference, isn’t it?
  Conservatives circle the wagons when their man breaks the law. >
  
  Isn’t is bit different as Biden is the sitting President.  He might have a need for such files in his current capacity.  Keeping files once your out feels way different.  What use is having them at that point other than for something nefarious? >
  
  
  Isn’t is bit different as Biden is the sitting President.  He might have a need for such files in his current capacity.  Keeping files once your out feels way different.  What use is having them at that point other than for something nefarious?
  
  These are files from when he left the office as vice president. >
  
  and if the National Archive noticed they were missing, they should have asked for them then, and held Biden accountable IF he didn't cooperate (not the case) it seems nobody noticed they were missing (odds are they weren't that important) 
  and when instead Biden's team discovered them they took steps to correct it
  compared to Trump who knowingly took documents that contained nuclear secrets and refused to hand them over when asked >
  
  Indeed…  not trying to get into the triggered trump is bad Convo. 
  Just helping the dude out about the details since he mentioned maybe they were files he might need >
  
  Whoo, Republicans must be livid not being able to prosecute a sitting president. >
  
  Not really,  but it does show the level of incompetence from Biden. He took them and forgot he left them laying around. >
  
  As bad as that is, better than intentionally taking them, refusing a subpoena, and getting raided by the FBI. 
  Everybody forgets things. Most people dont intentionally steal classified documents. There is a difference. >
  
  Haha ok. Wheres the proof? If they were declassified there would be a paper trail and this wouldn't be a news story. Trump cant just go "these are declassified now" there's a process and a system I highly doubt he understands. 
  But what do I know. I only take a safeguarding classified information training every year. >
  
  And I'm sure you do , The President only has to say it's declassified,  that's it. He is the President that's all he needs to do, there where also witnesses to him doing so , I'm sure your class does not go into what and how the President can declassify anything. But the President is the only one that can declassify that way , not the V.P or anyone else. >
  
  
  President only has to say it's declassified, that's it. He is the President that's all he needs to do
  
  Yeahhhhh no that's not how it works. Maybe try doing a single google search before you talk out your ass. >
  
  Maybe you should to , it's also in the constitution,  the president can do that and only the president. Obama did it with the stuff he took and stored in a warehouse in Chicago. Hatred as really f'ed with you people. >
  
  Hey, I noticed you haven't replied to my other comment, but I wish you would - I'm genuinely curious.  Either you or I have are operating under some kind of misconception; and if we talk in good faith, it shouldn't take long to figure out which one of us is errant.
  My understanding of the situation is that a president can indeed declassify most things (with some exceptions, but no need to get into that now); but that they cannot simply do so without telling anyone about it.  This article goes into detail about the legal basis for this.  Here's a quote from the article:
  
  One thing the president cannot do, though, is declassify information “by thinking about it” — i.e., without communicating that decision to anyone else
  
  So, my questions for you, to figure out which one of us is wrong, are these:
  
  Did Trump in fact follow the process for declassifying documents, with the appropriate paper trail and notified personnel?  (This may well be the case - it may be under-reported in the media, so I'm curious where you get your source.)
  If Trump did not follow procedure or notify anyone, is there a precedent for allowing a president to "declassify material with his mind", and what is this precedent?
  
  We should be able to sort this out straight away :)  And either you or I will walk away better informed. >
  
  Yes , the precedent has been every President before Trump. The process to declassify with paper trails and whatnot is for bureaucrats is much different than the President. The President only needs to say it. Nobody else has that power. Even now , Biden can declassify anything he wants just by saying it's declassified. And people claiming Trump just declassified just using his mind are just being stupid,  trying anything they can just to muddy the truth 🙄 >
  
  If our Presidents could stop taking classified documents home that would be great. >
  
  
  It is distressing that our top officials are so careless with classified materials.
  Keep in mind, Biden had a small handful of materials and communicated with the National Archives as soon as documents were uncovered.  Trump ordered boxes upon boxes of documents to be packed up and shipped to Mar-a-Lago, claimed he didn't have them, insisted that they belong to him, and tried to hide them when the DOJ finally came knocking with their warrants. 
  
  The difference between Trump's and Biden's situations are like chalk and cheese. >
  
  It’s going to be fun watching Republicans condemn Biden for this while defending Trump for doing the same but way worse >
  
  They are both wrong. Biden looks like a jackass for publicly ripping trump the way he did and then being found to do the same thing. Just stupid all around. He could have taken a higher road (like he promised in his campaign) but he couldn’t help by try to dunk on trump some more. (Which is literally the lowest hanging fruit in the world) 
  Let’s face it, they are both no good. >
  
  Can we get some candidates that aren't senile old fucks? >
  
  Nope, you don't really have a choice. So much for democracy >
  
  Thank God the DNC and RNC are there to make sure we always get inept candidates, without weeding out people who take reform seriously we might have ended up focusing on important things like raising wages, improving the health of all Americans, reducing unnecessary war machine spending, protecting and improving the environment, fixing infrastructure and modernizing it to compete gobally with new mass public transportation, holding corporations to account for rampate security threat level greed. Super cool the masses are so intentionally uneducated and stressed out/impoverished that we get not one, not two, but three broken branches out of three.
  And want to see things get even worse? Try not voting or convincing people to rebel with their votes in generals, or to vote third party - the fun part is this isn't even as bad as it gets, if we disengage it gets even worse! Yay! >
  
  Refuse to be a part of the duopoly, no matter how much somebody screams about your vote being wasted or the hysterics they are displaying. You'll sleep better at night knowing you're not directly contributing to the problem. >
  
  I work with classified material daily. If I brought those documents home, I would be fired and imprisoned. >
  
  Not necessarily. 18 U.S.C. § 1924 requires knowledge of the classified documents and intent to retain them at an unauthorized location. So if you took them without knowing, you didn't really break the law.
  Of course, we know Trump knew of the documents he had because NARA repeatedly asked for them to be returned and he refused. This didn't happen with Biden, although it's still possible he knew of the documents. We don't know yet. >
  
  So Biden gave instuctions to search all places he uses or has used and hand over anything found. Huge difference to 45 >
  
  Let me know when they find uranium yellow cake in Biden’s kitchen cabinet or attempts seditious overthrow of USA. Until then it is a nothing burger. >
  
  I think it’s important that we hold people accountable for mishandling classified documents, whether they are president, vise president, former president, or an E4 in the military. There’s obviously a difference between how trump is reacting vs how Biden is…but we shouldn’t set the precedent that once you reach a certain level, the rules do not apply to you. >
  
  We just keep on kicking ourselves in the balls. >
  
  This keeps turning into but wait there's more >
  
  The difference being how each handled the situation. One literally said hundreds of documents belonged to him and that he declassified them with his mind. The other turned them over immediately. The documents being misplaced by anyone is not okay. >
  
  Did you know the President can declassify documents by just saying " These are declassified " or did CNN muddy your mind . >
  
  i’m very over this story >
  
  Were you over the endless stories of Trump having classified documents, too?
  Biden is not above the law. 
  Trump is not above the law.
  Obama is not above the law.
  Bush Jr is not above the law.
  The submariner in prison for taking a picture of crew spaces on a nuclear submarine is not above the law.
  If anyone has classified information illegally, or is handling it carelessly, they need to be held accountable.
  If it’s something you or I can go to prison for years for because we are average plebs, then they should be held to the same standard. >
  
  Agreed. People who are "over" this story are people who want to sweep it under the rug and pretend it didn't happen. >
  
  That’s total bs. I’m over it.  Tired of hearing about it.  Investigate and prosecute if that is where it leads.  But I don’t need to read about it all day every day everywhere I turn. >
  
  So you’ve been saying the same about Trump and the million breathless stories about how he is going to go to prison? >
  
  This is an unmitigated disaster. Even if these documents are just technical specs of Air Force One's toilet, it makes it damn near impossible to prosecute Trump for selling shit to the Saudis, because MAGA Morons will just scream "bUt BiDeN dId It ToO!!1!" and storm the Capitol again. >
  
  MAGA Morons are going to scream bullshit and break things anyway.
  You can do your best not to give them a reason, but the fact is they're just going to make one up if you don't.  Tell them to go fuck themselves and go about your business, if the law was on their side they'd use it.  Entering into the argument with them is only giving them what they want, a veneer of legitimacy to their ridiculous bullshit. >
  
  Please excuse my ignorance on this as I'm a Brit, but wouldn't taking home some documents be like having homework?