Day: February 9, 2024
US President Joe Biden has angrily criticized an investigation that found he mishandled top secret files and said he struggled to recall key life events, the BBC reports.
In a surprise news briefing on Thursday evening, Mr Biden insisted: “My memory is fine.”
He slammed a claim that he could not recollect when his son died, saying: “How the hell dare he raise that?”
The inquiry found Mr Biden “wilfully retained and disclosed” classified files, but decided not to charge him.
Department of Justice Special Counsel Robert Hur determined Mr Biden had improperly kept classified documents related to military and foreign policy in Afghanistan after serving as vice-president.
The scathing 345-page report, released earlier in the day, said the president’s memory had “significant limitations”.
Mr Hur interviewed the 81-year-old president over five hours as part of the inquiry.
The special counsel said Mr Biden could not recall when he was vice-president (from 2009-2017), or “even within several years, when his son Beau died” (2015).
At Thursday night’s news conference, an emotional Mr Biden lashed out at the passages casting doubt on his recollection of events.
“Frankly, when I was asked the question I thought to myself, was none of their damn business,” he said.
“I don’t need anyone to remind me when he [Beau Biden] passed away.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s interview with US journalist Tucker Carlson had over 50 million views on X social network in about five hours.
Putin said in an interview that aired on Thursday that Russia will fight for its interests “to the end” but has no interest in expanding its war in Ukraine to other countries such as Poland and Latvia.
In his first interview with an American journalist since the start of the war in Ukraine nearly two years ago, Putin said Western leaders had come to realize it was impossible to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia and were wondering what to do next.
Putin cited the eastern expansion of NATO as a reason for a “rift” between western countries and Russia, arguing “the promise was that NATO would not expand eastward but it happened five times,” saying that Russia tried to push against the expansion leading up to its conflict with Ukraine.
Putin said he believes a deal can be reached to free Evan Gershkovich, a US reporter detained last year in Russia.
The Russian President said talks were ongoing with the US about the journalist, who is being held on espionage charges.
Ep. 73 The Vladimir Putin Interview pic.twitter.com/67YuZRkfLL
— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) February 8, 2024
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