Joe Biden took classified documents while he was vice president.
Posted by The Charlie Kirk Show, Checked
- Sources
- 6 support2 context
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 80%
The Charlie Kirk ShowJul 30, 2026
Multiple reliable sources, including the Hur special counsel report as summarized by FactCheck.org, Reuters, and CNN, establish that classified documents from Biden's vice presidency were found in his possession, and Hur concluded he 'willfully retained' them after his vice presidency.
What was said
… orally or in writing, to declassify, that by taking the documents with him, he declassified them by course of conduct, right, just by the act of taking them with him. But Joe Biden, when he takes documents when he's a senator, that's just flatly unlawful. He can't declassify if he takes them as a vice president. He doesn't have any inherent authority as the vice president to declassify. It's possible that Obama could have delegated declassification powers to him, but there's no evidence that that happened. …
The Charlie Kirk Show · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Supports. CNN reported that several classified documents from Biden's time as vice president were discovered in a private office, which his attorneys acknowledged.[5]
Supports. The FBI's search of Biden's Wilmington home turned up classified documents spanning his Senate and vice presidency, and the Justice Department took possession of six such items.[6]
Supports. Special Counsel Robert Hur's report found that Biden 'willfully retained and disclosed classified materials after his vice presidency,' including marked classified documents on Afghanistan and handwritten notebooks, though it declined criminal charges.[1][2][7][8]
Context. Reuters and KSL describe the classified material as taken when Biden left the vice presidency in 2017, so the taking is tied to the end of his VP term rather than the whole period.[2][8]
Context. AP's fact-check rated 'False' a separate claim that Biden withheld 1,850 boxes of classified documents, saying those boxes were Senate papers at the University of Delaware; that does not contradict the VP-era documents.[3]
Context. Biden's own statement says he never intended to retain marked classified documents and that any retention was inadvertent, which disputes intent but not that the documents were in his possession.[4]
Sources
8 sources: 3 fact-checkers, 1 primary, 2 tier 2, 2 not rated
- 1Biden's Claims About Special Counsel Report on Classified ...factcheck.org · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 2Biden will not face charges over classified papers, says ' ...reuters.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports, context
- 3Claims misrepresent 1850 boxes of Biden documents at ...apnews.com · fact-checker · cited for: context
- 4Biden Responsesjustice.gov · primary source · cited for: context
- 5Classified documents from Biden’s time as VP discovered in private office | CNN Politicscnn.com · tier 2 · cited for: supports
- 6FBI finds six more documents marked classified in search of Biden's homepbs.org · tier 2 · cited for: supports
- 7Biden willfully kept classified documents: special counselcnbc.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 8Biden mishandled documents, but no criminal charges, US special ...ksl.com · not rated · cited for: supports, context
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
Related claims
- Joe Biden took classified documents while he was a senator.True
- Joe Biden did not have the legal authority to declassify documents while serving as a senator or vice president.False
- Joe Biden referenced classified information located at his Virginia home in tapes recorded in 2016 and 2017.True
- Robert Hur identified evidence that Joe Biden willfully retained classified materials after his vice presidency.Can’t tell
- Joe Biden disclosed national security information to his ghostwriter Mark Zwonitzer.True