Biden greets Gavin Newsom, who deferred on 2024, with a smile
‘There’s no “there” there’: Dismissive Biden says he has ‘no regrets’ over handling classified documents and snaps at the PRESS for asking him about the scandal instead of storm damage and climate change
- Biden said in California a ‘handful’ of documents were in the ‘wrong place’
- He told reporters ‘there’s no there there’ and he has ‘no regrets’
- He admonished him for asking about it as he toured devastated areas
- His team has been under fire for failing to promptly reveal discoveries
- He toured the collapsed Capitola Pier and met with business owners
President Joe Biden scolded reporters who brought his unwelcome documents imbroglio all the way with him to Santa Cruz, California, where he came to view storm ravaged communities after devastating ‘atmospheric rivers’ ravaged parts of the state.
The president stated bluntly that he had ‘no regrets’ – even as a special counsel probe has begun investigating how classified government documents from his time as vice president ended up in his DC office with the Penn Biden center and in his Wilmington, Delaware garage.
In addition to upending the start of the year and the second half of his term, the matter has mired the Biden team’s ability to focus on former President Trump’s documents investigation.
‘You know, I’ll answer the question but here is the deal,’ Biden told reporters after been getting asked if he would take a question on the topic – amid daily revelations about how classified documents from his time as Vice President were discovered.
President Biden ripped the press when he got a question about whether he regretted not revealing the classified documents from his time as VP had been discovered in his former DC office before the November election
President Joe Biden toured storm damage in California along with Governor Gavin Newsom (L) and Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-CA), then tore into the press for asking about his documents
He was asked if had regrets for not revealing the classified documents before the November election. A Biden lawyer informed the National Archives of the discovery just days before Election Day.
‘What, quite frankly, bugs me is that we have serious problem here we’re talking about – we’re talking about what’s going on and the American people don’t quite understand why you don’t ask me questions about that,’ he scolded. ‘But having said that, what’s your question?’
Then he responded. ‘Look, as we found a handful of documents that were filed in the wrong place, we immediately turned them over to the archives and the Justice department. We are fully cooperating and looking forward to getting this resolved quickly. I think you’re going to find there’s nothing there.’
‘I have no regrets in following what the lawyers have told me what they want me to do, it’s exactly what we’re doing. There’s no there there,’ he concluded.
‘We won’t give up until we find Kyle,’ said California Gov. Gavin Newsom, speaking of a missing 5-year old boy swept away by floodwaters
The pair toured storm-caused at a pier in Capitola
‘If anybody doubts climate is changing, then they must have been asleep for the last couple of years,’ Biden said
Newsom decided not to run for president in 2024
The Riviera Holiday Mobile Estates/Senior Community was flooded after another wave of storms in Merced, California. Newsom thanked Biden for speedy disaster relief. Biden said the state would ‘build back better’
The blast came after Biden toured the collapsed Capitola Pier near Seacliff State Park in Santa Cruz and met with business owners whose shops were ruined by a series of powerful storms.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who greeted Biden with a smile upon arrival, described the 21 known deaths the state had experienced.
‘We had nine atmospheric rivers, a stacking of stress – this conveyor belt going back 22 days, trillions of gallons of water. The state of California we estimate over 1400 heroic rescues, those lives that were saved didn’t become headlines,’ Newsom said.
He also spoke about the search for a missing five-year-old boy swept away by floodwaters in San Luis Obispo County, prompting a National Guard search.
‘We won’t give up until we find Kyle,’ he said.
Biden also referenced the missing boy.
‘The fact is Jill and it have him in our prayers,’ Biden said.
The two leaders shared camaraderie. Newsom opted out of a run for president in 2024, with Biden expected to announce his own run soon.
The tour comes amid the deepening document scandal
The White House has declined to release visitor logs from Biden’s lakefront Wilmington, Delaware home (pictured) where he spends most every weekend – and conducted most of the 2020 campaign due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic
At least a few documents were found in Biden’s garage at his Wilmington, Delaware home
Biden was testy with reporters who asked about the document debacle and his handling of classified documents.
‘One of the things that I’ve long admired, I think the American people admire, about this President is there are few people with the empathy, the care and compassion that he has. And you see that demonstrated in times like this,’ Newsom said.
‘You and I gotta stop taking these helicopter rides,’ Biden joked at one point, after also giving Newsom a warm smile upon arriving.
‘If anybody doubts climate is changing, then they must have been asleep for the last couple of years,’ Biden said, referencing California’s years of drought, fire, and severe storms.
Earlier, Biden viewed a pile of damaged planks from the Capitola pier.
He met with emergency workers and members of the military, exchanging challenge coins with some. He visited Zelda’s on the Beach, a restaurant with sandbags piled by its beachside exit and construction supplies inside an otherwise bare interior.
He also took an aerial tour of the widespread damage.
The state was hit with nearly 12 inches of rain and snow between Dec. 26 and Jan. 17, with snow piling up in the Sierras.
A series of ‘atmospheric rivers’ – long bands of water vapor – hit in succession. Light rain and dry conditions are expected in the coming days.
Source: Read Full Article