Marc Krickbaum and Daniel Loveland were hired to aid in the investigation
Two former officials from the Trump administration have been enlisted by Special Counsel Robert Hur, who is investigating allegations that President Joe Biden mishandled classified documents. Marc Krickbaum, a former US attorney in Iowa, and Daniel Loveland, who previously worked as counsel to former Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, have been hired, according to anonymous sources familiar with the situation. Additionally, Hur's team includes Virginia Bruner, a former federal prosecutor who worked with Krickbaum, and assistance from the Maryland US attorney's office. The investigation was opened by the Justice Department last year after classified documents were found at an office used by Biden in Washington, and Hur may have additional attorneys and FBI agents on his team.
Messages seeking comment were not immediately responded to by Virginia Bruner, Daniel Loveland, and Marc Krickbaum, and a spokesperson for Hur's office declined to comment.
In January 2021, Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed Hur, a former Trump-era US attorney in Maryland, as a special counsel to oversee the investigation into whether President Joe Biden mishandled classified documents. The study is separate from another probe led by special counsel Jack Smith, investigating allegations that former President Donald Trump or others obstructed the government's inquiries or mishandled classified information after leaving the White House.
While Biden has pledged cooperation, Trump has taken a more combative stance toward the investigation. Additionally, the scope and scale of the two studies are vastly different, with the Biden probe involving far fewer documents than the hundreds of files with classified markings seized during a court-authorized search at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate.
Initially, Garland had asked the US attorney in Chicago, John Lausch, to lead the inquiry into Biden's handling of classified material before appointing Hur. Kathy Chung, a former executive assistant of Biden who was interviewed by Lausch's team, has yet to be asked for further information or another interview since Hur took over. Chung is scheduled to be interviewed by the House Oversight Committee next month.
Investigation opened by Justice Department after classified documents found in Biden's office
Separate from the probe led by special counsel Jack Smith on Trump and mishandling of classified information
Hur's office declined to comment, and Loveland, Bruner, and Krickbaum did not respond to messages seeking comment. The investigation into Biden is separate from a probe by another special counsel appointed by Attorney General Merrick Garland, Jack Smith, who is investigating whether former President Donald Trump or others obstructed government inquiries or mishandled classified information after leaving the White House.
Investigations differ in scope and tone, with Biden pledging cooperation while Trump has been combative
The investigations differ significantly in their scope and tone, with Biden pledging cooperation while Trump has been on the attack. The probe into Biden has involved fewer documents than the hundreds of files with classified markings seized by FBI agents during a court-authorized search at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate.
Hur's first official day on the job involved an FBI search of Biden's home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, during which agents took records and notes from his time as vice president but did not find documents with classified markings. Classified documents have since been found at the Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement in Washington and Biden's private home in Wilmington, Delaware.
The White House has declined to comment on Hur's recent staff moves or whether they have led to increased investigative requests but has stated that the president and his staff are cooperating with Hur's office. Hur's hires align with his background. He served as the principal associate deputy attorney general under Rosenstein early in the Trump administration and as a US attorney in Maryland before being appointed special counsel.
