What happened to Joe Biden’s late son Beau? US President criticizes special counsel report questioning his memory regarding son's death

On Thursday, February 8, Special Counsel Robert Hur released a scathing report concluding that US President Joe Biden had wilfully retained classified documents but did not recommend any charges. The special counsel even stated in his investigation report that Biden did not remember when he became Vice President and even when his son Beau Biden died.

A visibly emotional Biden rejected Robert Hur's claims on Thursday night and said that he did not need anyone to remind him of when Beau died. Beau Biden passed away in 2015 due to brain cancer. Beau was an Iraq war veteran and a lawyer who served as the Delaware Attorney General.

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"How in the hell dare he raise that": US President Joe Biden fires back at Robert Hur

On February 8, Special Counsel Robert Hur released his final investigation report on the classified documents found in President Joe Biden's private office and Delaware residence in late 2022. Although the report concluded that the President, who fully cooperated with the investigation, wilfully retained classified military and national security material, no charges were recommended.

In one instance, the report mentioned an interview when Biden's memory was so bad that he did not remember when his term as Vice President ended on the first day of the interview and when his term began on the second day. He was quoted in the report as asking:

"If it was 2013 - when did I stop being Vice President?"

He was also quoted on the second day, asking:

"In 2009, am I still Vice President?"

The report scathingly remarked:

"He did not remember, even within several years, when his son Beau died. And his memory appeared hazy when describing the Afghanistan debate that was once so important to him."

This did not sit well with the President, who condemned the report from the Diplomatic Reception Room on Thursday. A visibly emotional Biden talked about how the report mentions that he did not remember when his son died and firmly retorted:

"How in the hell dare he raise that."

He added:

"Frankly, when I was asked that question, I thought to myself, 'Wasn’t any of their damn business.'"

An emotional Joe Biden showed people the rosary his son gave him that he wears every day. Biden revealed that a service was held for Beau every Memorial Day, attended by family and friends. Biden said:

"I don’t need anyone to remind me when he passed away,"

The report also mentioned that a part of the reason Joe Biden was not charged was that he would present himself to the jury just as he presented himself to the investigators, a "sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory." The President was also quick to fire back against these claims by saying:

"I am well-meaning. And I’m an elderly man. And I know what the hell I’m doing. I’ve been president – I put this country back on its feet. I don’t need his recommendation."

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Beau Biden passed away at the age of 46

Joseph Robinette Biden III, popularly known as Beau Biden, was the eldest son of President Joe Biden and the late Neilia Hunter Biden. The Syracuse University College of Law graduate initially worked with the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) from 1998 to 1999 to train prosecutors and judges in Kosovo after the Kosovo war.

After joining the Delaware Army National Guard in 2003, later on in 2006, Baeu successfully ran for attorney general of Delaware, serving in the position until he died in 2015. He was also deployed in Iraq during the infamous Iraq War, serving a yearlong stint, including a 7-month deployment in the combat zone before returning in 2009.

The Bronze Star Medal recipient was set to run for Delaware mayor in the 2016 elections before his tragic death in 2015, aged only 46. He had been diagnosed with Glioblastoma, an aggressive brain cancer, in 2013. He even had a lesion removed, with the cancer being stable until a recurrence in May of 2015. He died on May 30, 2015.

Despite there not being any accurate scientific evidence, Joe Biden explored the link between toxic military burn pits and Baeu's cancer. Biden was quoted by PBS in 2018 that during Baeu's time in both Iraq and Kosovo, he was co-located near these pits. Biden later revealed in a 2021 address that Baeu had been diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis in 2001.

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