Biden Admits 'This Is Classified' on Long-Suppressed Ghostwriter Tapes
Left says
- •Special Counsel Robert Hur already investigated this material in 2024 and declined to bring charges, concluding a jury would see Biden as a well-meaning older man with memory issues rather than someone who willfully mishandled classified material.
- •No classified material ever appeared in the published memoir, indicating any information discussed with the ghostwriter was not disseminated publicly.
- •The two-year legal fight centered on legitimate privacy concerns for a private citizen, and the material was heavily redacted before release even after courts ruled against Biden.
- •The renewed push to scrutinize these recordings comes from a conservative advocacy group and Trump-aligned officials, raising questions about whether this is a substantive legal matter or a politically timed effort to relitigate settled findings.
Right says
- •Biden can be heard on tape acknowledging in real time that material he was discussing with his ghostwriter might be or was classified, directly contradicting his 2024 public claim that he never shared classified information with his ghostwriter.
- •Hur's report already documented that Biden read 'nearly verbatim' from notebooks containing sensitive national security information, and these newly released tapes are seen as confirming that finding with Biden's own words.
- •Biden's legal team fought for roughly two years to keep these recordings from the public and from Congress, fueling suspicion that the delay was meant to protect him rather than merely protect his privacy.
- •Critics argue Hur's decision not to prosecute, despite what they see as clear evidence of willful disclosure under laws like 18 U.S.C. 798(d), warrants renewed scrutiny of both Hur's and the Justice Department's handling of the case.
Common Take
High Consensus- Roughly 70 hours of audio recordings between Biden and ghostwriter Mark Zwonitzer, made in 2016 and 2017 for the memoir 'Promise Me, Dad,' were released after a two-year legal battle.
- Special Counsel Robert Hur cited these recordings in his February 2024 report on Biden's handling of classified documents and ultimately declined to recommend criminal charges.
- Biden is heard on tape acknowledging uncertainty about whether certain material was classified, including the statements 'this may be classified' and 'this is classified.'
- Hur's report described Biden's memory as significantly limited and his recorded conversations as slow and halting, a characterization reflected in the tapes themselves.
The Arguments
Right argues
Biden can be heard on tape saying 'this is classified' and warning his ghostwriter to 'be careful,' directly contradicting his 2024 public assertion that he never shared classified information with Zwonitzer.
Left counters
Special Counsel Hur already reviewed this exact material in 2024 and concluded a jury would likely see a well-meaning elderly man rather than someone who willfully disclosed secrets, and no charges followed because the legal bar for willful disclosure wasn't met.
Left argues
No classified material ever appeared in the published memoir, which strongly suggests that whatever was discussed with the ghostwriter was never actually disseminated to the public despite being recorded.
Right counters
Under 18 U.S.C. 798(d) and related statutes, disclosure to an unauthorized person like a private ghostwriter can itself constitute the offense regardless of whether it was later published, so the absence of leaked content in the final book doesn't resolve the legal question.
Left argues
The push to relitigate a settled 2024 investigation is being driven by a conservative advocacy group and Trump-aligned DOJ officials, raising legitimate questions about whether this is genuine legal accountability or a politically timed effort to damage Biden after he's out of office.
Right counters
The identity of who fought for two years through FOIA and congressional subpoenas doesn't change what's on the tapes; if the Justice Department and a federal appeals court both ruled the public interest in evaluating a non-prosecution decision outweighs privacy concerns, the material's substance stands on its own regardless of who sought it.
Right argues
Biden's legal team fought for roughly two years, through both the Biden and Trump DOJs, to keep these tapes from Congress and the public, which suggests the delay served to protect Biden rather than merely address generic privacy concerns.
Left counters
Courts ultimately required heavy redactions even after ruling against Biden, confirming that genuine, recognized privacy interests existed in the material—this was a real legal dispute over competing interests, not simply a cover-up, and the case took two years because courts treated it as a close call requiring careful review.
Right argues
Even CNN's Elie Honig, a former federal prosecutor with no allegiance to Trump, said Biden 'arguably broke the law' and 'knew all along,' suggesting the case for scrutinizing Hur's leniency isn't purely partisan.
Left counters
A single commentator's opinion doesn't override Hur's actual prosecutorial judgment as a DOJ-appointed special counsel who reviewed all the evidence, including Biden's memory limitations, and concluded a conviction was not provable beyond a reasonable doubt.
Challenge Questions
These questions target genuine internal contradictions — meant to provoke honest reflection.
Right asks Left
“If the concern about these tapes is genuinely about privacy rather than shielding Biden from accountability, why did his legal team continue fighting for release even after a federal appeals court ruled the public interest outweighed his privacy claims and ordered heavy redactions?”
Left asks Right
“If these tapes are being presented as definitive proof of criminal willful disclosure, why does the same audio evidence you're citing also support Hur's central finding that Biden's memory was significantly impaired—the very factor Hur said made proving willful intent to a jury unlikely?”
Outlier Report
Left Fringe
Progressive commentators and some Biden loyalists (e.g., voices defending Biden on MSNBC-adjacent commentary) who argue this is purely a partisan witch hunt with zero substantive new information represent a small but vocal fringe, roughly 10-15% of the left.
Right Fringe
Figures like Jeff Clark and Mike Howell of the Oversight Project, along with some Townhall/PJ Media commentators, push the claim that Biden should face criminal prosecution and that Hur's decision was corrupt collusion—this more aggressive prosecutorial framing likely represents 20-25% of the right, with most mainstream conservatives simply viewing it as confirmation of poor judgment rather than demanding charges.
Noise Assessment
High noise ratio: much of the coverage is driven by a single advocacy group (Oversight Project) coordinating with sympathetic outlets and amplifying quotes via X, while the actual new information largely restates Hur's 2024 findings already litigated in public discourse.
Sources (11)
<img src="https://www.theblaze.com/media-library/biden-audio-tapes-have-just-been-released-and-it-s-not-good-for-joe.jpg?id=67542671&width=1245&height=700&coordinates=17%2C43%2C69%2C214" /><br /><br /><p>Former President Joe Biden appeared to admit that he was releasing classified information while speaking to a ghostwriter for his memoir published in 2017, CBS News <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/biden-tapes-released-classified/" target="_blank">reported</a>.</p><p>About 70 hours of audio recordings of the former president were <a href="https://x.com/JudiciaryGOP/status/2081864062695092295" target="_blank">released</a> Monday after a protracted legal battle by Biden's attorneys to try to keep them private.</p><p class="pull-quote">'It's time to reopen matters that Biden and his enablers would prefer to remain closed.'</p><p>The recordings were included in special counsel Robert Hur's report investigating Biden's handling of classified documents. The report was released Feb. 2024, and Hur did not recommend charges.</p><p>"Some of this may be classified. ... So be careful. I'm not sure. ... It's not marked classified, but —" Biden said in one section.</p><p>In another audio section he says, "The next thing I have here is, um, this is classified."</p><p>Hur described Biden in a manner that substantiated accusations that he was losing his mental faculties. He said Biden often forgot facts and would fumble painfully through conversations.</p><p>"All right — what was I going to ask you? Something else ... uh ... um. Oh gosh. I can't think of anything else," he said at one point.</p><p>The release of the audio tapes is a great victory for the Oversight Project of the Heritage Foundation.</p><p>"These tapes never should have been hidden," Oversight Project President Mike Howell said in a statement to Blaze News.</p><p>"Special counsel Hur's investigation was a complete controlled demolition to let Biden off the hook. It's time to reopen matters that Biden and his enablers would prefer to remain closed," he continued.</p><p><strong>RELATED: </strong><a href="https://www.theblaze.com/news/biden-trump-hur-video-lawsuit" target="_blank"><strong>Trump slams 'Crooked Politician' Biden over attempt to block release of interview</strong></a></p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-youtube"> <span class="rm-shortcode" style="display: block; padding-top: 56.25%;"></span> </p><p>"Our team is reviewing the Biden tapes now. We will be out with various bombshells," <a href="https://x.com/JeffClarkUS/status/2081843738112892974" target="_blank">said</a> Jeff Clark, the vice president of litigation at Oversight Project. "But I want to make this point right now. The tapes make clear that Biden disclosed massive amounts of classified information to his ghost writer Marc Zwonitzer."</p><p>The memoir is titled "Promise Me, Dad: A Year of Hope, Hardship, and Purpose."</p><p><em>Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. </em><em><a href="https://www.theblaze.com/newsletters/theblaze-articlelink" target="_self">Sign up here</a></em><em>! </em></p>
Audio recordings that former President Joe Biden fought for years to keep private have now been released.
Roughly 70 hours of recordings of an interview former President Joe Biden did with a ghostwriter in 2017, before he was president, were released Monday over Biden's objections. Weijia Jiang reports.
Over 2.5 hours of recordings between Joe Biden and memoir ghostwriter Mark Zwonitzer reveal halting speech and memory struggles during the 2017 sessions.
The recordings cover approximately 70 hours of interviews between Zwonitzer and Biden, which were related to his 2017 memoir "Promise Me, Dad: A Year of Hope, Hardship, and Purpose."
The Department of Justice on Monday was cleared to release audio recordings of former President Joe Biden's conversations with a ghostwriter after two legal obstacles were removed.
The heavily redacted recordings of Biden working on his 2017 memoir with ghostwriter Mark Zwonitzer were released to the House Judiciary Committee and the conservative Oversight Project nonprofit Monday after a two-year court battle.