Classified documents were found last week at the home of former Vice President Mike Pence in Indiana, authorities confirmed Tuesday. On Wednesday, Pence’s team notified the National Archives that a small number of documents were “inadvertently packaged and transported” to the former vice president’s home at the end of his White House term.
Pence “was not aware of the existence of any confidential or classified documents at his personal residence,” his attorney said.
Those findings come as President Biden faces mounting criticism, including from Pence, over the discovery of classified materials at an office of his in Washington, DC, and at his Delaware home.
Lawyers conducting the search found “a small number of documents that may contain confidential or classified information.”
Pence’s team was unable to give an exact number of documents recovered or additional descriptions of the materials because they were being kept under lock and key until they could be released to the National Archives.
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His lawyers explained that FBI agents arrived at Pence’s house on Thursday night to collect the documents, which had already been put away. They indicated that Pence agreed to deliver the two boxes with materials containing classified documents, as well as two others with copies of administrative records.
“Vice President Pence has directed his representatives to work with the National Archives to ensure their prompt and safe return to the National Archives. “Vice President Pence appreciates the good work of the National Archives staff and trusts that they will provide appropriate advice in response to this letter.”
The findings at Pence’s home make him the third former or current senior official to have stored classified materials at his home, after Biden and former President Trump.
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The Presidential Records Act requires presidents and vice presidents to turn documents over to the National Archives for proper preservation after their terms end.
Although Biden and Pence notified the Archives and turned over the materials, Trump did not cooperate with federal officials after they asked him to return the documents stored at his Mar-a-Lago property.
The fight culminated in an FBI search of the property in August, and the Justice Department appointed special counsel to investigate Trump’s handling of classified materials as well as his actions surrounding the January 6 attack on the Capitol. 2021.
Pence was asked in Iowa last summer if he had withheld classified information upon leaving office. “No, not that I know of,” he said at the time.
Pence has been among the Republicans who criticized Biden in recent weeks over the discovery of classified documents in his former office and his Wilmington home from Biden’s time as vice president and senator from Delaware.
