Judicial Watch Continues Fight to Open Biden’s Hidden Senate Records
What was Joe Biden doing as a senator that he now wants to keep secret? We’re
trying to find out.
We filed a notice
of appeal with the Supreme Court of Delaware, asking for access to records
about President Joe Biden’s senatorial records held by the University of
Delaware. Biden’s papers include more than 1,850 boxes of archival records from
his senate career.
This appeal seeks a reversal of the opinion of the Superior Court of
Delaware, which is blocking a state Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.
It comes in the lawsuit
we filed with the Daily Caller News Foundation after a Delaware Attorney
General’s opinion
denied access to the records (Daily Caller News Foundation v.
University of Delaware (No. N20A-07-001)). The Delaware FOIA
lawsuit was filed in the Superior Court of the State of Delaware on July 2,
2020.
The appeal challenges the Superior Court of Delaware’s January 4, 2021, ruling
upholding the Delaware state attorney general’s opinion that the records are
not “public records” because, the opinion concludes without evidence, no public
funds are used to support the Biden records project at the University of
Delaware.
We responded in court that it is impossible for the housing of Biden’s senatorial
records in the University of Delaware’s Library to not be supported by any
public funds. We noted that the University admitted that “[t]he State of
Delaware provides the University with approximately $120 million each year
through an appropriation in the state budget,” but has yet to show how public
funds are not used to support the papers.
We further pointed out that “archival storage space and professional staff
members’ time are things of value that it can be inferred are paid for with
public funds,” and we note that the requests even listed the “University
personnel who maintain the Senatorial Papers whose salaries, it can be
inferred, are paid with State funds.” W requested that the Superior Court order
the University to search for and produce the requested records.
“We have no idea why the University of Delaware is hiding these materials that
the public should have every right to see and we are grateful for Judicial
Watch and our local counsel for pushing this case hard. When people ask why our
institutions are no longer trusted they should look up this case,” said Daily
Caller News Foundation President Neil Patel.
We filed our FOIA lawsuit
after the University denied its April 30, 2020, request for:
- All records regarding the proposed release of the
records pertaining to former Vice President Joe Biden’s tenure as a
Senator that have been housed at the University of Delaware Library since
2012. This request includes all related records of communication between
the University of Delaware and any other records created pertaining to any
meeting of the Board of Trustees during which the proposed release of the
records was discussed.
- All records of communication between any representative
of the University of Delaware and former Vice President Biden or any other
individual acting on his behalf between January 1, 2018 and the present.
On April 30, the Daily Caller News Foundation submitted its FOIA
request to the University for:
- All agreements concerning the storage of more than
1,850 boxes of archival records and 415 gigabytes of electronic records
from Joe Biden’s senate career from 1973 through 2009.
- Communications between the staff of the University of
Delaware Library and Joe Biden or his senatorial, vice-presidential or
political campaign staff, or for anyone representing any of those entities
between 2010 [April 30,2020] about Joe Biden’s senate records.
- Any logs or sign-in sheets recording any individuals
who have visited the special-collections department where records from Joe
Biden’s senate career are stored between 2010 to the date of this request.
- All records from Joe Biden’s Senate career that have
been submitted to the University of Delaware Library.
There is significant public interest in the special deal between Joe Biden and the University of Delaware that is keeping Biden’s Senate records completely secret. Delaware law is explicit in requiring state entities, including the University of Delaware, to provide public access to these records. We won’t let this drop.
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