In a significant development, House Republicans have reached out to special counsel Robert Hur, requesting his testimony regarding his report on President Joe Biden's handling of classified documents. The report, released last week, did not charge the president with a crime but raised concerns about his negligence in protecting highly sensitive information. This depiction could potentially harm Biden politically, an opportunity that Republicans are eager to seize upon.

Sources with direct knowledge of the matter have confirmed that Hur has retained Bill Burck as his personal attorney. Although no specific date has been set, the testimony is expected to take place at the end of February. The Justice Department, however, has declined to comment on the matter.

Furthermore, following the release of the report, House Oversight Chairman James Comer has urged the Justice Department to provide his committee with all classified materials concerning the Republican-led impeachment inquiry into President Biden. Comer expressed the need for Congress to have unfettered access to these documents to investigate whether Biden's retention of sensitive materials played a role in alleged influence peddling schemes.

House Oversight Republicans have also called on the Justice Department to release the full transcript of President Biden's interview with the special counsel, as quoted in the final report. This request for transparency is consistent with previous cases involving special counsels appointed during the Trump presidency. Both Robert Mueller and John Durham testified before Congress once their reports were submitted to the Justice Department.

Mueller's appearance before the House Judiciary and Intelligence committees in July 2019 was the result of weeks of negotiations, ultimately leading to an agreement after he was subpoenaed. Similarly, Durham testified to the House Judiciary Committee last June and provided closed-door testimony to the House Intelligence Committee regarding his investigation into the FBI's probe of Trump and Russia.

The special counsel report prepared by Robert Hur found that President Biden willingly retained classified information, including top-secret documents, some of which he knew he possessed as early as 2017. It was also revealed that he shared some of this information with the ghostwriter of his 2017 memoir.

Despite these findings, the special counsel decided not to pursue charges against the president due to the absence of evidence of a willful intent by Biden to illegally hold onto classified material. The report mentioned that Biden's cooperation with the investigation was a contributing factor. However, the report caused political damage by suggesting that Biden's exemption from prosecution was partly because he presented oneself as an elderly man with a poor memory. Biden's legal team objected to this description, accusing Hur of exceeding investigative boundaries and disregarding Justice Department rules and norms.

It is anticipated that the report will become a significant issue in the forthcoming 2024 campaign, as Biden's likely opponent, Donald Trump, faces criminal charges related to his handling of classified material. Nonetheless, Hur's report underscores the differences between the cases and their respective outcomes.