Pence: 'Mistakes were made' in classified records handling

MIAMI (AP) — Former Vice President Mike Pence said Friday he takes “full responsibility” after classified documents were found at his Indiana home.

In his first public comments since the discovery, Pence said he wasn’t aware the documents were in his home, but his lack of knowledge was no excuse.

“Let me get something straight: These classified documents shouldn’t have been in my personal residence,” Pence said at Florida International University, where he spoke on economics and introduced his new book, So Help Me God. “Mistakes were made.”

The discovery, released earlier this week by Pence’s team, was the latest in a series of recoveries of sensitive papers from the homes of current and former senior US officials. The Justice Department was already investigating the discovery of classified documents at former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort and at President Joe Biden’s Delaware home and former office in Washington.

The announcement of the documents in Pence’s possession came five months after he told The Associated Press that he had not taken any classified documents with him when he left the vice presidency. “No, not to my knowledge,” he said when asked if he held such information.

The comment – which would normally be inconspicuous for a former vice president – was notable at the time, as FBI agents on Aug. 8 seized top-secret information from his former boss’s Florida home while investigating possible violations of three separate federal laws. Trump claimed that the documents seized by agents were “all declassified.”

Pence said he decided to conduct the search of his home “out of caution” after Biden’s team recently announced documents had been found at his former office and home in Delaware.

“I take full responsibility” for the documents discovered in Indiana, Pence said Friday. He said he has directed his attorney to work with the National Archives, the Justice Department and Congress and to cooperate fully with any investigation.

The former vice president said national security depends on the proper handling of classified documents, but he hopes people will realize he acted quickly to correct the mistake.

“We acted above politics and put national interests first,” he said.

Adriana Gomez Licon, The Associated Press