World Peeks In Bidenâs Garage, Files Fire Up International Coverage
"Two Presidents, Two Polemics.." Newspapers from Germany to Italy to Mexico and Lebanon and beyond are trying to gauge the ramifications for the ongoing Biden v. Trump showdown.

Screenshot of a campaign video for Joe Biden featuring his Corvette and the incriminated garage
The âGaragen-AffĂ€reâ â Berlin-based daily Die Welt took a crack at giving a moniker to the accumulating revelations that President Joe Biden had not turned over all classified documents from his time as Barack Obamaâs vice president.
The German coverage, along with a flood of articles published around the world on Friday, came after a second batch of documents were discovered in the garage of Bidenâs home in Delaware, next to the presidentâs prized Corvette sports car.
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On Thursday, Attorney General Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed a special counsel to oversee the probe of the documents, including an earlier cache discovered at Biden's former office at a Washington think tank on Nov. 2, just days before the midterm elections.
Die Welt warns not to underestimate the political damage, particularly in light of all the finger-wagging the current president has reserved for his predecessor, including criticism after similar revelations of classified documents found stashed in Donald Trumpâs private home in Florida.
âBiden is generally not stingy with moral judgements, presenting himself as the epitome of integrity and decency.â
âBiden called Trump's handling of secret documents âirresponsibleâ and the recent power struggle among the Republicans in the House of Representatives âembarrassing,â" Die Welt writes. âIt is precisely these same attributes that the Democrat now has to hear from his political competition. Biden is generally not stingy with moral judgements, presenting himself as the epitome of integrity and decency. Anyone who sets such standards risks falling hard.â
French daily LibĂ©ration alluded to the old dictum that âitâs not the crime, itâs the coverupâ that often drives scandals. âThe timing will be criticized, as those documents were found barely six days before the midterms [which leads to] questions of the timing of its revelation (why did we not know anything about it until the last few hours?),â the daily writes. âThis could also stir up the calls that have been made in the last two years, by some of the most enthusiastic Trumpists, asking for Bidenâs impeachment.â
Coverage elsewhere echoed the comparison (and duel) with Trump, as the pair could very well face off again in the race for the White House next year.
In an editorial for Milan-based daily Corriere della Sera, titled âTwo Presidents, Two Polemics,â
Massimo Gaggi writes: âDouble standards: the Republicans cleverly use the discovery of top-secret documents from the Obama White House to accuse the president of committing the same violations as his predecessor. The two cases are actually different. However, now, with Biden's top secret papers, prosecuting Trump would mean allowing him to declare himself the victim of a political vendetta by the president against his opponent.â
Meanwhile, another Italian newspaper, La Stampa, notes that Biden was waiting until February to announce his candidacy for 2024. âNow he risks running with the Damocles sword of an investigation on his head.â
Mexican daily El Universal offers an explainer: âHow the discovery of classified documents in Biden's offices compares with the Trump case.â
In Lebanon, French-language LâOrient le Jour, acknowledges that Biden âis on the defensive,â but also distinguishes that, unlike Trump, the Democrat is âtotally cooperatingâ with judicial authorities.
Arabic-language outlet An Nahar instead aimed to capture the moment from a different angle. âWhat happened to Bidenâs face?,â it asked, analyzing a video clip of Biden struggling to explain himself: âThis video lasts only 10 seconds, in which the face of American president Joe Biden looked very strange, with an unusual expression. This short video has been shared all around the world.â
â Worldcrunch
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