Exclusive: Biden's reversal on classified document flustered his attorneys

• Biden's personal attorney Bob Bauer soon intervened in the conversation: "I just really would like to avoid, for the purpose of a clean record, getting into speculative areas...He does not recall specifically intending to keep this memo after he left the vice presidency."

Zoom out: In the conversation, Biden initially said he didn't recall how he retained possession of the document.

• "Your answer is that you don't know," Bauer instructed the president at one point.
• But then deputy special counsel Marc Krickbaum noted that journalists had written about the document, and he asked whether Biden had intended to keep it because of its historical value, prompting Biden to say, "I guess I wanted to hang onto it just for posterity's sake"

Biden spokesperson Kelly Scully said in a statement: "The transcripts were released by the Biden administration more than a year ago. The audio does nothing but confirm what is already public."

Read the excerpted transcript of the exchange:

Part 1:

Marc Krickbaum: Was this memo, Mr. President, was this something that you consciously kept after your term as Vice President? Is this something that you wanted to hold onto?

President Biden: I don't recall whether I — did I have this? Was this in my possession, this memo?

Krickbaum: Yes. To give you some context for this, Mr. President, it was found in the front of this notebook that's on the first page, and the notebook was found in the library at the lake house, in one of the drawers in the cabinet.

Biden: OK.

Bob Bauer (Biden's personal attorney): But your answer is that you don't know.

Biden: I don't recall how it got back — I mean, I don't recall how it got back in the book, because I sent it to the President [Obama] and I gave it to the president. And this looks like the original. I don't think there ' s maybe there was a copy made, but I don't think so.

Krickbaum: It was faxed. Just to give you some more context.

Biden: Oh, OK, that's why.

Krickbaum: Yeah, yeah.

Biden: Alright. Now I got it. I wasn't sure how it got — how I whether I gave handed it to the President. It was faxed to the President, which I have the copy.

Krickbaum: Right.

Biden: OK.

Krickbaum: You had the original.

Biden: Yeah, I had the original and I just put it in the book and that was it.

Krickbaum: OK. Were you aware that you had kept it after your term as Vice President? Did you know that you had it?

Biden: I, I, I, I don't know that I knew, but it wouldn't have it wasn't something I would have stopped to think about.

Krickbaum: The reason I ask is it's been written about. Bob Woodward wrote about it in one of his books. Jules Witcover wrote about it in his biography of you. So that's the reason I ask is if it was something that you wanted to hang onto because it was going to be the subject of reporting or history.

Biden: I don't know if it was going to be the subject of reporting, but I wanted to hang — I guess I wanted to hang onto it just for posterity's sake. I mean, this was my position on Afghanistan.

Part 2:

Biden: I — I've been of the view, from a historical standpoint, that there are certain points in history, world history, where fundamental things change, usually technology. For example, without Gutenberg's printing press, Europe would be a very different place. Literally a different place, because the country would not have known what was happening in other countries — other parts of the country. You know, think about a stupid idea, a notion. Nixon probably would have been President where he used the television where he's sweating — I mean, sincerely. He was sweating so profusely in that debate, a lot of people thought he won the debate, but he lost the debate because of his demeanor. The — so there's a lot of things that I think are fundamentally changing how — international societies function. And they relate a lot to technology. And one of the things that I was of the view, that a lot has changed in terms of everything from the Internet to the way in which we communicate with one another, to — that has fundamentally altered the ability — I've had this discussion with the press …

Krickbaum: Mr. President, I'm sorry to interrupt you …

Biden: No, I ' m sorry. That's why I wanted it.

Bauer: Marc, just really quickly, I promise it'll be brief. I just really would like to avoid, for the purpose of a clean record, getting into speculative areas. When the President responded and said, 'I don't recall intending to keep this memo,' you then said well, you know, might you have thought it was important to keep it, or whatever. And [Biden] said well I guess, I could have. His recollection as I understand it is, he does not recall specifically intending to keep this memo after he left the Vice Presidency. And I want that to be — I want these … questions to be as clearly answered and recorded on the transcript as possible.

Krickbaum: I think we should take a break at this point.

Laufman: Oh, come on. Come on.

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