(Trends Wide) — The approximately 12 classified documents found at the Indiana home of former Vice President Mike Pence included materials described as briefing memos that were prepared for Pence’s trips abroad, multiple sources told Trends Wide.
One source said some of those classified documents were likely used to prepare Pence for meetings abroad while he was vice president and may have been overlooked during the packing process because they were tucked into old travel folders.
According to another source, the classified informational materials would not have been visible unless the packers went through the folders page by page.
It’s not uncommon for presidents and vice presidents to be issued travel briefing kits that include background memos about the people they meet in foreign countries. Sources who spoke to Trends Wide said they sometimes include basic biographical information about foreign leaders, but sometimes they include more sensitive information as well.
The FBI is working with US intelligence agencies to evaluate the documents, a process that involves determining how recent the information is, its classification level, and the potential risks of having classified material stored in an unauthorized location, according to a US official
A source who received information about some of the classified documents told Trends Wide that, based on what he was told, there was nothing particularly unusual about the documents and described the classification marks as “lower tier.” No mention was made of documents bearing SCI or SAP marks, two designations for some of the most sensitive classified materials, the source said.
Top secret, the highest level of classification, can include a subset of documents known as SCI, or Confidential Compartmental Information, which is reserved for certain information derived from intelligence sources. Access to an ICS document can be further restricted to a smaller group of people with specific security clearances.
Another category of confidential information within the top secret or secret classification is known as SAP, or special access program, which requires additional protections. Not everyone with a top-secret security clearance can access information in a SAP.
Trends Wide reported earlier this month that classified materials discovered in President Joe Biden’s former private office in Washington included US intelligence memos and briefing materials from Biden’s time as vice president covering Ukraine, Iran and the United Kingdom. United.
Materials found in Biden’s former office included some documents marked top secret with an SCI designation, Trends Wide previously reported.
More than 300 classified documents have also been discovered at former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort, both in boxes Trump aides turned over to the National Archives and in material later found by the FBI. An FBI raid in August included 18 documents marked top secret, 54 documents marked secret and 31 documents marked confidential, according to court documents.
A set of classified documents recovered by the FBI in August included SCI markings, according to the property receipt posted in the court documents.
