Democratic 2020 U.S. presidential candidate Biden walks past solar panels in Plymouth

KEY POINTS

  • President Joe Biden chatted and took photos with other beachgoers on Kiawah Island, South Carolina, Sunday
  • He talked to reporters but did not answer questions regarding the FBI raid on former President Donald Trump's home last week
  • Biden told the media he was enjoying his vacation "a great deal"

President Joe Biden interacted with locals and the press while he took a stroll along a South Carolina beach over the weekend, but the head of state did not comment on the recent raid on the home of his predecessor, Donald Trump.

"How you [sic] doing?" Biden told reporters when asked about the topic during a morning bike ride in Kiawah Island Sunday, ABC News 4 reported.

The president then chatted and took photos with other beachgoers before passing by the media again.

When asked if he wanted to talk with the press, Biden told them, "No, but you ought to go get your bathing suits," causing the reporters to laugh, footage provided by C-Span showed.

Another reporter asked the president if he was enjoying his vacation, to which he replied, "I'm enjoying it a great deal. I'm on the phone a lot, a lot of good news to report so, thank you."

Biden arrived in South Carolina Wednesday following another bout with COVID-19, according to Reuters.

The vacation comes after the FBI raided former President Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida, on Aug. 8.

Trump was being investigated for three possible federal crimes, which were removing or destroying government records; destroying or concealing records "with the intent to impede, obstruct or influence" a federal investigation or government activity; and violating the Espionage Act over the unauthorized retention of national defense information.

Trump took 15 boxes of presidential documents to his Mar-a-Lago home from the White House upon leaving office in early 2021, the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) revealed in February.

Items marked as classified national security information were included in the boxes.

Under the Presidential Records Act, the government has complete ownership, possession and control of presidential records.

The act requires the preservation of memos, letters, notes, emails, faxes and other written communications related to a president's official duties.

NARA was able to recover the 15 boxes from Trump, and FBI agents were able to seize 11 sets of classified documents during last week's raid on his home.

Among the documents, one was set at the highest classification level, "top secret/sensitive compartmented information;" four were at the "top secret" level; three at "secret" level; and the remaining three sets were "confidential," according to a search warrant that was obtained by the Wall Street Journal.

A total of 92,560,911 COVID-19 cases and 1,031,426 virus-related deaths have been reported in the U.S. since the pandemic began, according to data provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Former U.S. President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort is seen in Palm Beach