Biden Defends Use Of Autopen For Mass Clemency Decisions

Former President Joe Biden is now defending his controversial decision to use an autopen to sign off on more than 1,500 pardons and clemency orders in the waning hours of his presidency — even as critics, including President Donald Trump, accuse the Biden administration of covering up a serious decline in Biden’s cognitive capacity.

In a recent interview with The New York Times, Biden insisted that he “made every decision” related to the clemency spree, calling it a historic act of criminal justice reform.

“We’re talking about [granting clemency to] a whole lot of people,” Biden said.

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But even Biden’s own aides — and the Times itself — now admit he did not personally review or approve each name.

“Rather, after extensive discussion of different possible criteria, [Biden] signed off on the standards he wanted to be used to determine which convicts would qualify,” the Times reported.

The implication is clear: unelected staff, not the president, vetted the names of over 1,500 individuals who were given second chances — or blanket immunity — with Biden’s mechanical signature rubber-stamping the decisions.

This marks what the White House called “the largest single-day act of clemency by any U.S. president.” But critics say it may also mark one of the most alarming abuses of executive authority in modern history.

President Donald Trump responded forcefully, issuing a memo to Attorney General Pam Bondi directing the Department of Justice to investigate Biden’s overuse of the autopen.

“It has become increasingly apparent that former President Biden’s aides abused the power of Presidential signatures through the use of an autopen to conceal Biden’s cognitive decline and assert Article II authority,” Trump wrote.
“This conspiracy marks one of the most dangerous and concerning scandals in American history. The American public was purposefully shielded from discovering who wielded the executive power,” he added.

Though previous presidents have used autopens in limited instances, Trump criticized Biden’s sweeping reliance on the device to implement major policy actions, not just ceremonial signatures.

“Usually, when they put documents in front of you, they’re important,” Trump told reporters. “I think it’s inappropriate… That person deserves to get a real signature, not an autopen.”

As Biden deflects blame and claims he was “in charge the whole time,” evidence continues to emerge suggesting otherwise. House Republicans are pursuing oversight investigations into whether Biden’s senior aides wielded presidential power on his behalf in his final days — effectively operating a government without the president.

Adding to the firestorm, the Department of Justice remains under scrutiny for its handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case.

In a joint status report filed this week with legal watchdog Judicial Watch, the DOJ confirmed that the FBI is conducting ongoing reviews of Epstein-related records — including documents that could reveal the identities of the sex trafficker’s powerful network of clients and associates.

Judicial Watch sued both the DOJ and FBI earlier this year after they failed to respond to three separate FOIA requests seeking transparency on Epstein’s inner circle.

According to the filing, the FBI has completed initial searches and is now reviewing the results — but has offered no timeline for when the public might finally see the long-concealed information.

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The lack of transparency from the DOJ, paired with its continued claims that no “client list” exists, has only fueled suspicions from conservatives who believe the government is protecting key figures — potentially including individuals connected to the Biden and Obama administrations.

With Biden aides accused of hijacking executive powers in his final days and the DOJ stonewalling efforts to unseal the Epstein files, many Americans are left asking: Who’s really in charge — and who’s being protected?


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