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Biden Defends Use of Autopen in Final Pardons
(MENAFN) In an interview published Sunday by a news outlet, former U.S. President Joe Biden confirmed that he authorized widespread use of his autopen to sign documents during the final stretch of his presidency.
This revelation comes as Senate and House Republicans, in coordination with the Justice Department, investigate whether Biden’s age affected his ability to fully carry out the duties of the presidency.
One focal point of the inquiries—led by figures such as House Oversight Chairman James Comer—is whether White House staffers improperly used Biden’s reliance on the autopen, a mechanical device that reproduces a person’s signature without their direct physical involvement.
“I made every decision,” Biden stated to the news outlet, explaining his reasoning behind deploying the autopen for clemency matters. “We’re talking about a whole lot of people,” he added.
In his final days in office, Biden fast-tracked sentence reductions for close to 4,000 federal prisoners. As reported by the news outlet, a significant number of the clemency decisions—including several involving Biden family members—were executed using the autopen.
Internal emails reviewed by the news outlet show that following a January 19 meeting with senior advisers, White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients directed staff to employ the autopen “for the execution of all of the following pardons.”
Biden emphasized his personal involvement, telling the news outlet: “I made every single one of those ... yes, I made every decision.” He also remarked: “I understand why (US President Donald) Trump would think that, because obviously, I guess, he doesn't focus much.”
Speaking to media, Comer stated: “The House Oversight Committee will continue pursuing answers about this historic scandal to prevent such an abuse from happening again.”
As part of its investigation, the committee has interviewed current and former aides to Biden. Meanwhile, Dr. Kevin O’Connor, the president’s physician, exercised his Fifth Amendment right and declined to answer questions.
This revelation comes as Senate and House Republicans, in coordination with the Justice Department, investigate whether Biden’s age affected his ability to fully carry out the duties of the presidency.
One focal point of the inquiries—led by figures such as House Oversight Chairman James Comer—is whether White House staffers improperly used Biden’s reliance on the autopen, a mechanical device that reproduces a person’s signature without their direct physical involvement.
“I made every decision,” Biden stated to the news outlet, explaining his reasoning behind deploying the autopen for clemency matters. “We’re talking about a whole lot of people,” he added.
In his final days in office, Biden fast-tracked sentence reductions for close to 4,000 federal prisoners. As reported by the news outlet, a significant number of the clemency decisions—including several involving Biden family members—were executed using the autopen.
Internal emails reviewed by the news outlet show that following a January 19 meeting with senior advisers, White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients directed staff to employ the autopen “for the execution of all of the following pardons.”
Biden emphasized his personal involvement, telling the news outlet: “I made every single one of those ... yes, I made every decision.” He also remarked: “I understand why (US President Donald) Trump would think that, because obviously, I guess, he doesn't focus much.”
Speaking to media, Comer stated: “The House Oversight Committee will continue pursuing answers about this historic scandal to prevent such an abuse from happening again.”
As part of its investigation, the committee has interviewed current and former aides to Biden. Meanwhile, Dr. Kevin O’Connor, the president’s physician, exercised his Fifth Amendment right and declined to answer questions.
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