The AUTOPEN Allegation—A “Dangerous” Scandal?

Have Biden’s aides deceived the nation by concealing his mental decline?

At a Glance

  • President Donald Trump has launched a formal investigation into whether aides to former President Joe Biden concealed a decline in his mental acuity.
  • The probe, led by the Attorney General and White House Counsel, will examine the alleged improper use of an autopen to sign official documents.
  • Trump has called the situation “one of the most dangerous and concerning scandals in American history.”
  • Former President Biden has vehemently denied the allegations, calling them a “ridiculous and false” distraction.

An Unprecedented White House Investigation

In an extraordinary move, President Donald Trump has directed his administration to launch a full investigation into whether aides to former President Joe Biden engaged in a “conspiracy” to conceal in his cognitive health from the American public. The probe, which will be led by White House Counsel David Warrington and Attorney General Pam Bondi, will focus on whether key presidential decisions were made without Biden’s full awareness and if an autopen was improperly used to sign official documents.

The investigation follows months of speculation and criticism regarding Biden’s fitness for office, which reached a fever pitch after a widely panned debate performance in June 2024 and his subsequent withdrawal from the presidential race.

A “Dangerous and Concerning Scandal”

President Trump has framed the investigation as a matter of national security and constitutional integrity. “This conspiracy marks one of the most dangerous and concerning scandals in American history,” Trump said in a statement reported by Politico.

The administration is specifically reviewing the legitimacy of certain actions taken during the Biden presidency. Trump has publicly declared that pardons issued by the previous administration, particularly those related to the January 6 Capitol riot, are “VOID, VACANT, AND OF NO FURTHER FORCE OR EFFECT,” alleging they were signed by autopen without the president’s direct authority.

Biden’s Vehement Denial

Former President Biden has forcefully pushed back against the allegations, calling them a politically motivated smear designed to distract from the current administration’s policy agenda.

“Let me be clear: I made the decisions during my presidency,” Biden said in a lengthy statement. “I made the decisions about the pardons, executive orders, legislation, and proclamations. Any suggestion that I didn’t is ridiculous and false. This is nothing more than a distraction by Donald Trump and Congressional Republicans.”

The escalating conflict between the current and former administrations sets the stage for a dramatic political and legal battle. The probe by the Department of Justice and the White House Counsel’s office will seek to determine who was truly wielding executive power during the final years of the Biden presidency, a question with profound implications for the legitimacy of his legacy.

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