President Donald Trump announced Monday that pardons issued by former President Joe Biden using an autopen are null and void, setting the stage for potential legal battles and investigations. Trump made the declaration in a post on Truth Social, emphasizing that Biden may not have even known about the executive actions taken in his name.
Reports indicate that throughout his presidency, Biden relied on an autopen to sign critical documents, including last-minute pardons granted before he left office. According to sources, aides may have handled key decisions, raising questions about whether Biden personally authorized the orders.
🚨👀I said this when he first "signed" them. Look back and you'll see I said he didn't have the cognitive ability to legally enter into a car loan, let alone sign Eos or pardon people.
I just didn't know it was done by autopen. People need to go to jail – the "pardonees" and… pic.twitter.com/pyNjqAw892
— 🍻Grow in the Glass🍻 (@mrhuntoon) March 17, 2025
“The ‘Pardons’ that Sleepy Joe Biden gave to the Unselect Committee of Political Thugs, and many others, are hereby declared VOID, VACANT, AND OF NO FURTHER FORCE OR EFFECT, because of the fact that they were done by Autopen,” Trump stated. He further argued that Biden “did not sign them but, more importantly, he did not know anything about them!”
Thought it would be interesting to look at Joe Biden's signatures on the seven pardons issued in the last hours before he left office. The president's pardon power can't be constrained or challenged, but who used an autopen to issue blanket, preemptive, 11-year pardons? pic.twitter.com/GIP8kThYUu
— Susan Shelley (@Susan_Shelley) January 29, 2025
Among the pardons now in question are those granted to members of the Jan. 6 House select committee. Trump has signaled that those individuals could now face scrutiny, stating that they remain “subject to investigation at the highest level.”
The Autopen is NOT Allowed for Use in Pardons. pic.twitter.com/Zal7RyP3BO
— Doug's Journey ✞📖🇺🇸 Ⅹ (@DsJ0URNEY) March 16, 2025
The controversy over Biden’s autopen use has sparked wider concerns about who was actually running his administration. Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey has called for an inquiry into whether unelected staffers pushed through executive orders and pardons without Biden’s explicit approval.
as long as Biden had the intent to pardon his family, signing by pen, autopen doesn't really matter, it is still effective. However, Biden clearly had no intent to pardon his family… so ya, here is that… pic.twitter.com/o0r71UkqQL
— 🏴☠️ TT 🏴☠️ (@TeslaTrillion) March 17, 2025
Vice President J.D. Vance joined the debate by posting a side-by-side comparison of Trump’s handwritten signature and Biden’s autopen signature, drawing attention to the issue. Others, including Elon Musk, weighed in on social media, fueling speculation about the extent of Biden’s reliance on the autopen.
Every pardon that was signed via autopen should be thrown out… Starting with them. 👇 pic.twitter.com/YtbqB9wZLU
— The 🐰🕳️ (@TheHoleTweet) March 16, 2025
With Biden’s autopen use now under scrutiny, legal experts anticipate challenges to his executive actions, potentially affecting policies enacted during his presidency.
