As one of his final acts as the 46th President of the United States, 82-year-old Biden issued a series of pardons intended to shield a slew of public figures from politically motivated attacks.
Among those handed absolutions were members of the team investigating the January 6 attack on the Capitol and Covid response chief Dr Anthony Fauci.
Mark Milley, a former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was also granted a pardon alongside members of Biden’s own family – his brothers James and Frank Biden, his sister Valerie Biden Owens, and their respective spouses.
Why did Biden issue these pardons in the first place?
At the time, the Democratic politician claimed he was motivated by his relatives being ‘subjected to unrelenting attacks and threats’.
“Unfortunately, I have no reason to believe these attacks will end,” he explained, also issuing pardons for his sister-in-law Sara Jones Biden and his brother-in-law John Owens.
Meanwhile, Biden commuted the life sentence of indigenous activist Leonard Peltier, 80, who was convicted of killing two FBI agents nearly 50 years ago, as per a statement.
The act of clemency permits Peltier, who NBC News reports suffers from a decline in health, to finish the remainder of his sentence under home confinement rather than behind bars.
A spokesperson for Trump, 78, initially hit out at Biden’s pardons, describing them as the ‘greatest attack on America’s justice system in history’, as per the BBC.
.jpg)
Joe Biden (left) has been described by Donald Trump (right) as ‘crooked’ (MELINA MARA/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
“With the stroke of a pen, he [Biden] unilaterally shielded a group of political cronies from the scales of justice,” Taylor Budowich, Trump’s current Deputy Chief of Staff said via X.
“This is yet another dangerous and unreversible erosion of American norms.”
Now, Trump has declared all pardons issued by the former President to be ‘void, vacant, and of no further force or effect’.
Why did Trump annul Biden’s pardons?
Taking to his social media site, Truth Social, the Republican wrote: “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.
“In other words, Joe Biden did not sign them but, more importantly, he did not know anything about them!”
The businessman alleged that the ‘necessary Pardoning Documents’ were neither ‘explained’ nor approved by Biden, claiming he didn’t know anything about them or the people who may have committed crimes.
“Therefore, those on the Unselect Committee, who destroyed and deleted ALL evidence obtained during their two year Witch Hunt of me, and many other innocent people, should fully understand that they are subject to investigation at the highest level,” he scribed.
“The fact is, they were probably responsible for the Documents that were signed on their behalf without the knowledge or consent of the Worst President in the History of our Country, Crooked Joe Biden!”
Donald Trump took over as Joe Biden’s predecessor on January 20 (CHIP SOMODEVILLA/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
In another post, Trump claimed the person who ‘controlled the Autopen’ during Biden’s term in office was ‘the real President’.
This claim was preceded by an image depicting the last three portraits of America’s past and sitting Presidents, the first and third being pictures of Trump following his 2016 and 2024 victories, respectively.
Instead of Biden in the second image to mark his 2020 triumph, Trump replaced this with a picture of Biden’s autopen signature.
Elon Musk and Vice President JD Vance have both shared the insinuating image on their respective social media accounts, with the former following it up with a bullseye and laughing face.
What is an autopen?
According to Business Standard, an autopen has been utilised by high-level officials since the 1950s.
It allows for mechanical signatures to be issued by authority figures when they are personally unavailable by tracing a pre-programmed signature template.
Biden, Barack Obama and Harry Truman are three former Presidents who have utilised the autopen, as per The Sun.
Previously, Former President George W. Bush tasked the Justice Department to review the legality of autopen signatures, with the government’s lawyers concluding it was legal, as per The New York Post.
However, it’s understood there is no definitive court ruling on whether a pardon signed by autopen without direct approval or knowledge is legally valid, therefore leaving Trump’s challenge open to legal scrutiny.
