https://sputnikglobe.com/20250314/biden-autopen-scandal-revives-scary-questions-about-who-really-called-the-shots-during-his-reign-1121639838.html
Biden Autopen Scandal Revives Scary Questions About Who Really Called the Shots During His Reign
Biden Autopen Scandal Revives Scary Questions About Who Really Called the Shots During His Reign
Sputnik International
Biden allies spent years downplaying concerns related to his cognitive health, assuring he was “healthy, active, robust” and “fit for office” despite concerns going back all the way to his 2020 run. Now, revelations that he had been using an autopen signature to sign executive documents leads to new questions about the legality of his directives.
2025-03-14T19:00+0000
2025-03-14T19:00+0000
2025-03-14T19:07+0000
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This week, Oversight Project’s bombshell discovery that Joe Biden had used an autopen signature to sign almost “every document" the watchdog could find and analyze not only reignited questions about his mental state, but prompted some to ask who was really in charge of US policy during his presidency.Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey wants the Justice Department to formally probe whether the use of the autopen signature allowed “unelected staff” taking advantage of Biden’s state “to push through radical policy without his knowing approval.”The use of autopen signatures may worsen the former administration's predicament, potentially highlighting how officials could push through legislation and directives without even showing them to the president.Not Biden's First Signature-Related TroublesEarlier this year, House Speaker Mike Johnson revealed that Biden appeared genuinely confused about whether he had signed an LNG energy export-related directive just weeks after doing so in 2024. The encounter left Johnson asking questions about who was really in charge at the White House.Before that, in the summer of 2024, the internet exploded over the signature attached to the letter announcing Biden’s decision not to seek a second term, with observers highlighting the fact that it was underlined, and had other odd elements, like the lack of the traditional Jr. at the end.Autopen Signatures: A Controversial TraditionWhile Trump’s habit of personally signing and commenting on executive orders in front of media has become a tradition over the past two months, US presidents are known to have used autopen signatures going back at least to the middle of the 20th century, with its first use attributed to Harry Truman.Barack Obama occasionally used the tool to sign unpopular directives, such as the 2011 order renewing the Patriot Act. In the 2000s, the Bush administration asked the DoJ to rule on autopen signatures' constitutionality.The issue, in Biden’s case, is whether he had the mental fortitude to approve even the automatic signoff on key decrees, from multi-billion foreign aid packages to pardons, or whether he received warranted or unwarranted ‘guidance’ from unknown, unelected actors within his administration.
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what is presidential autopen, did biden use autopen signature, what is autopen signature, is autopen signature legal
what is presidential autopen, did biden use autopen signature, what is autopen signature, is autopen signature legal
Biden Autopen Scandal Revives Scary Questions About Who Really Called the Shots During His Reign
19:00 GMT 14.03.2025 (Updated: 19:07 GMT 14.03.2025) Biden allies spent years downplaying concerns related to his cognitive health, assuring he was “healthy, active, robust” and “fit for office” despite concerns going back all the way to his 2020 run. Now, revelations that he had been using an autopen signature to sign executive documents leads to new questions about the legality of his directives.
This week, Oversight Project’s
bombshell discovery that Joe Biden had used an autopen signature to sign almost “every document" the watchdog could find and analyze not only reignited questions about his mental state, but prompted some to ask who was really in charge of US policy during his presidency.
Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey
wants the Justice Department to formally probe whether the use of the autopen signature allowed “unelected staff” taking advantage of Biden’s state “to push through radical policy without his knowing approval.”
If confirmed, “these executive orders, pardons, and all other actions are constitutional and legally void,” Bailey argues.
The use of autopen signatures may worsen the former administration's predicament, potentially highlighting how officials could push through legislation and directives without even showing them to the president.
Not Biden's First Signature-Related Troubles
Earlier this year, House Speaker Mike Johnson revealed that Biden appeared genuinely confused about whether he had signed an LNG energy export-related directive just weeks after doing so in 2024. The encounter left Johnson
asking questions about who was really in charge at the White House.
Before that, in the summer of 2024, the internet exploded over the signature attached to the letter announcing Biden’s decision not to seek a second term, with observers highlighting the fact that it was underlined, and had other
odd elements, like the lack of the traditional Jr. at the end.
Autopen Signatures: A Controversial Tradition
While Trump’s habit of personally signing and commenting on executive orders in front of media has become a tradition over the past two months, US presidents are known to have used autopen signatures going back at least to the middle of the 20th century, with its first use attributed to Harry Truman.
Barack Obama occasionally used the tool to sign unpopular directives, such as the 2011 order renewing the Patriot Act. In the 2000s, the Bush administration asked the DoJ to rule on autopen signatures' constitutionality.
The issue, in Biden’s case, is whether he had the mental fortitude to approve even the automatic signoff on key decrees, from multi-billion foreign aid packages to pardons, or whether he received warranted or unwarranted ‘guidance’ from unknown, unelected actors within his administration.
