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Former president Joe Biden defended the widespread use of autopen during his presidency, saying he authorized it.
Biden gave a rare interview to The New York Times and said “I approved every decision” with regard to the use of autopen, which is a stand-in for a direct signature from the president himself.
The former president said autopen was used to grant a large number of pardons at the end of his term, including pardons for his family, because “we’re talking about a whole lot of people.”
The Times obtained emails that show how, after Biden met with aides the day before President Trump’s inauguration, Democrat chief of staff Jeff Zients sent an email to aides saying, “I approve the use of autopen for the execution of all the following pardons,” followed by a list of pardons.
Biden denied that any of the pardons were made without his approval.
“I made every single one of those. I understand why Trump would think that, because obviously, I guess, he doesn’t focus much. Anyway, so — yes, I made every decision.”
Senate and House Republicans and the Department of Justice are investigating whether Biden’s mental capacity affected his ability to exercise his office while president. In particular, they have been investigating whether autopen was used to sign off on measures without President Biden’s full awareness.
In response to the interview, House Oversight Chairman James Comer said, “The House Oversight Committee will continue pursuing answers about this historic scandal to prevent such an abuse from happening again.”
Last week, Biden’s White House physician Dr Kevin O’Connor invoked the Fifth Amendment to avoid answering questions about President Biden’s health.
More senior aides are due to be interviewed in the coming weeks.
