Biden’s Controversial Pardon and Use of Autopen Sparks Investigation

As President Joe Biden neared the end of his presidency, his administration was marked by significant acts of clemency. On his final days in office, Biden granted pardons to over 1,500 individuals, including members of his family, prominent figures, and people involved in the investigation of the January 6th Capitol attack.

However, the most controversial of these pardons was the one Biden personally signed by hand for his son, Hunter Biden. This single act of pardoning has stirred up intense debates, leading to questions regarding Biden’s mental acuity, the integrity of the Justice Department’s decision-making process, and the controversial use of the autopen to sign numerous documents during his final days in office.

Biden’s pardon of his son Hunter has raised eyebrows both within the political world and the public, especially given the timing and the nature of the charges against him.

Hunter Biden had pleaded guilty to three felony gun offenses, and he was also under investigation for federal tax crimes related to his alleged failure to pay over $1.4 million in taxes.

Despite his earlier public assurances that he would not intervene in the legal process surrounding his son, Biden ultimately decided to issue a blanket pardon. This pardon covered any offenses Hunter Biden may have committed from January 1, 2014, to December 1, 2024.

Biden’s decision to pardon his son, just as he left office, has prompted criticism from both political opponents and legal experts. Critics argue that this pardon undermines the integrity of the Justice Department’s work and raises serious ethical concerns, especially given that Hunter Biden’s legal troubles were part of an ongoing investigation led by special counsel David Weiss.

The president’s decision to offer such a pardon after months of insisting he would stay out of the process has only added to the controversy, with some suggesting that the pardon was politically motivated.

In an emotional statement justifying the pardon, Biden defended his actions, expressing his belief that his son had been the victim of “selective” and “unfair” prosecution.

“From the day I took office, I said I would not interfere with the Justice Department’s decision-making, and I kept my word even as I have watched my son being selectively, and unfairly, prosecuted,” Biden said in a public statement.

“There has been an effort to break Hunter — who has been five and a half years sober, even in the face of unrelenting attacks and selective prosecution.” Biden also lamented that the attacks on his son were, in a way, an attack on him as well.

His defense of Hunter raised further concerns about his judgment, especially given the legal implications of pardoning a close family member.

The backlash against Biden’s pardon of his son Hunter has been swift, with critics accusing the president of using his presidential power for personal gain. One of the most vocal critics has been David Weiss, the special counsel overseeing Hunter Biden’s case.

Weiss took issue with Biden’s public comments regarding the prosecution, calling them “gratuitous and wrong.” In his official report, Weiss expressed his frustration with Biden’s characterization of the case as politically motivated and said it unfairly impugned the integrity of the Justice Department’s personnel.

“Politicians who attack the decisions of career prosecutors as politically motivated when they disagree with the outcome of a case undermine the public's confidence in our criminal justice system,” Weiss wrote.

Weiss also made it clear that the pardon made it impossible for him to pursue additional charges against Hunter Biden, given that the decision had already been made.

“In light of the presidential pardon,” Weiss noted, “I cannot make any additional charging decisions.” The special counsel’s comments underline the importance of maintaining the independence and credibility of the legal process, and many believe Biden’s decision to pardon his son compromised that integrity.

The decision has led to further concerns about the ability of the Justice Department to operate independently of political influence, especially when the president’s own family is involved.

Adding to the complexity of this situation is the question of Biden’s use of an autopen to sign documents, including pardons. The autopen, a machine used to automatically sign documents, has been used by previous presidents for administrative efficiency, but its use by Biden has raised new concerns about his state of mind and cognitive abilities.

The controversy surrounding the use of the autopen stems from questions about Biden’s mental acuity in his final months in office.

Some have suggested that the use of the autopen was a way for Biden’s aides to conceal his cognitive decline and allow him to appear active and engaged in his presidential duties, even when he may not have been fully capable of signing documents himself.

The issue of the autopen became particularly significant in light of Biden’s final acts of clemency. While Biden’s pardon of his son was signed by hand, most of the other pardons and clemency grants were likely signed using the autopen.

This has led to speculation about whether Biden’s aides were using the machine to sign off on important documents without his direct involvement.

The fact that the only pardon Biden signed by hand was his son’s raises further questions about the authenticity of the other pardons granted during his final days in office.

The use of the autopen has sparked an investigation, led by Attorney General Pam Bondi, into whether Biden’s aides intentionally concealed his mental state from the public by using the machine to sign official documents.

Former President Donald Trump, who has been a vocal critic of Biden’s cognitive abilities, has directed Bondi to investigate whether there was any effort to deceive the public about Biden’s capacity to perform his presidential duties.

In a memo, Trump expressed concerns that the use of the autopen represented a dangerous abuse of executive power, one that allowed Biden’s aides to exercise presidential authority while obscuring the true extent of his cognitive decline.

“This conspiracy marks one of the most dangerous and concerning scandals in American history,” Trump wrote in the memo. “The American public was purposefully shielded from discovering who wielded the executive power, all while Biden’s signature was deployed across thousands of documents to effect radical policy shifts.”

Trump’s accusations, while controversial, highlight the deep concerns that some have about Biden’s ability to perform his duties and the transparency of the decision-making process in his administration.

Trump’s criticisms of Biden’s cognitive abilities and the use of the autopen were not limited to just the pardon issue. He has also pointed to the president’s declining mental state as a reason for his policy missteps and his inability to address the country’s most pressing issues effectively.

“Biden’s cognitive issues and apparent mental decline during his presidency were even ‘worse’ in private, and those closest to him ‘tried to hide it’ from the public,” Trump wrote.

“To do so, Biden’s advisors during his years in office severely restricted his news conferences and media appearances, and they scripted his conversations with lawmakers, government officials, and donors, all to cover up his inability to discharge his duties.”

The concerns about Biden’s mental state and the use of the autopen come at a time when the president’s approval ratings are already low, and questions about his fitness for office are becoming more common.

Biden’s age, combined with his public gaffes and occasional lapses in judgment, has led many to question whether he is capable of leading the country effectively.

Critics argue that the use of the autopen to sign important documents without his direct involvement is a sign that his presidency is being run by aides behind the scenes, rather than by the president himself.

In conclusion, Biden’s controversial pardon of his son Hunter, combined with the use of the autopen to sign numerous pardons and other documents, has raised serious concerns about the integrity of his administration and the state of his cognitive health.

While the pardon of Hunter Biden was a deeply personal decision for the president, it has sparked criticism from both political opponents and legal experts, who question the ethics and fairness of the decision.

The use of the autopen, meanwhile, has added fuel to the fire, with some arguing that it reflects a dangerous lack of transparency and accountability in the White House.

As the investigation into Biden’s actions continues, the American public is left to grapple with the implications of these revelations, which could have long-lasting consequences for the legitimacy of his presidency.