President Donald Trump cranked up the political theater on Friday, announcing he's invalidating what he says is the vast majority of Joe Biden's presidential documents—all because they were signed with an autopen rather than Biden's actual hand.
The Autopen Controversy
In a Truth Social post, Trump declared war on Biden's use of the autopen, a mechanical device that reproduces signatures. According to Trump, this practice makes the documents illegitimate and therefore void.
"Any document signed by Sleepy Joe Biden with the Autopen, which was approximately 92% of them, is hereby terminated, and of no further force or effect," Trump wrote.
He doubled down: "I am hereby cancelling all Executive Orders, and anything else that was not directly signed by Crooked Joe Biden, because the people who operated the Autopen did so illegally."
For good measure, Trump added that if Biden disputes this characterization, he could face perjury charges.
The announcement drew immediate political reactions. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), who recently stepped down after a public split with Trump, suggested on X that if autopen-issued pardons get revoked, authorities should pursue charges against Anthony Fauci for "crimes against humanity."
Biden issued 162 executive orders during his presidency, according to the American Presidency Project, though the exact number signed via autopen remains unclear.
Biden's Response
Biden previously dismissed these accusations earlier this year, calling them political distractions. He maintained that he personally made all decisions on pardons, executive orders, legislation, and proclamations—regardless of how the signature physically appeared on the document.
The Legal Reality
Here's the thing: presidents from both parties have been using autopens for decades. In 2005, the Justice Department under President George W. Bush officially determined that using the device to sign legislation is perfectly legal, according to CBS News.
Even Trump has acknowledged using an autopen himself, though he claimed it was only for documents he considered "unimportant," the report noted.
So while the political battle rages on, the legal precedent is clear—autopen signatures carry the same weight as ink-and-paper ones, at least according to established Justice Department guidance.