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Former President Donald Trump made an unsubstantiated claim early Monday, arguing that President Joe Biden’s pardons for members of the Jan. 6 House select committee and others were invalid because they were signed with an autopen rather than by Biden’s own hand.
“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,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
He further alleged—without evidence—that Biden was unaware of the pardons and therefore, the recipients could face investigation.
Can Trump ‘Void’ Biden’s Pardons?
No. The U.S. Constitution grants the president absolute power to issue pardons, with no legal mechanism for a successor to revoke them—regardless of how they were signed.
The autopen—an electronic signature device—has been used legally by presidents for decades, including Biden, Barack Obama, and George W. Bush.
In 2005, the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) confirmed that an autopen is a legally binding signature when used with the president’s authorization.
“The President need not personally perform the physical act of affixing his signature,” the OLC opinion stated, affirming that laws signed by autopen are valid—and by extension, so are presidential pardons.
Who Received Biden’s Preemptive Pardons?
In January, Biden issued a wave of preemptive pardons, including:
✅ Jan. 6 House Committee members who investigated Trump:
- Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA)
- Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-CA)
- Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA)
- Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD)
- Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS)
- Former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY)
- Former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL)
- Former Rep. Elaine Luria (D-VA)
- Former Rep. Stephanie Murphy (D-FL)
✅ Other high-profile officials Trump has targeted:
- Former Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Mark Milley
- Dr. Anthony Fauci
Biden said the move was intended to prevent political retaliation by Trump, who has frequently vowed revenge against his critics.
Trump’s Next Steps? Legal Path Unclear
While Trump has declared Biden’s pardons “null and void”, legal experts say he has no authority to revoke them. The only legal avenue to challenge a presidential pardon is proving that it was not fully delivered to the recipient—which does not apply here.
However, Trump could instruct his Justice Department to investigate the pardon recipients for other charges, potentially testing the limits of presidential power.
Jan. 6 Committee Members Respond
Several pardon recipients swiftly mocked Trump’s statement:
- Adam Kinzinger posted a gif of Ron Burgundy saying, “Bring it on, b**.**”
- He later called Trump a “weak, whiny, tiny man” in a video.
- Schiff responded: “Your threats will not intimidate us. Or silence us.”
Biden’s Record on Clemency
In his final days, Biden granted clemency to nearly 2,500 people, including:
- Over 2,000 nonviolent drug offenders
- Jan. 6 House Committee members
- Mark Milley and Anthony Fauci
Meanwhile, Trump has issued around 1,500 pardons for convicted Jan. 6 rioters, including members of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, who were convicted of seditious conspiracy.
Trump’s attempt to invalidate Biden’s pardons lacks legal grounding and appears to be a political statement rather than an enforceable action. However, it signals his ongoing focus on retaliation against those who investigated him. Whether he will pursue further action remains to be seen.
