Former President Joe Biden’s Chief of Staff, Jeff Zients, reportedly gave final approval for multiple high-profile preemptive pardons during his final days in office. This development has intensified the political tension between former Presidents Biden and Trump. Biden issued a series of preemptive pardons to safeguard key officials, including former Chief Medical Advisor Anthony Fauci and former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley, from potential retribution from Trump. The use of the autopen by Biden has become a focal point of controversy, with Trump asserting that thousands of pardons signed by Biden are void due to the alleged misuse of the automated device.
According to the New York Times report, Biden’s Chief of Staff Jeff Zients provided the final approval for the autopen’s use in the pardons of Fauci and Milley. Biden convened a meeting with his aides on his final day in office, Jan. 19, to discuss various preemptive pardons. Emails obtained by the Times reveal that an aide sent a draft of the decisions to Zients and others at 10:28 p.m., requesting approval. Zients responded by approving the use of the autopen for the pardons, as stated in his email reply. This has raised questions about the authority and decision-making process within the Biden administration. The White House has denounced the report as part of a cover-up scheme, emphasizing Biden’s trustworthiness and condemning the alleged misconduct.
Biden’s administration authorized a total of 4,245 acts of clemency, with 96% issued during his final months in office between October 2024 and January. Trump first publicly accused Biden of using an autopen to sign important clemency documents in March, and later directed Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate Biden’s use of the autopen in June. Trump wrote that the use of the autopen marked one of the most dangerous scandals in American history, as it allegedly concealed Biden’s cognitive decline and allowed unauthorized changes in policy. The White House refutes these allegations, insisting that Trump uses his hand signature for legal documents, even though he admits using an autopen for letters.
An autopen is a machine that physically holds a pen and features programmable signature capabilities, capable of imitating a person’s signature using various types of pens, such as ballpoint or permanent markers. The controversy surrounding the autopen highlights broader concerns about executive authority, the integrity of the presidential office, and the potential misuse of automated systems in official processes. As the debate continues, the implications of this issue for American governance and the perception of leadership remain significant.