A senior Justice Department official has been directed to investigate clemency actions taken by former President Joe Biden in the closing months of his administration.
This probe comes amid repeated claims by Donald Trump that Biden used an autopen—a device that automatically signs documents—during his presidency.
Trump first raised the issue last month following Biden’s prostate cancer diagnosis, questioning who was actually operating the autopen and alleging Biden rarely signed documents himself. He reiterated the accusation on TruthSocial this week, tying it to Iran nuclear negotiations and criticizing the use of the autopen.
According to reports citing an internal email, Ed Martin, the Justice Department’s pardon attorney, will examine whether Biden was mentally competent and if others may have exploited the autopen or other means in issuing pardons. The investigation was initiated by a senior official appointed during Trump’s tenure and will focus on pardons granted to Biden’s family members and the commutations of 37 federal death row inmates.
In the final days of his presidency, Biden pardoned five relatives—including his siblings and their spouses—citing a desire to protect them from potential politically motivated investigations. He also pardoned his son Hunter Biden, who had pleaded guilty to tax offenses and faced firearms-related convictions.
While Trump and his allies have suggested that Biden’s use of an autopen was improper or unauthorized, no concrete evidence has confirmed this. The Justice Department has not specified which family members are under investigation or who exactly ordered the probe. Biden’s team has not commented, and a spokesperson for the Justice Department has yet to respond.
The president’s clemency powers are broadly defined by the U.S. Constitution, allowing pardons or sentence commutations for federal offenses. Trump himself frequently used this power, including issuing clemency to nearly 1,600 supporters charged in connection with the January 6 Capitol attack.
Ed Martin, who previously served as interim U.S. attorney in Washington, has described the presidential pardon power as “plenary” or absolute.
At a May press conference, he noted that using an autopen for pardons was not inherently problematic but maintained that Biden’s pardons deserved review.
This investigation seems partly motivated by ongoing debates about Biden’s health and cognitive abilities, intensified by his recent cancer diagnosis and reports of Democratic concerns about his mental fitness last year.
Meanwhile, a separate inquiry into Biden’s alleged autopen use is being conducted by the House Oversight Committee, led by Republican James Comer. Comer has suggested that if it’s proven Biden was unaware of autopen use for signing executive orders, those orders could be invalidated in court, potentially easing the way for Trump’s policy agenda.
Biden, now 82, ended his reelection campaign last year amid scrutiny of his mental sharpness after a poor debate showing. Although he is the oldest U.S. president in history and Trump is the second oldest, Biden’s closest aides insist he remains capable of making key decisions. To date, no evidence suggests Biden did not intend to issue the pardons.
Additionally, a 2005 Justice Department memo supports the legitimacy of using an autopen for presidential signatures by authorized staff.
