Trump Declares Joe Biden’s Pardons ‘VOID, VACANT’ Amid Autopen Controversy

President Donald Trump has declared that the last-minute pardons issued by his predecessor, Joe Biden, are “void, vacant, and of no further force or effect,” citing the use of an autopen in signing the documents.

Trump made the announcement late Sunday night on his Truth Social platform, suggesting that Biden may not have even been aware of the pardons being issued.

“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. He further claimed, “In other words, Joe Biden did not sign them but, more importantly, he did not know anything about them!”

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Trump’s statement raises significant questions about the legitimacy of Biden’s pardons, particularly those granted to the nine members of the House committee that investigated the events of January 6, 2021.

The list includes Chairman Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS) and former Republican Rep. Liz Cheney.

Trump accused the committee members of engaging in misconduct during their investigation, writing, “The necessary Pardoning Documents were not explained to, or approved by, Biden. He knew nothing about them and the people that did may have committed a crime.”

He added that those who “destroyed and deleted ALL evidence obtained during their two-year Witch Hunt of me and many other innocent people” should be prepared for potential prosecution.

HOLY SMOKES

Trump says the pardons that Joe Biden gave are VOID because they were done by Autopen pic.twitter.com/zikw4Yw8C2

— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) March 17, 2025

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Before leaving office, Biden also issued pardons for Dr. Anthony Fauci and former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley.

Fauci has been a controversial figure, particularly among conservatives, due to his role in COVID-19 policies that led to strict mandates and widespread job losses.

He has also faced scrutiny for allegedly misleading Congress about U.S. funding for gain-of-function research in Wuhan, China.

Trump had previously called Milley a traitor and suggested he deserved execution for his actions during the Afghanistan withdrawal and other military decisions.

The pardons of Fauci and Milley, along with those granted to the January 6 committee members, drew immediate criticism from Trump’s allies.

Assistant to the President Taylor Budowich condemned Biden’s actions, writing on X, “Joe Biden’s final act as President will go down as the greatest attack on America’s justice system in history. With the stroke of a pen, he unilaterally shielded a group of political cronies from the scales of justice. This is yet another dangerous and unreversible erosion of American norms.”

Joe Biden’s final act as President will go down as the greatest attack on America’s justice system in history.

With the stroke of a pen, he unilaterally shielded a group of political cronies from the scales of justice. This is yet another dangerous and unreversible erosion of…

— Taylor Budowich (@TayFromCA) January 20, 2025

A growing controversy has emerged over whether Biden actually signed key documents during his presidency.

Investigations by the Oversight Project revealed that nearly all official documents signed under Biden’s administration, including the pardons, bear identical autopen signatures.

The mechanical device, which reproduces a signature rather than requiring an individual to sign by hand, has been used by presidents in the past but is now raising concerns about whether Biden was personally approving his executive actions.

The Oversight Project stated that it had “gathered every document we could find with Biden’s signature over the course of his presidency” and determined that “all used the same autopen signature except for the announcement that the former President was dropping out of the race last year.”

WHOEVER CONTROLLED THE AUTOPEN CONTROLLED THE PRESIDENCY

We gathered every document we could find with Biden’s signature over the course of his presidency.

All used the same autopen signature except for the the announcement that the former President was dropping out of the… https://t.co/CC3oJUkNr4 pic.twitter.com/mtNrZsALDu

— Oversight Project (@OversightPR) March 6, 2025

The group posted comparisons of Biden’s signature from August 2022 and December 2024, showing near-identical signatures across multiple documents.

Further scrutiny came from Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, who called for a Justice Department investigation into whether Biden’s “cognitive decline allowed unelected staff to push through radical policy without his knowing approval.”

In a letter to the Justice Department inspector general on March 4, Bailey argued, “It appears staffers and officers in the Biden administration may have exploited Biden’s incapacity so they could issue orders without an accountable President of sound mind approving them.”

BREAKING: I am demanding the DOJ investigated whether President Biden’s cognitive decline allowed unelected staff to push through radical policy without his knowing approval.

If true, these executive orders, pardons, and all other actions are unconstitutional and legally void. pic.twitter.com/pOhATRfw2j

— Attorney General Andrew Bailey (@AGAndrewBailey) March 5, 2025

Bailey cited concerns from House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), who recently claimed that Biden did not appear to remember signing certain executive orders.

In an interview with Bari Weiss, Johnson recalled a conversation where Biden seemed unaware of having signed an order related to liquefied natural gas exports.

“He genuinely didn’t know what he had signed,” Johnson said.

EXCLUSIVE: @SpeakerJohnson tells @BariWeiss that President Biden hasn’t been in charge for a while.

In January 2024, when Johnson and Biden were alone in the Oval Office, the president couldn’t recall an important executive order he had signed just three weeks earlier.

Johnson… pic.twitter.com/OEbLxKBQBF

— The Free Press (@TheFP) January 18, 2025

The Oversight Project also highlighted a signature on the pardon of Hunter Biden, describing it as “shaky” and possibly done by hand rather than autopen.

This finding further fueled concerns that some documents may have been selectively signed by Biden himself, while others were authorized without his direct involvement.

As calls for an investigation grow, Trump and his allies argue that Biden’s use of an autopen for major policy decisions, particularly his last-minute pardons, raises serious legal and constitutional questions.

The legal battle over the validity of these pardons and whether Biden was fully aware of the actions taken in his name is likely to intensify in the coming months.

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