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By Gabe Whisnant
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President Donald Trump on Tuesday said that all pardons, commutations and other official documents signed by an autopen during Joe Biden’s presidency are “terminated,” issuing a sweeping proclamation that would upend years of routine executive practice.
The president posted on Truth Social, "Any and all Documents, Proclamations, Executive Orders, Memorandums, or Contracts, signed by Order of the now infamous and unauthorized 'AUTOPEN,' within the Administration of Joseph R. Biden Jr., are hereby null, void, and of no further force or effect. Anyone receiving 'Pardons,' 'Commutations,' or any other Legal Document so signed, please be advised that said Document has been fully and completely terminated, and is of no Legal effect. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"
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Why It Matters
The autopen is a device that replicates a person’s signature with precision, commonly used for high-volume or ceremonial documents. Presidents of both parties have relied on it to sign letters and proclamations.
What To Know
Trump and his allies have made a series of unfounded claims that Biden’s use of the device as president invalidated his actions or indicated he was not fully aware of them. It is not known whether Biden used an autopen to sign pardons.
Before leaving office in January, Biden issued several pardons — including for family members he said he wanted to shield from politically motivated investigations — and commuted sentences for a number of nonviolent drug offenders. Trump, known for his criticism of political rivals, has repeatedly seized on Biden’s use of the autopen to sign official documents during his presidency.
Trump has questioned Biden’s mental fitness and suggested that aides, rather than Biden himself, made key decisions. Biden and his former aides have rejected those claims, saying the president was fully engaged in governing.
On Friday, Trump wrote on Truth Social that he's terminating all executive orders allegedly signed by Biden with an autopen, which the president said accounts for about 92 percent of the orders signed during Biden's term.
Legal analysts disputed the validity of Trump's claims, with Barbara McQuade, a former U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan under the Barack Obama administration, telling Newsweek that autopen signatures are valid and the signing method is irrelevant to executive order legitimacy.
What People Are Saying
McQuade told Newsweek on Friday that "any president has the power to revoke any executive order of his predecessor, regardless of how it was signed," adding that "the auto-pen issues is irrelevant. Auto-pen signatures are valid."
However, Representative James Comer, a Kentucky Republican and chairman of the House Oversight Committee, has characterized the situation differently, writing on X on Friday that "the Biden Autopen Presidency is one of the biggest political scandals in U.S. history" and alleging that "Biden's inner circle sought to deceive the public, conceal his condition, and take unauthorized executive actions using the autopen—actions that are now invalid."
Republican Representative Byron Donalds of Florida wrote on X Tuesday, "FOR YEARS, unelected Deep State bureaucrats ran our country with an autopen while President Biden sat on the sidelines in cognitive decline What happened was unforgivable. INVALIDATE THEM ALL."
What Happens Next
It remains unclear how Trump's directive will be implemented or whether federal agencies will attempt to act on it. Legal scholars say any effort to void previously issued pardons or commutations would almost certainly trigger immediate court challenges, since presidential clemency powers are explicitly defined in the Constitution and longstanding practice has accepted the use of autopens.
Recipients of Biden-era pardons may seek legal assurances that their clemency remains valid, while the Justice Department and White House counsel’s office are expected to review the order. Courts may ultimately have to decide whether Trump’s declaration carries any legal force.
Updates: 12/2/25, 6:43 p.m. ET: This article was updated with new information and remarks.
Updates: 12/2/25, 7:40 p.m. ET: This article was updated with new information.
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