The recent revelation in The New York Times suggesting that a multitude of pardons were issued without former President Joe Biden's individual consent has reignited the "autopen scandal.
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The investigation into who was making the decisions as Biden's mental and physical health allegedly declined during his final years in office is being spearheaded by House Oversight Committee Chairman Rep. James Comer (R-KY). This has made Comer a prime target for the media, who are seemingly attempting to divert attention from their alleged role in concealing Biden's supposed senility.
NBC News recently attempted to turn the tables, with rather amusing results. As reported by RedState, NBC News claimed that Comer has not been signing his own subpoenas in the investigation into Biden, but rather, has been using a digital signature. However, there are significant issues with this claim, but first, let's consider the statements made by the reporters who penned this story.
The House Oversight Committee chair allegedly used a digital signature to dispatch letters and subpoena notices linked to the Biden autopen investigation. Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., has been at the forefront of the investigation into Bidens cognitive state during his presidency. Republicans have claimed that Biden's occasional use of an autopen to sign documents a practice adopted by other presidents as well indicated that he wasnt fully cognizant or aware of his administration's actions.
However, documents indicate that some of the letters and subpoena notices Comer has issued in relation to his investigation have been signed using a digital signature not penned by the congressman himself.
President Trump and his allies have consistently promoted the autopen theory to undermine Biden and his policies. In June, Trump initiated an investigation into the matter, labeling it as one of the most dangerous and concerning scandals in American history. Biden has refuted these allegations, dismissing them as ridiculous and false.
It's important to note that letters and "subpoena notices" are not presidential pardons. Therefore, even if Comer used a digital signature, the context is markedly different. NBC News seems to have overlooked the fact that Comer used a wet signature to sign the subpoenas in question, making the use of the term "subpoena notices" potentially misleading.
Some online users quickly noticed this discrepancy, humorously questioning whether reporter Ryan Nobles had ever used Adobe before.
The second point to consider is that a digital signature is a valid form of acknowledgment. If you sign something digitally, it is as if you signed it with a pen. The accusation against Biden is not that someone used the autopen at his direct command, but that it was used on pardons that he was not personally aware of.
The Times report has essentially conceded this point, although the excuse given is that Biden had dictated "categories" or groups of people to pardon, leaving the specifics to his staff. It's highly unlikely that Comer simply provided his staff with "categories" of people to send subpoena notices to, so NBC News' attempt to flip this scandal has now failed on several levels.
While I believe that this investigation will not result in any legal consequences due to the absolute and broad nature of the pardon power (the Constitution does not technically require a direct signature, nor are pardons reviewable by the legislative or judicial branches), Comer's investigation should still proceed. The public has a right to know the truth so they can hold future politicians accountable, even if Biden is now publicly denying any wrongdoing.
This is not the purpose of journalism. It should not serve as a partisan information operation that only emerges when it's time to deflect criticism onto Republicans.
Why hasn't NBC News assigned a team of reporters to investigate whether Biden knew about the pardons or not? Isn't that more newsworthy than taking these weak, easily refuted shots at Comer? But we all know that's not how the mainstream press operates.
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