In a recent revelation, Rep. James Comer, the Republican Chairman of the House Oversight Committee from Kentucky, has raised doubts over the legality of former President Joe Biden's pardons.
Comer's committee has been reviewing Biden's record-breaking number of acts of clemency, which, according to Pew Research Center, surpasses any other U.S. President in history.
In a single term, Biden granted a total of 4,245 pardons and commutations, dwarfing the numbers of his predecessors, Barack Obama and Donald Trump, who issued 1,927 and 238 respectively.
As reported by the Western Journal, the majority of Biden's pardons were issued in the last two months of his term, as confirmed by the Department of Justice. The most notable of these was the pardon of his son, Hunter Biden, in early December, followed by a flurry of 40 more on December 12, and a final 14 on January 19, 2025.
This last batch included all members of Congress and staff who served on the January 6 committee, such as now-Sen. Adam Schiff, Rep. Bennie Thompson, and former Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger.
Comer, in an interview with Just the News, questioned the legality of using an autopen on a legal document, especially if the President was unaware of what was being signed in his name. He stated, Its questionable whether or not its legal to use an autopen on a legal document, but whats not questionable is if the President of the United States had no idea what was being signed using the autopen in his name. Then, you know, thats not legal.
Comer further criticized Biden's cognitive abilities, citing an instance where Biden couldn't recall the dates of his vice-presidency during an interview. He accused Biden's inner circle of shielding him from the media, his staff, and the American public, even preventing a cognitive test due to fear of the results. I think thats pretty damning, Comer said.
Alan Dershowitz, a professor emeritus at Harvard Law School, also raised concerns about the use of the autopen by the Biden White House in a conversation with Just the News. He highlighted two main issues: the nature of what's signed and the question of whether Biden actually approved the pardons or if someone else signed without his approval.
The New York Times reported that the Department of Justice is currently reviewing a significant number of emails from the Biden White House related to clemency actions. The report suggested that Biden did not personally approve all the pardons or commutations, but rather established categories of people who could receive clemency, leaving his staff to execute the orders.
Biden, however, defended his actions during a phone interview with the Times, insisting, I made every decision. He justified the use of the autopen for clemency warrants due to the large number of people involved.
President Trump, in a press interaction in June, criticized the Biden administration's use of the autopen, stating, Essentially, whoever used the autopen was the president, and that is wrong, its illegal, its so bad, and its so disrespectful to our country.
Given Biden's apparent cognitive issues and the lack of specific approval for each pardon, there is a possibility that these pardons could be overturned. This situation underscores the importance of maintaining transparency and accountability in the highest office of the land, and the potential consequences when these principles are compromised.
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