Biden Chief Of Staff Gave Reportedly Gave Approval For Autopen Pardons On Final Day In Office

Former President Joe Biden’s main of unit issued last support for aggregate high-profile preemptive pardons during Biden’s last days successful office, according to a caller report. 

Biden’s alleged usage of nan autopen has go a sticking constituent for months, arsenic President Donald Trump has said thousands of pardons Biden signed were void and claimed that nan erstwhile president did not cognize what documents he was signing done nan automated device. 

Biden issued a bid of preemptive pardons connected his last time to officials including erstwhile Chief Medical Advisor to nan President, Anthony Fauci, and erstwhile president of nan Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley successful an effort to safeguard them from retribution from Trump. 

In an article intended to beryllium his defense for nan autopen issue, it emerged that, though Biden reportedly made nan determination successful a meeting, Biden’s Chief of Staff Jeff Zients is nan 1 who gave last support for nan usage of nan autopen, astatine slightest successful nan lawsuit of Fauci and Milley, nan New York Times reported. 

WHAT IS AN AUTOPEN? THE SIGNING DEVICE AT THE HEART OF TRUMP'S ATTACKS ON BIDEN PARDONS

Dr. Anthony Fauci, erstwhile Director of nan National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, is sworn-in earlier testifying earlier nan House Oversight and Accountability Committee Select Subcommittee connected nan Coronavirus Pandemic astatine nan Rayburn House Office Building connected June 03, 2024.  (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

On Biden’s last time arsenic president, Jan. 19, Biden had a gathering pinch his aides until astir 10 p.m. to talk astir various preemptive pardons, nan Times reports. Emails obtained by nan Times show that an adjutant sent a summary draught of nan decisions formalized during that gathering to Zient’s adjunct astatine 10:03 p.m. 

The adjunct sent nan email to Zients and others coming successful nan meeting, requesting support from Zients and White House Deputy Chief of Staff Bruce Reed astatine 10:28 p.m., nan Times reported. Zients replied each to nan email 3 minutes later, nan outlet said. 

"I o.k. nan usage of nan autopen for nan execution of each of nan pursuing pardons," Zients said successful nan email, according to nan Times. 

Zients could not beryllium instantly reached for remark by Fox News Digital. 

Additionally, nan Times study said that Biden did not personally o.k. each sanction included successful nan broad, categorical pardons. 

"Rather, aft extended chat of different imaginable criteria, he signed disconnected connected nan standards he wanted to beryllium utilized to find which convicts would suffice for a simplification successful sentence," nan Times reported. 

In response, nan White House said that nan study shed ray connected Biden’s trustworthiness, and accused nan Biden management of engaging successful a cover-up scheme. 

TRUMP CLAIMS BIDEN PARDONS ARE ‘VOID,’ ALLEGING THEY WERE SIGNED VIA AUTOPEN

Presiden Biden, right, shakes hands pinch Mark Milley, outgoing president of nan Joint Chiefs of Staff, during an equipped forces farewell tribute astatine Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall successful Arlington, Virginia, connected Friday. (Nathan Howard/Sipa/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

"The aforesaid president who lied done his teeth to nan American group for 4 years astir everything from his wellness to nan authorities of nan system should not beryllium trusted again," White House spokesperson Harrison Fields said successful an email to Fox News. "The Biden management conducted nan astir egregious cover-up strategy successful American authorities … The truth will travel retired astir who was, successful fact, moving nan state sooner aliases later, conscionable arsenic nan truth is emerging astir nan authorities of Joe Biden’s cognitive and beingness health." 

Biden granted a full of 4,245 acts of clemency during his administration, 96% of which were granted during his last months successful agency betwixt October 2024 and January, according to nan Pew Research Center.

Trump first accused Biden of utilizing an autopen to motion important clemency documents successful March. He has continued to bring up nan issue, and sent a memo ordering Attorney General Pam Bondi to motorboat an investigation into Biden’s autopen usage successful June, and to probe if nan usage stemmed from a diminution successful Biden’s intelligence acuity. 

"In caller months, it has go progressively evident that Biden's aides abused nan powerfulness of statesmanlike signatures done nan usage of an autopen to conceal Biden's cognitive diminution and asseverate Article II authority," Trump wrote successful nan memo. 

BIDEN'S 'AUTOPEN SIGNATURE' APPEARS ON MOST OFFICIAL DOCS, RAISING CONCERNS OVER WHO CONTROLLED THE WH: REPORT

President Donald Trump speaks to nan media earlier stepping crossed nan South Lawn of nan White House to committee Marine One en way to Joint Base Andrews, Md., and connected to Florida, Tuesday, July 1, 2025, successful Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

"This conspiracy marks 1 of nan astir vulnerable and concerning scandals successful American history. The American nationalist was purposefully shielded from discovering who wielded nan executive power, each while Biden's signature was deployed crossed thousands of documents to effect extremist argumentation shifts."

A White House charismatic antecedently told Fox News Digital that Trump uses his manus signature for each legally operational aliases binding document. Even so, Trump has admitted that he uses an autopen for letters. 

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An autopen is simply a instrumentality that physically holds a pen and features programming to imitate a person’s signature. Unlike a tam aliases a digitized people of a signature, nan autopen has nan capacity to clasp various types of pens for illustration a ballpoint to a imperishable marker, according to descriptions of autopen machines disposable for purchase. 

Fox News’ Andrea Margolis and Pat Ward contributed to this report.