Biden Defends Controversial Autopen Use as Scrutiny Grows

Former President 👤Joe Biden is pushing back against intensifying scrutiny over his administration’s use of an autopen — a mechanical device that replicates a person’s signature — during the final weeks of his presidency.

In a recent interview with The New York Times, Biden stood firm on his decisions surrounding a sweeping clemency initiative that pardoned over 1,500 individuals.

“We’re talking about a whole lot of people,” Biden told the outlet.

Despite relying on the autopen, he emphasized, “I made every decision.”

Biden’s defense comes as new questions surface about just how much personal involvement he had in one of the largest acts of clemency in U.S. history. While he claimed full responsibility for the decisions, the Times reported that he “did not individually approve each name for the categorical pardons that applied to large numbers of people,” citing both Biden and his aides.

Instead, the report states, Biden “signed off on the standards he wanted to be used to determine which convicts would qualify for a reduction in sentence,” allowing aides to handle the final vetting — and the autopen to handle the signature.

“Rather than ask Mr. Biden to keep signing revised versions, his staff waited and then ran the final version through the autopen, which they saw as a routine procedure, the aide said,” the Times reports.

The autopen process, while not new, has ignited a firestorm of controversy. Critics say its use by a sitting president — especially for sweeping executive actions — skirts transparency and opens the door to abuse.