Former President Joe Biden has broken his silence on the controversial use of an autopen during his final weeks in office, defending the practice as both efficient and justified during a high-stakes clemency push that saw more than 1,500 pardons issued.
In an interview with The New York Times published Thursday, Biden emphasized that he was fully involved in the decision-making process, stating, “I made every decision on my own.” The interview shed light on the internal operations of the White House in the waning days of his presidency, especially surrounding what was described as the largest single-day clemency action in U.S. history.
“We’re talking about [granting clemency to] a whole lot of people,” Biden said, acknowledging the scale of the effort.
According to The Times, Biden did not personally review and approve each individual recipient. Instead, he authorized a set of broad eligibility criteria, developed after lengthy discussions with aides and legal counsel. These criteria were then applied to determine which individuals qualified for pardons or commutations.
To expedite the process, White House staff utilized an autopen—a mechanical device that reproduces a person’s signature—to sign off on the final documents, rather than repeatedly interrupting the president with piles of paperwork. Biden’s team insisted that the use of the autopen was purely administrative and followed longstanding White House protocols.
Still, the move has drawn sharp criticism from Republicans, including President Donald Trump, who has accused Biden’s staff of misusing executive authority and hiding the former president’s alleged cognitive decline.
In a memo issued to the Department of Justice in June, Trump directed Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate the scope and intent behind the autopen usage.
“In recent months, it has become increasingly apparent that former President Biden’s aides abused the power of Presidential signatures… to conceal Biden’s cognitive decline and assert Article II authority,” Trump wrote. “This conspiracy marks one of the most dangerous and concerning scandals in American history.”
Trump also condemned the practice during a press appearance in June, calling it “inappropriate” to use an autopen for official acts, including diplomatic appointments.
“When you’re signing something like an ambassadorship, that’s not just a formality. That person deserves a real signature from the Commander-in-Chief, not a stamped one,” Trump said.
White House sources noted, however, that the autopen has been used by several past presidents, including George W. Bush and Barack Obama, particularly for time-sensitive legislation or routine documents.
Among the more controversial revelations from The Times’ reporting: Biden is said to have personally hand-signed only one pardon during his final clemency spree—a case involving a convicted whistleblower that drew heated debate within the administration.
Despite the backlash, Biden maintains that the clemency decisions were rooted in fairness and justice.
“I stayed engaged because I cared about getting it right,” he said.
As investigations continue, the controversy has sparked a larger national debate over transparency in presidential powers and the balance between executive efficiency and accountability.