Former President Biden has stirred quite the pot with his recent admission about the use of the autopen for clemency decisions during his time in office. In an interview, he revealed that while he set up the categories for clemency, he did not individually approve each name. Instead, his staff took the liberty of finalizing the pardons and running them through the trusty autopen. This revelation raises eyebrows and a slew of questions among Republicans who are eager to know who was truly steering the ship during Biden’s presidency.
The admission has added fuel to the ongoing debate about Biden’s leadership and decision-making capabilities while in office. Critics have long questioned his mental acuity and whether decisions were made under his direction or through a shadowy network of aides. The use of an autopen for something as serious as pardons could be seen as hasty or careless, much like buying a birthday card but letting someone else sign it.
On the legal side of the aisle, the Constitution doesn’t require written pardons, but it certainly helps make things look legitimate. There wasn’t much uproar about these pardons until they were too large to ignore—clearing out death row and commuting sentences en masse. Such significant decisions being put through an autopen smacks of a clearance sale more than thoughtful governance. For a president who claimed he made every decision, it seems there were plenty he didn’t bother to rubber-stamp himself.
The irony here isn’t lost on observers who remember when folks on the left threw a fit over claims that Donald Trump orally declassified documents. If it’s good for the goose, shouldn’t it be good for the gander? Or is it just that oral declarations are more palatable when they don’t come from political adversaries? The Republicans are seeing red and aren’t about to let this slide into oblivion without a fight.
As the investigation rolls on, Congressman James Comer from Kentucky stands at the helm, questioning the competency and transparency of the decision-making process under Biden’s nose. The buzzword now is “cover-up,” a tantalizing suggestion that Biden wasn’t the one running the government, and that perhaps his White House physician’s decision to plead the Fifth only amplifies the suspense. It appears the Republicans are set to play detective and dig up what they can, determined not to let an opportunity slip by to scrutinize Biden as thoroughly as Trump was probed for alleged Russian collusion.
In the grand scheme of things, these revelations—and possible future findings—may become part of the sprawling narrative that defines Biden’s legacy. If nothing else, it fuels the perpetually polarized state of American politics, where trust is a scarce commodity and both sides are poised to pounce on the missteps of the other. Whether this saga will have significant consequences remains to be seen, but one thing is certain: it has all the makings of a classic political drama.
