Trump Says Biden’s Preemptive Pardons Are “Void” and “Vacant”

President Donald Trump has argued that former President Joe Biden’s last-minute pardons are void after reports that they were signed using an autopen rather than by Biden himself, which has questions about their legal validity and constitutional implications.

Key Takeaways

Trump said Biden’s pardons are “VOID, VACANT, AND OF NO FURTHER FORCE OR EFFECT” due to alleged autopen use.
The contested pardons include protection for Jan. 6 Committee members, Dr. Fauci, and General Milley.
Trump suggests Biden was unaware of the pardons due to his mental condition, indicating potential criminal activity by staff.
Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey has called for a DOJ investigation into whether Biden’s cognitive decline allowed staff to implement policies without his knowledge.
Legal experts question whether Trump has the authority to unilaterally void presidential pardons issued by his predecessor.

Trump’s Pushback Against Biden’s Pardons

In a significant escalation of post-administration tensions, President Donald Trump declared on social media that all pardons issued by former President Biden in his final days in office are invalid. The claim stems from reports that Biden did not physically sign the pardons himself but instead relied on an autopen device that mechanically reproduces signatures. Trump’s announcement specifically targets pardons issued to members of the January 6th House Select Committee and other high-profile figures from the previous administration.

“The ‘Pardons’ that Sleepy Joe Biden gave to the Unselect Committee of Political Thugs, and many others, are hereby declared VOID, VACANT, AND OF NO FURTHER FORCE OR EFFECT, because of the fact that they were done by Autopen. In other words, Joe Biden did not sign them but, more importantly, he did not know anything about them!” Trump claimed.

Still, President Trump has warned that members of the former January 6th House Select Committee who received pardons could face “investigation at the highest level.” This statement suggests Trump may direct his Justice Department to examine not only the validity of the pardons themselves but also the conduct of those who received them.

Biden’s Controversial Last-Minute Pardons

On his final day in office, former Biden issued a series of preemptive pardons. The pardons extended to all nine members of the January 6th Committee, including Representative Bennie Thompson and former Representative Liz Cheney. Additional notable recipients included General Mark Milley, who has publicly criticized Trump as a “wannabe dictator,” and Dr. Anthony Fauci, who faced significant Republican criticism throughout the 2020 health emergency.

Trump reportedly characterized these pardons as “disgraceful” and claimed that many recipients were guilty of “MAJOR CRIMES.” He specifically accused the January 6th Committee members of tampering with evidence related to investigations against him, alleging they deleted crucial documents. The former president suggested these committee members may have orchestrated their own pardons without Biden’s knowledge or understanding.

Mental Capacity Questions and Legal Implications

Central to Trump’s claims is the suggestion that Biden, at 82 years old, lacked the mental capacity to understand the pardons he was allegedly issuing. Trump has claimed that the former president “knew nothing about them,” suggesting that staff members may have committed crimes by facilitating pardons without proper presidential authorization. This accusation touches on longstanding Republican concerns about Biden’s cognitive abilities that were prominent during the 2024 campaign.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey also previously called for a Department of Justice investigation to determine whether Biden’s alleged cognitive decline allowed staff members to implement policies without his knowledge or consent. Bailey specifically questioned the legality of the pardons if autopen signatures were used, suggesting they could be unconstitutional and therefore void. The situation represents an unprecedented challenge to presidential pardon authority and raises significant questions about the peaceful transfer of power between administrations.

Trump’s statement has stirred legal discussions, with some experts noting that there is no clear precedent for a sitting president invalidating pardons issued by a predecessor. While in a gaggle on Air Force One, Trump was asked whether he thought the pardons would hold up, and he said, “It’s not my decision; that’ll be up to a court. But I would say that they’re null and void.”

Notably, Biden is not the only president who has used an autopen to sign documents related to the presidency. Former President Barack Obama in particular is reported to have pardoned a number of individuals using an autopen. Jeffrey Crouch, a politics professor at American University, indicated “the idea that a completed pardon could be revoked is a highly unusual suggestion,” according to NBC News, casting doubt on the legality of reversing the pardons.