In a dramatic political move that has rocked Washington, former President Donald Trump has announced the cancellation of all executive orders signed via autopen by his predecessor, Joe Biden. The decision, announced on Friday, November 29, 2025, centers on questions about the legitimacy of documents signed electronically during what Trump characterizes as Biden's "doubt-laden presidency."
The Core Controversy: Autopen Use and Mental Fitness
While the use of an autopen for routine presidential signatures has a long history, Trump has spent months disparaging Biden's reliance on the electronic signing device. The controversy gained traction due to extensive reporting, including in post-election exposes like Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson's Original Sin, which detailed a coordinated effort by First Lady Jill Biden and the president's inner circle to conceal his mental decline from the public.
The efforts to hide Biden's condition were highly-conceived and entirely intentional, ranging from minimizing his public appearances to physically shielding him from the press. This deliberate concealment, Trump and his allies argue, creates legitimate doubt about whether Biden had the mental capacity to authorize the decisions bearing his electronic signature, thereby invalidating them.
The Hunter Biden Pardon: A Hand-Signed Anomaly
Amid the scrutiny of electronically signed documents, one hand-signed pardon stands out as particularly significant. In December of the previous year, as Trump prepared to return to office, Joe Biden pardoned his son, Hunter, by hand.
This pardon addressed a slate of serious federal gun and tax charges for which Hunter Biden was facing a public trial and likely jail time. In contrast, pardons for Biden's three siblings—James, Frank, and Valerie—were signed using the autopen. These pardons were widely seen as a response to Republican-led investigations into the Biden family's finances.
The fact that the president chose to sign his son's pardon manually, while using the autopen for others, suggests he was acutely aware of its gravity. This action also implies he may have anticipated future legal challenges to the authenticity of his electronic signatures.
A Legacy of Questions and Political Warfare
The unfolding scandal raises profound questions about the final years of the Biden administration. With confirmation that Biden's mental capabilities had significantly degraded, critics are now questioning not only his ability to make executive decisions but also whether those decisions were actually made for him by the same inner circle that hid his condition.
The electronic signatures are now at the heart of Trump's campaign to challenge their legality. While the number of documents Biden signed via autopen and their ultimate fate remains uncertain, the political consequences are clear. The behaviour of Democrats during Biden's presidency has invited this intense scrutiny, creating a new front in the ongoing political battles between the right and left.
This autopen story is far from over. The central question remains: who, in the end, was truly authorizing these executive edicts? Who, ultimately, pressed "go"?
