Trump says he's canceling all Biden orders that were signed using an autopen

Donald Trump prefers to sign his Executives Orders in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC in person and in front of press cameras.
Photo: united24media.com

President Trump said Friday he is canceling all orders signed by former President Joe Biden using an autopen, a mechanical device that reproduces signatures, CBS reports.

"Any document signed" by Biden via the use of an autopen "is hereby terminated, and of no further force or effect," Mr. Trump wrote on Truth Social.

"I am hereby cancelling all Executive Orders, and anything else that was not directly signed by Crooked Joe Biden, because the people who operated the Autopen did so illegally," Mr. Trump said. "Joe Biden was not involved in the Autopen process and, if he says he was, he will be brought up on charges of perjury."

Biden signed 162 executive orders during his presidency, according to the American Presidency Project. It's unclear how many were signed using an autopen, though it's not unusual for presidents to revoke their predecessor's directives.

Mr. Trump has already rolled back dozens of Biden's executive orders. The president rescinded nearly 70 of Biden's executive orders shortly after he was sworn in on Jan. 20 for his second term and another 19 on March 14, according to the White House.

Mr. Trump previously ordered an investigation into the Biden White House's use of the autopen to sign presidential documents like pardons, claiming there was a "conspiracy" to "abuse the power of presidential signatures through the use of an autopen to conceal Biden's cognitive decline."

Presidents have long used an autopen to sign documents. In 2005, the Justice Department under President George W. Bush said the president can legally use an autopen to sign bills into law.

In March, Mr. Trump acknowledged he has also used an autopen, but "only for very unimportant papers."

Like other presidents, including Trump, Biden used an autopen to sign certain official documents. Republicans have claimed the autopen was used by the people around Biden to circumvent a mentally declining president, NBC notes.

“Any document signed by Sleepy Joe Biden with the Autopen, which was approximately 92% of them, is hereby terminated, and of no further force or effect,” he wrote on Truth Social. “I am hereby cancelling all Executive Orders, and anything else that was not directly signed by Crooked Joe Biden, because the people who operated the Autopen did so illegally.”

Biden’s team did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

…Among the Executive Orders are those that specifically imposed sanctions against Russia. For example, Executive Order 14066 of March 8, 2022, imposed bans on fossil fuel imports from Russia and new US investments in the Russian energy sector.

If Trump rescinded this EO and others with anti-Russian sanctions, does that mean US sanctions against Moscow have also been lifted?

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