Trump Orders Investigation into Bidens Pardons Amid Allegations of Mental Impairment

President Donald Trump has ordered an investigation into pardons and other executive actions issued by his predecessor, Joe Biden, alleging that Biden’s aides hid his declining mental acuity and that he was too mentally impaired to perform his duties effectively. Trump, who turns 79 this month, has long questioned Biden’s mental acuity and physical stamina. Biden, 82 and undergoing treatment for prostate cancer, dismissed Trump’s actions as “ridiculous.”

Trump directed his White House counsel and attorney general to investigate his claims that Biden’s aides concealed his declining mental state from the public. He also questioned the legitimacy of the Biden White House’s use of the autopen to sign pardons and other documents. This marks a significant escalation in Trump’s targeting of political adversaries and could lay the groundwork for arguments by leading Republicans that a range of Biden’s actions as president were invalid.

Trump suggested that rogue elements within the Biden administration might have faked the president’s signature and governed without his knowledge, particularly when it came to policies that appeased the Democratic Party’s far-left wing. Legal experts are skeptical about the investigation’s potential legal impact, viewing it more as a political act designed to energize Trump’s core supporters.

The investigation would cover pardons issued by Biden for his family members and other administration officials, as well as immigration policies and social issues like transgender rights that Trump claims Biden might not have agreed with. While a president’s executive orders can be repealed by a successor, completed legal acts like pardons or judicial appointments cannot be overturned.

An autopen is a writing tool that allows a person’s signature to be affixed automatically to documents. The Justice Department has recognized the use of an autopen by presidents to sign legislation and issue pardons for decades. Legal scholars agree that as long as the president has directed the use of the autopen, it is valid.

The Constitution grants presidents the absolute right to make pardons, and these pardons cannot be revoked. Trump’s suggestions that Biden’s administration functioned without his knowledge on key policy matters go beyond questions about pardons and the use of the autopen. The Supreme Court has ruled that former presidents have broad immunity from prosecution, which would likely cover Biden.

Biden has dismissed Trump’s investigation as “nothing more than a mere distraction,” asserting that he made all decisions during his presidency. There has never been a president who sought an investigation like this before, though there have been historical allegations of presidents being impaired and their administrations being controlled by intermediaries.