Autopen Cover-Up Part 2: The Staff Circus, Fauci's Get-Out-of-Jail-Free Card, and Trump's Investigation

Bureaucratic Overreach and the Erosion of Presidential Authority

The autopen scandal just got a whole lot worse. What started as questions about Biden's use of a robotic signature device has exploded into a full-blown constitutional crisis involving staff-run government, elite impunity, and a desperate cover-up of presidential incapacity. With over 1,500 pardons rubber-stamped in a single day and key figures like Anthony Fauci getting get-out-of-jail-free cards at 10:31 p.m., the American people are finally getting answers about who was really running the White House. Spoiler alert: it wasn't Biden.

Key Takeaways

* Biden unleashed over 1,500 pardons in a single day using autopen, the biggest clemency dump in U.S. history
* Chief of Staff Jeff Zients gave final approval for autopen pardons at 10:31 p.m., including Fauci's pardon
* Biden only hand-signed one pardon during his final spree while everything else went through "Autopen city"
* Trump administration launched full-scale DOJ investigation into whether staff abused presidential signature power
* Biden's cognitive decline made autopen a "shield" to avoid public meltdowns during controversial decisions
* Attorney General Pam Bondi investigating potential criminal charges for staff who exceeded authority
* Constitutional questions about whether thousands of autopen pardons are legally valid

The Staff Circus: When Bureaucrats Run the Show

The Biden White House wasn't just using the autopen for convenience; they turned it into the primary tool of presidential power while the actual president was checked out. This wasn't governance; it was government by autopilot, with unelected staffers making decisions that should have required direct presidential involvement.

Jeff Zients: The Real President?
Chief of Staff Jeff Zients emerged as the central figure in the autopen circus, giving final approval for thousands of pardons with a simple email: "I approve the use of the autopen for the execution of all of the following pardons." The timestamp? 10:31 p.m. on Biden's final day in office. While Americans slept, Biden's staff was busy rubber-stamping get-out-of-jail-free cards for political allies and family members.

The New York Times confirmed through emails and meeting logs that the entire process was handled by staffers, not the president. Biden admitted he gave "broad parameters" to Zients, who then made the actual decisions about who got pardoned. This wasn't presidential oversight; it was presidential abdication.

The Numbers Don't Lie
Biden's team didn't even pretend he personally reviewed every name on the pardon list. With over 1,500 pardons and commutations in a single spree, they called it the biggest single-day clemency dump in U.S. history. The sheer volume made individual presidential review "impractical," according to Biden's own admission. Translation: the president was too overwhelmed or incapacitated to do his actual job.

The most telling detail? Biden only hand-signed one pardon during his final spree, and it was the most controversial one. Everything else went through what insiders called "Autopen city." When the president can only handle one signature but his staff can process 1,500, you're not looking at leadership; you're looking at a shadow government.

Fauci's Autopen Pardon: Elite Impunity in Action

Anthony Fauci's pardon perfectly encapsulates everything wrong with the autopen scandal. The man who funded gain-of-function research, misled Congress about COVID origins, and became the face of pandemic authoritarianism got his get-out-of-jail-free card rubber-stamped by Biden's staff at 10:31 p.m. No presidential deliberation, no careful consideration of justice, just bureaucratic sleight-of-hand to shield a political ally from accountability.

The Midnight Pardon Factory
Fauci's pardon wasn't the result of careful presidential consideration; it was processed through what Senator Rand Paul called a "pardon factory" run by Biden's staff. The timing tells the story: 10:31 p.m. on Biden's final day, when most Americans were asleep and the media wasn't watching. This wasn't transparency; it was a cover-up operation designed to shield Biden's cronies from the accountability they deserved.

The pardon reeks of elite impunity. While ordinary Americans face the full force of the law, connected insiders like Fauci get preemptive pardons for crimes they haven't even been charged with yet. Biden admitted he pardoned his allies and family members because he expected Trump to "actually enforce the law and hold them accountable." In other words, the pardons weren't about justice; they were about protecting the swamp from consequences.

Constitutional Questions
If a pardon requires the president's actual signature to be valid, then Fauci's autopen pardon undermines the entire legal process. The Constitution gives the president the power to pardon, but it doesn't specify that a robot can do it for him. When staffers are making pardon decisions and a machine is signing the documents, you're not looking at presidential clemency; you're looking at bureaucratic fraud.

Senator Paul's criminal referral for Fauci takes on new significance in light of the autopen revelations. If Fauci's pardon was processed by staff without direct presidential authorization, it might not be legally valid. The Oversight Project's findings on autopen abuse prove that the swamp will bend any rule to protect its own, but bending rules doesn't make them legal.

Cognitive Decline: The Autopen as Shield

Biden's cognitive decline wasn't just the worst-kept secret in Washington; it was the driving force behind the autopen abuse. When you have a president who can barely string together coherent sentences, the autopen becomes more than a convenience tool; it becomes a shield to hide presidential incapacity from the American people.

Weekend at Bernie's Presidency
Biden's handlers used the autopen to churn out controversial pardons and policy moves without risking another public meltdown or signature gaffe. The device allowed them to maintain the fiction of presidential decision-making while the actual president was, in the words of critics, "napping." This wasn't governance; it was a Weekend at Bernie's presidency, with bureaucrats propping up the corpse and rubber-stamping whatever they wanted.

The pattern was clear: when Biden needed to make tough decisions or handle controversial matters, the autopen came out. When he needed to take credit for popular moves, he showed up for photo ops. The American public was kept in the dark about who was really wielding presidential power, and the answer wasn't the person they elected.

Staff Running Wild
With Biden checked out, his staff essentially ran a shadow government with a signature machine. They made decisions about pardons, executive orders, and policy moves without meaningful presidential oversight. Zero accountability, zero transparency, and a government that signed away America's future with a robot pen.

The cognitive decline wasn't just about Biden's personal struggles; it was about the constitutional crisis that resulted when unelected staffers took over presidential functions. When the president can't or won't make decisions, and his staff fills the vacuum, you don't have democratic governance; you have bureaucratic rule.

Trump's Investigation: Justice Finally Coming

The Trump administration isn't just looking into the autopen scandal; they've launched a full-scale investigation that could result in criminal charges for Biden's staff and constitutional challenges to thousands of pardons. Attorney General Pam Bondi is treating this as one of the most dangerous abuses of executive power in modern history, and the evidence is mounting.

DOJ Investigation Targets
The Justice Department investigation is examining three key areas: whether Biden's aides abused the autopen to sign controversial pardons while Biden was incapacitated, whether there was a coordinated effort to deceive the public about Biden's health, and whether thousands of documents signed via autopen are legally valid.

Trump's presidential memo directing the investigation was clear: "Biden's aides abused the power of presidential signatures through the use of an autopen." This isn't about partisan politics; it's about constitutional governance and the rule of law.

Criminal Charges Possible
If the investigation proves that staffers used the autopen without Biden's direct authorization, they could face criminal charges for fraud, conspiracy, and civil rights violations. The Constitution doesn't allow unelected staffers to exercise presidential power, even with a robot signature device.

The legal challenges could go all the way to the Supreme Court. While courts have ruled that autopen use is legal when the president personally authorizes it, the key question is whether Biden actually made the decisions or whether his staff was running the show. If it's the latter, thousands of pardons could be legally invalid.

Bondi's Aggressive Pursuit
Attorney General Pam Bondi must pursue this investigation aggressively because it goes to the heart of democratic governance. When bureaucrats can exercise presidential power without oversight, the entire system breaks down. The Oversight Project's findings show that the swamp will bend any rule to protect its own, but Bondi has the authority to ensure that bending rules has consequences.

The investigation represents more than just accountability for past abuses; it's about preventing future ones. If Biden's staff can get away with running a shadow government, what's to stop future administrations from doing the same?

The Bigger Picture: Democracy vs. Bureaucracy

The autopen scandal isn't just about Biden's cognitive decline or staff overreach; it's about the fundamental question of who runs America. When unelected bureaucrats can exercise presidential power with a robot signature device, democracy becomes a facade. The American people deserve to know who was really making decisions in their name, and they deserve accountability for those who abused their trust.

The investigation will determine whether the United States had a functioning president or a staff-run government masquerading as democratic leadership. Either way, the truth is finally coming out, and justice is finally within reach.