Former U.S. President Donald Trump announced Monday that he has nullified the preventative pardons issued by his predecessor, Joe Biden, to members of Congress who played a role in investigating the effort to overturn the 2020 election.
It remains unclear what legal authority, if any, Trump has to revoke presidential pardons granted by a former president.
Trump justified his decision by claiming that Biden had signed the pardons using an autopen—a mechanical device commonly used for signatures—rendering them invalid. However, he provided no evidence to support this claim or the assertion that an autopen signature would void an official pardon.
“The pardons are hereby declared void, vacant, and of no further force or effect, because of the fact they were done by Autopen,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
Biden had granted pardons to former Republican Congresswoman Liz Cheney and other lawmakers who had served on the congressional committee investigating the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. The pardons were widely viewed as a measure to protect them from Trump’s threats of retaliation if he returned to office.
Trump’s move raises significant legal questions, and he appeared to acknowledge the uncertainty surrounding his authority on the matter.
When asked by reporters on Monday whether all documents signed by Biden’s autopen should be considered invalid, Trump responded, “I think so. It’s not my decision, that’ll be up to a court.”
He further warned the pardoned lawmakers, saying, “They should fully understand that they are subject to investigation at the highest level.”
In addition to Cheney and the committee members, Biden had issued preemptive pardons to several other figures, including former White House COVID-19 advisor Anthony Fauci, retired General Mark Milley, and even his son, Hunter Biden. All had been frequent targets of Trump’s criticism and Republican scrutiny.
Trump, who has repeatedly vowed “retribution” against his political opponents, wasted no time in issuing his own pardons upon returning to the presidency in January. Among those granted clemency were approximately 1,500 individuals convicted for their roles in the January 6 riot, an event aimed at halting the certification of Biden’s electoral victory.
