In a rapidly unfolding scandal that could rival Watergate in its constitutional gravity, Ed Martin, pardon attorney and head of the Department of Justice’s Weaponization Task Force, has officially opened an investigation into a series of sweeping pardons issued by former President Joe Biden in the final hours of his presidency.
The probe, confirmed in an internal DOJ email obtained by Reuters, focuses on whether Biden was mentally competent at the time of issuing the pardons — or whether others, possibly acting through the use of the Autopen, were pulling the levers of executive power behind the scenes.
JUST IN: President Trump’s DOJ is now investigating the pardons and commutations from President Biden due to the “AutoPen” – Reuters
Pardon Attorney Ed Martin reportedly wrote the investigation involves whether Biden “was competent and whether others were taking advantage of… pic.twitter.com/Q0apQg0ssH
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) June 3, 2025
Among the most startling revelations: Joe Biden issued “full and unconditional” preemptive pardons to multiple members of his own family, including James B. Biden, Sara Jones Biden, Valerie Biden Owens, John T. Owens, and Francis W. Biden. These pardons were backdated to 2014, raising further questions about timing and motivation.
Biden had already preemptively pardoned his son, Hunter Biden, a month earlier.
In addition, Biden commuted the sentences of 37 out of 40 federal death row inmates, a radical and unprecedented move in the final 48 hours of his presidency — and one that bypassed typical procedural scrutiny.
What makes these actions so explosive isn’t just their scope — it’s the timing, the targets, and the growing body of evidence suggesting the president may not have been mentally fit to authorize them.
Ed Martin told journalist Mark Halperin that he’s working with a whistleblower who claims three senior Democratic operatives effectively ran the show, using access to Biden to issue legal actions and collect benefits. The three named in the preliminary claims are:
- Ron Klain, former White House Chief of Staff
- Anita Dunn, Senior Advisor to President Biden
- Robert Bauer, former personal attorney to Barack Obama
Martin also pointed to Steve Ricchetti and First Lady Jill Biden as “dominant characters” managing presidential affairs during the waning months of Biden’s term.
The weaponization task force is actively investigating whether the Autopen — a device used for remotely signing documents — was employed improperly, perhaps even without Biden’s direct knowledge or consent.
This would mark a dramatic breach of constitutional protocol: executive orders, pardons, and commutations issued without the president’s awareness.
The investigation now expands beyond the pardons. A watchdog group recently found “no evidence” that Biden had been aware of, or personally involved in, multiple climate-related executive orders signed between 2021 and 2023 — all authorized via Autopen.
These orders had sweeping implications for the U.S. energy sector and global climate commitments, and the revelation raises the question: Who was actually running the country?
Even CNN anchor Jake Tapper, whose recent book delves into the Biden presidency’s inner workings, admitted the scandal could be “worse than Watergate in some ways.” If Biden wasn’t making the decisions — or was mentally unfit to — then every signed order, every directive, every pardon is legally and ethically compromised.
The implications are massive. If proven true, this could lead to massive legal challenges, possible nullification of executive actions, and a devastating collapse of public trust in the integrity of presidential authority.
