A senior official from former President Donald Trump’s Department of Justice has notified colleagues that he’s been asked to investigate clemency decisions made by President Joe Biden during his final days in office—specifically those involving family members and federal death row inmates.
Ed Martin, the DOJ’s pardon attorney, said in an email obtained by Reuters that the probe is looking into whether President Biden was mentally competent at the time and whether others may have exploited his authority—possibly through the use of an autopen or similar means.
An autopen is a device that replicates a person’s signature, and Trump and his allies have frequently pushed the unfounded claim that Biden’s use of it invalidates certain presidential actions or indicates he wasn’t fully aware of what he was authorizing. Reuters noted it remains unclear whether Biden used an autopen in connection with the clemency orders.
According to Martin’s email, the investigation is primarily focused on a group of preemptive pardons granted by Biden to several family members, as well as the commutation of sentences for 37 federal inmates on death row.
Just before leaving office on January 20, Biden issued pardons to five family members, stating the decision was meant to protect them from potential politically motivated probes in the future.
The family members who received pardons include his siblings James and Frank Biden, his sister Valerie Biden Owens, and their spouses John Owens and Sara Biden. Biden also pardoned his son, Hunter Biden, on December 1. Hunter had previously pleaded guilty to tax charges and was convicted on firearm-related offenses.
Martin’s email did not specify which of these pardons are currently under review or who specifically ordered the investigation to be launched.
Last week, Martin confirmed that he is examining what he called the “questionable” use of the autopen for issuing pardons during the final stretch of Biden’s presidency.
He stated the investigation has been ongoing for a while, with outreach to Biden family members already underway. Some individuals involved have obtained legal counsel, and a whistleblower has come forward with serious claims.
“I met with a whistleblower about ten days ago—a very senior Democrat—who told me, ‘These three people controlled access and were benefiting from it,’” Martin told journalist Mark Halperin on the 2WAY Tonight program. “I haven’t determined the full credibility yet, but what matters is uncovering the truth and preserving the integrity of the process—and that’s exactly what we’re trying to do.”
Martin added that the whistleblower was closely tied to Biden’s 2020 presidential campaign.
The individuals named as central “gatekeepers” in the pardon process include Ron Klain, Biden’s former chief of staff (2021–2023); former senior adviser Anita Dunn; and Robert Bauer, President Obama’s former personal attorney.
Martin later added two more names: Steve Ricchetti, a longtime Biden adviser and campaign chair, and First Lady Jill Biden.
He said he had also asked the whistleblower whether Susan Rice or others were involved, but was told, “No, these were the ones.”
In a related development, the nonprofit group Power the Future—an advocate for U.S. energy jobs—examined eight executive orders signed by President Biden that significantly altered domestic energy policy. The group raised red flags over the fact that Biden never publicly discussed any of the orders, suggesting the possibility that they may have been signed with an autopen, possibly without his full awareness.
“These aren’t minor memos—they are sweeping changes in American energy policy,” said Daniel Turner, founder and executive director of Power the Future, in an interview with Fox News. “Yet not once did President Biden speak publicly about them.”
The executive orders reviewed include a 2023 ban on Arctic drilling, a 2021 directive for the federal government to reach net-zero emissions by 2050, a mandate to create “clean energy” AI hubs, and an offshore drilling ban enacted shortly before Biden left office in 2025.
