Recent reports by the Oversight Project, a conservative initiative under the Heritage Foundation, have raised concerns about the mental sharpness of former President Joe Biden. The initiative published three examples showing Biden’s automatic signature, including two executive orders and a notice of his withdrawal from the 2024 presidential race, reports FoxNews.
It appears that most of the official documents signed by Biden used the same automatic signature, which has raised suspicions about whether Biden truly authorized the signing of these important legal documents.
The Oversight Project posted on X: “Who controls the automatic signature, controls the presidency.” They continued, “We gathered every document we could find with Biden’s signature during his presidency. All used the same automatic signature, except the notice that he would withdraw from the 2024 race. Here is the automatic signature,” accompanied by photo examples.
What is an Autopen?
An autopen signature is produced automatically by a machine, in contrast to an authentic signature written by hand. The Oversight Project shared three examples of Biden’s signature, including two executive orders and the 2024 presidential race withdrawal notice.
In both executive orders—one from 2022 and one from 2024—the signatures were strikingly similar, showing what appeared to be a line followed by “R. Biden Jr.” In contrast, the signature on the notice of Biden’s withdrawal from the 2024 race was different, less clear than those in the executive orders.
Fox News Investigation into Biden’s Executive Orders
Fox News examined over 20 executive orders from Biden’s presidency documented in the Federal Register between 2021 and 2024. They found that each document bore the same signature. The network contacted Biden’s office for comments on the Oversight Project’s findings but did not receive a response by Sunday.
Fox News also looked into the signatures on executive orders from former President Donald Trump, which were often signed publicly or in front of the media. They discovered that Trump’s executive orders also featured similar signatures throughout his time in office.
Biden’s Mental Fitness and 2024 Election Concerns
In 2024, Biden, at 81, faced growing concerns over his mental fitness, especially after some public appearances raised questions about his cognitive abilities. Conservative critics began questioning his capacity to continue leading, which coincided with reports from Special Counsel Robert Hur. Hur concluded that there would be no criminal charges for Biden over mishandling classified documents when he was vice president, calling Biden “a sympathetic man with good intentions but with a weak memory.”
The issue became even more evident after Biden’s poor performance in his only debate against Trump. He faced significant backlash for a series of gaffes and errors leading up to the debate, including a moment when former President Barack Obama had to physically remove Biden from the stage during a fundraising event. Internationally, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni had to guide Biden during an awkward moment at the G7 summit.
Biden’s disastrous debate performance against Trump led to widespread calls for him to exit the race and make way for younger leadership. Biden ultimately withdrew from the race in July 2024, and the signature on that document stood out as noticeably different from those on his executive orders.
Questions Over Mental Fitness and Possible Staff Manipulation
Republican Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey wrote to the Department of Justice last week, urging an investigation into whether Biden’s alleged cognitive decline allowed unelected staff to push radical policies without his consent.
Bailey’s letter argued that “there are deep concerns that Biden’s mental decline allowed his staff and political allies to advance policies without his approval or knowledge.”
He further highlighted reports about how senior staff, including Vice President Kamala Harris and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, attempted to prevent meetings between Biden and other lawmakers.
“There were tighter walls around Biden, and stricter controls on him,” the letter claimed. “Staff restricted Biden’s ability to speak with others and limited the information he had access to.”
Concerns About Biden’s Mental State Continue
The Oversight Project shared Bailey’s letter along with an interview in which Senator Johnson recalled a meeting where Biden seemed unaware of signing an order freezing new exports of liquefied natural gas in 2024.
“I didn’t do this,” Johnson recounted Biden saying during the meeting.
“I came out of that meeting with fear and anger because I thought, ‘We’re in serious trouble. Who’s running the country?’” Johnson added.
The Oversight Project continued its investigation, urging authorities to determine “who controlled the Autopen” during Biden’s administration.
“For investigators to determine whether President Biden truly authorized the signing of these legal documents, or whether he had the mental capacity to do so, they must first determine who controlled the Autopen and what kind of controls were in place,” the project said on X.
Concerns about Biden’s mental sharpness, combined with the Oversight Project’s findings, have fueled anger among conservative social media users, with many questioning whether Biden personally signed the executive orders.
