Trump Baselessly Rants on AF1 About Biden Pardons — Then Rages on Truth Social They Are ‘VOID’ And ‘VACANT’

President Donald Trump ranted to reporters about President Joe Biden’s pardons — then baselessly raged on social media that they are “VOID” by claiming they were signed by “autopen” without Biden’s knowledge.

Biden signed a flurry of controversial pardons before leaving office, including preemptive pardons for Dr. Anthony Fauci and Jan. 6 Committee members amid Trump threats of retribution. Trump has long criticized the pardons, but took things in a new direction as he complained to reporters aboard Air Force One Sunday night.

He told reporters early in the gaggle that he “thinks” Biden used an autopen, and went on to say it would be up to a court to decide what effect that has on the documents:

PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Biden and his people, and his probably autopen. It looked like we had an autopen for a president, and we would have been better off than we had, probably.

But it looks to me like, you know, that’s a big subject. I’m sure you won’t ask about that. But the whole subject of autopen. Did he know what he was doing? Did he authorize it? Or is this somebody in an office, maybe a radical left lunatic, just signing whatever that person was?

REPORTER: To follow up on the Biden autopen. Are those executive orders, those pardons, now null and void?

PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: I think so. It’s not my decision. That’ll be up to a court.

But I would say that they’re null and void because I’m sure Biden didn’t have any idea that it was taking place.

And somebody was using an autopen to sign off and to give pardons to, as an example. Just one example, but the J6 unselect committee. They gave, think of it, they gave pardons with an autopen. I don’t think Biden knew anything about it.

Trump’s language aboard AF1 was openly speculative, but he shifted his attack to an evidence-free declaration in a Truth Social post attacking Biden’s faculties. Trump wrote:

The “Pardons” that Sleepy Joe Biden gave to the Unselect Committee of Political Thugs, and many others, are hereby declared VOID, VACANT, AND OF NO FURTHER FORCE OR EFFECT, because of the fact that they were done by Autopen. In other words, Joe Biden did not sign them but, more importantly, he did not know anything about them! The necessary Pardoning Documents were not explained to, or approved by, Biden. He knew nothing about them, and the people that did may have committed a crime. Therefore, those on the Unselect Committee, who destroyed and deleted ALL evidence obtained during their two year Witch Hunt of me, and many other innocent people, should fully understand that they are subject to investigation at the highest level. The fact is, they were probably responsible for the Documents that were signed on their behalf without the knowledge or consent of the Worst President in the History of our Country, Crooked Joe Biden!

Trump’s social media rant came days after the New York Post reported that anonymous Biden aides claimed Biden often used autopen to sign official documents, and speculated that the device was used without Biden’s knowledge.

But there is no direct evidence to support the claims, and even if Biden used an autopen, there is no legal precedent to “void” documents on that basis. A legal study commissioned by then-President George W. Bush determined autopen signatures are constitutional, but did acknowledge they’re open to court challenges.

The preemptive pardons, handed down in the final hours of Biden’s presidency, included some of Trump’s most vocal critics over the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, including former Rep. Liz Cheney, whom Trump had previously accused of “egregious acts of crime” and implied she could face a criminal investigation.

“Our nation relies on dedicated, selfless public servants every day. They are the lifeblood of our democracy,” Biden said in a statement at the time. “Yet alarmingly, public servants have been subjected to ongoing threats and intimidation for faithfully discharging their duties.”

But many critics saw the pardons as setting a hypocritical precedent, notwithstanding Biden’s justification.

Watch above via C-SPAN.