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Top Biden Aide Admits She Controlled His Presidential Autopen Signatures [WATCH]

Neera Tanden, former director of the White House Domestic Policy Council under Joe Biden, testified before the House Oversight Committee on Tuesday in a closed-door session lasting more than four hours, addressing questions surrounding Biden’s mental fitness and the administration’s use of an autopen to authorize executive actions.

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Tanden, who served as White House staff secretary and senior adviser to Biden from October 2021 to May 2023, confirmed she was authorized to direct autopen use during that time.

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In her opening remarks, Tanden stated that she was “responsible for handling the flow of documents to and from the president” and had been delegated the authority to authorize autopen signatures for specific categories of documents.

“I was also authorized to direct that autopen signatures be affixed to certain categories of documents,” Tanden said.

“We had a system for authorizing the use of the autopen that I inherited from prior administrations. We employed that system throughout my tenure as staff secretary.”

Tanden said her oversight of autopen usage ended in May 2023, when she began serving as the head of the Domestic Policy Council. She also said she had no experience in the White House that would suggest Biden lacked the capacity to fulfill his duties.

“I had no experience in the White House that would provide any reason to question [Biden’s] command as president,” she added.

Upon arriving at the committee’s Capitol Hill office at 9:46 a.m., Tanden did not speak to the press.

However, as she departed shortly after 3 p.m., she told reporters, “I was very happy to answer questions. I answered the questions,” and added that she was “happy to discuss my public service.”

When asked whether the Biden-Harris administration was covering up health issues, she responded, “Absolutely not.”

Tanden is the first of several former Biden officials scheduled to be interviewed as part of the committee’s ongoing investigation.

Anthony Bernal, a senior adviser to Jill Biden, is expected to appear before the committee later this week.

Chairman James Comer (R-KY) said the purpose of the inquiry is to understand who was directing executive actions in the administration and why the president’s autopen signature was used on certain documents—even on days when Biden was reportedly present in the White House.

“The committee wants answers about who was calling the shots,” Comer said.

He added that members are especially interested in whether any executive actions were authorized without Biden’s explicit approval.

Tanden acknowledged that the use of autopen is legal and referenced a 2005 Department of Justice opinion confirming that a president can delegate the signing of documents via autopen.

However, Republicans on the committee stressed that the investigation is not about legality, but about whether Biden was aware of, or capable of, authorizing such decisions.

The Oversight Project, which has been analyzing documents signed by Biden, identified many instances in which executive orders were signed using autopen while the president was reportedly at the White House.

Tanden also used part of her opening statement to criticize the investigation itself, claiming that the committee was focused on the Biden-Harris administration while ignoring what she referred to as “Trump’s meme coin and cryptocurrency adventures” and “lawless attacks on our universities and prominent law firms.”

Democrats on the committee pushed back on the investigation. Rep. Wesley Bell (D-MO), a freshman member, called it politically motivated and without merit.

“This is for one person, their king, to stroke his ego,” Bell said, referring to President Trump.

“I’ve seen weak cases, and I’ve seen strong cases. This is no case.”

Bell added that much of the questioning lacked substance.

“We spent an hour hearing about coffee that the witness had with different folks, not the president,” he said.

“I got a tour of the White House, so I learned about where certain offices are.”

While transcripts of the interview will eventually be made public, Comer confirmed they will not be released until all scheduled interviews are completed.

Former aides Annie Tomasini and Ashley Williams are also expected to testify, and Biden’s physician, Dr. Kevin O’Connor, is scheduled to appear before the committee on July 9.

“This is the first of what will be many interviews with people that we believe were involved in the autopen scandal in the Biden administration,” Comer said.

“I think the American people want to know. I think there’s a huge level of curiosity in the press corps with respect to who was actually calling the shots in the Biden administration.”

In response to the investigation, Biden issued a written statement defending his role.

“I was the one who made the decisions,” Biden wrote, accusing President Trump of orchestrating a politically motivated distraction.

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