Donald Trump has ordered an investigation into his predecessor Joe Biden’s actions as president, alleging that his top aides masked the Democratic president’s ‘cognitive decline’.
Biden beat Trump during the 2020 election and dropped out of his re-election bid after a disastrous debate performance sparked concerns about his age and mental acuity.
Biden’s cognitive abilities during his presidency had been a Republican talking point for several years, but reporting in numerous US media outlets and a recent book co-authored by Jake Tapper, a CNN host, have revealed that top Democrats and people in Biden’s inner circle also had serious misgivings about his ability to do the duties of president.
In a memo, Trump questioned Biden’s use of an autopen to sign pardons and other documents. An autopen is a mechanical device that is used to replicate a person’s authentic signature, and presidents have used them for decades.
However, Trump has frequently suggested that some of Biden’s actions are invalid because his aides were usurping presidential authority to cover up what Trump claims is Biden’s cognitive decline.
“This conspiracy marks one of the most dangerous and concerning scandals in American history,” Trump wrote in the memo. “The American public was purposefully shielded from discovering who wielded the executive power, all while Biden’s signature was deployed across thousands of documents to effect radical policy shifts.”
Trump directed Pam Bondi, the attorney general, and David Warrington, the White House counsel, to handle the investigation.