On Monday, a day earlier than the House Oversight Committee released a 93-page report outlining its conclusions from its monthslong investigation into former President Joe Biden’s use of the autopen to formalize clemency choices, Justice Department official Ed Martin wrote an email to its chair.
Martin, the pardon attorney, informed GOP Rep. James Comer that his “ongoing investigation” of the way in which that pardons and commutations had been issued throughout Biden’s presidency had revealed “abuses” of the method by “political actors.” He wrote that his workplace wouldn’t defend any of the acts of clemency “without further investigation” – although isn’t any mechanism or precedent to reverse a pardon issued by a previous president.
NCS obtained a duplicate of the email. Here it’s in full.
Dear Chairman Comer,
Good to speak to your employees in the present day about this crucial matter.
As I discussed on the cellphone, since we met in your workplace final June, I’ve been working on understanding the circumstances and details that encompass the unprecedented pardons and commutations of the President Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s administration.
My ongoing investigation has revealed abuses of the pardon and commutation course of by political actors within the Biden Administration. The use of AutoPen on the route of staft and maybe others is troubling.
As an attorney, I’m very conscious that the ability of the pardon rests with the President and that I’m referred to as to behave on his behalf and inside his energy. I’m not in a position in any approach to act on my very own behalf, and to bind him to any commutation or pardon. No different staffer could accomplish that.
To be clear: All Executive energy is vested in a duly elected and President. The highest features of that Office-including the pardon power-are non-delegable. This is without delay profound and customary sense—it offers a transparent line of democratic accountability between choices and penalties.
What I’m seeing in my investigation of the Biden pardons is disturbing. Not solely had been there regularities however questions of confidence within the system and competence of the contributors.
The Constitution solely works if the President is competent. The twenty fifth Amendment was adopted after historic failures corresponding to President Woodrow Wilson’s incapacity and the shock of President John F. Kennedy’s assassination to make sure our Nation by no means had an incompetent Chief Executive once more.
That Amendment finally depends upon these it charged with monitoring the competency of the President doing that proper factor and upholding their oaths. The Biden Administration broke this method down, once they hid the reality of the president’s well being from the American folks
By accounts and now public admissions, President Biden didn’t seem competent, and all accessible proof signifies that these charged below the twenty fifth Amendment didn’t shield the Country, as a result of the people charged with executing the Amendment’s intent failed. Instead, they appear to have protected themselves and President Biden by overlaying up President Biden’s incapacity. The abuses carried in reference to my workplace present additional proof on this entrance, which definitely counsel that unhealthy actors exploited President Biden’s infirmary to safe their very own agenda by, with, and thru numerous means together with the AutoPen.
As the Pardon Attorney, I can inform you unequivocally that my Office can not help the validity and ongoing authorized impact of pardons and commutations issued through the Biden Administration with out additional examination.
Their validity should be totally examined in mild of what we now know – and I believe finally by a Court with a presentation of the proof you and others have gathered.
In August, I launched an inside email in my possession from former Deputy Attorney General Brad Weinsheimer that’s emblematic of the issues within the former administration’s commutation course of. The e-mail was despatched the Saturday morning after the White House introduced sweeping commutations of 1000’s of so-called “non-violent” felons the day prior. Weinsheimer appropriately famous that the listing of people whose sentences had been supposedly commuted contained significantly violent offenders. He requested clarification immediately from the President as to the clear battle between the White House’s statements and the names put ahead as in some way becoming into the class of the commutation.
In a New York Times article a month previous to my launch of that specific e-mail, former President Biden disclosed that “he did not individually approve each name for categorical pardons that applied to large numbers of people.” This alone appears to boost critical questions of whether or not these commutations are invalid. After all, solely the President has the ability to problem pardons or commutations. Setting apart different proof concerning former President Biden’s incapacity, his assertion appears an admission that the commutations to which Mr. Weinsheimer took problem weren’t legitimate commutations within the first place, however their different defects.
Other defects apply to the pardon course of for a number of different high-profile pardons in direction of the top of the Biden Administration. My workplace can not help the validity of AutoPen pardons for people corresponding to Anthony Fauci, Adam Schiff, Mark Milley, and lots of extra with out additional examination and fact-finding. In my tenure right here, I’ve not seen any proof supporting the speculation that President Biden was personally conscious and approved these AutoPen’d pardons.
If these pardons or commutations are challenged in any means, I acknowledge critical difficulties in defending them.
I vastly recognize the work of Congress and your Committee specifically in conducting vigorous oversight into AutoPen abuses and its connections to pardons and commutations.
While it’s unlucky that such work is critical, Americans now have a fuller accounting of the constitutional breakdown of their system of presidency. It is that damaged belief that I as Pardon Attorney am dedicated to restoring. That work should contain accountability for official actions in violation of regulation. It will even contain recommitting my workplace to make sure that correct procedures are in place to make sure that solely constitutional actions are effectuated by way of my workplace. No longer will we tolerate authorities by AutoPen.
Please let this letter function official recognition that I, as Pardon Attorney, acknowledge the grave abuses within the pardon and commutation strategy of the final Administration. My workplace stands able to work with you to make sure these abuses by no means happen once more. Sorry for this lengthy email however I consider my comply with as much as our June assembly was deserved and late – for you so apologize.
Al the most effective.
Ed Martin
U.S. Pardon Attorney