Today's Edition
Washington (dpa)
US President Donald Trump has announced that he will repeal most of the executive orders of his predecessor Joe Biden.
He claimed on his platform Truth Social on Friday that 92% of these orders were signed with the so-called autopen, a mechanical signature aid. It remained unclear which documents are involved.
"The Autopen is not allowed to be used if approval is not specifically given by the President of the United States," Trump wrote.
"I am hereby cancelling all Executive Orders, and anything else that was not directly signed by Joe Biden, because the people who operated the Autopen did so illegally," he posted.
According to US media reports, the autopen is not uncommon in the daily life of US presidents. It can be used to reproduce signatures.
However, Republicans accuse the Biden administration of using the autopen frequently and sometimes without Biden's knowledge.
Trump repeatedly mentions Biden's autopen. In a gallery in the White House with portraits of US heads of state, Trump even had a picture of an autopen hung up instead of a photo of Biden.
Biden calls accusations 'ridiculous and false'
"Let me be clear: I made the decisions during my presidency. I made the decisions about the pardons, executive orders, legislation and proclamations," read a statement available to US media.
