Four Biden staffers have until the end of the day Thursday, May 29, to respond to the House Oversight Committee’s request for interviews in its investigation into former President Joe Biden’s use of the autopen. Committee Chairman James Comer now says he is open to bringing in Biden himself to testify.
House committee questions who controlled autopen
There could soon be movement in the House investigation into Biden’s use of the autopen, a device that replicates a person’s signature. Comer says the investigation will examine whether Biden staffers were using the autopen without the president’s knowledge to sign executive orders and pardons issued before he left the White House.
The investigation centers on Biden’s cognitive abilities, with Comer suggesting there may have been a cover-up from within the White House regarding his mental and physical condition.
The Biden White House has denied the allegations.
Staffers described as ‘de facto presidents’
The first to receive interview requests were four Biden staffers, described by Comer as mostly behind-the-scenes figures who are not well known to the public. Comer claims these individuals could have been serving as “de facto presidents.”
The staffers include former director of the Domestic Policy Council Neera Tanden, former assistant to Biden Anna Tomasini, a former senior adviser to First Lady Jill Biden, Anthony Bernal, and Ashley Williams, a former deputy director of Oval Office operations.
Comer also sent a letter to Biden’s physician, Dr. Kevin O’Connor.
Lawyers respond, but no interviews scheduled
According to Comer, lawyers for the four staffers have responded to the House committee but have not scheduled any interviews. Comer says there has been no response from Dr. O’Connor. He also told Fox News on Wednesday that subpoenas will be issued if interviews are not voluntarily arranged.
“What I can tell you tonight is these four staffers that we’ve asked to come in for transcribed interviews have all lawyered up,” Comer said. “They’re taking this very seriously, and this is going to be a battle to get to the truth.”
Questioning Biden remains on the table
Comer also told Fox News host Sean Hannity that he would “love to ask Biden questions,” but acknowledged that bringing in a former president is a larger and more difficult task. He noted that the last Congress attempted to get President Trump to testify.
“Look, I would love to ask Joe Biden a lot of questions, but right now we’re starting with the staffers who were operating the autopen,” Comer said. “We’re going to bring the physician in, because he was definitely not telling the truth about Joe Biden’s health.”
‘Worse than Watergate’
A slew of newly released books suggest a similar theme — that largely anonymous Biden White House insiders believed there may have been a cover-up of the president’s mental fitness. According to a new book by CNN’s Jake Tapper, “Original Sin,” one person said to be familiar with the internal dynamics at the White House said, “five people were running the country, and Joe Biden was at best a senior member of the board.”
This week, Tapper told Piers Morgan that Biden staffers hiding his condition could be “even worse” than Watergate.
“It is a scandal,” Tapper said. “It is without question, and maybe even worse than Watergate in some ways.”
Subpoenas on the horizon
The same four staffers and Biden’s physician were previously asked to testify last year regarding the same investigation. Comer says the Biden White House denied Congress access to those individuals, rejecting claims that Biden was in cognitive decline or that the autopen was misused.
The committee will issue subpoenas next for those who received interview requests and additional requests could be sent to others from the Biden White House soon.
