PARDON ME?

GOP Chair Used Electronic Signature to Sign Autopen Docs

Rep. James Comer used a “wet signature” during his own probe into Joe Biden.

A Republican spearheading the investigation into former President Joe Biden’s use of an autopen has himself relied on digital signatures. In a classic case of “do as I say, not as I do,” House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer signed multiple documents tied to his probe into Biden’s alleged declining mental acuity while in office using a digital signature, rather than physically signing them, NBC News reports. Comer used what is known as a “wet signature” on subpoena letters seeking testimony from former White House physician Dr. Kevin O’Connor, ex-Jill Biden aide Antony Bernal, and on 16 other letters to White House officials requesting transcribed interviews. But metadata analysis by NBC News revealed that the thick, black digital signature on these documents wasn’t even drawn by Comer himself. In a statement, Comer called comparisons between him using digital signatures and Biden’s use of autopen to sign legally binding actions, such as pardons and clemencies, as “absurd and misleading. The two are not even remotely comparable.” Biden has admitted to using autopen, as have other presidents in recent history, but fiercely rejected GOP claims that his signature was ever used on documents without his approval.