President Donald Trump brushed off an NBC News reporter Monday, March 17, 2025, after being questioned about his criticism of former President Joe Biden’s use of an autopen, despite Trump’s own admission that he uses the device himself.
During a media engagement at the Kennedy Center where Trump discussed the imminent release of 80,000 unredacted files related to President John F. Kennedy’s assassination, a reporter from NBC News asked him about his recent criticism of Biden’s reported autopen usage.
“You have criticized President Biden for using autopen in the last few days. Have you yourself ever used autopen, sir?” the reporter inquired.
Trump acknowledged using an autopen but claimed he only used it for less significant documents.
When the journalist attempted to follow up, Trump interrupted, asking, “Who are you with?”
After the reporter identified themselves as being from NBC News, Trump dismissed them, saying: “I don’t want to talk to NBC anymore. I think you’re so discredited.” He then waved off the question and moved on to other topics.
The exchange is part of a pattern where Trump has increasingly used the question “Who are you with?” to sidestep challenging inquiries from media outlets he perceives as critical of his administration.
Trump’s criticism of Biden’s autopen use comes amid his claims that Biden signed pardons for members of the House January 6 committee using an autopen, which Trump alleges makes those pardons invalid.
In a late-night social media post on Sunday, Trump claimed the pardons were “void, vacant and of no further effect” because they were signed using an autopen. Trump alleged this was done without Biden’s knowledge or consent, playing into right-wing narratives about Biden’s cognitive abilities.
However, legal experts have consistently disagreed with Trump’s assertion. The Constitution does not require the president’s direct hand signature for pardons to be valid, and there is no legal mechanism to overturn pardons once they have been granted.
A 2005 Justice Department opinion stated that presidents may legally utilize an autopen for signing legislation. Additionally, a U.S. Court of Appeals ruling indicated that the absence of a written signature does not prove that a commutation did not occur.
The first U.S. president to use an autopen to sign documents was Harry S. Truman. The autopen, a mechanical device that replicates a person’s signature, was introduced during his presidency (1945–1953) to help handle the large volume of official documents requiring his signature. However, the first president to use an autopen for signing legislation into law was Barack Obama in 2011, when he authorized an extension of the PATRIOT Act while he was in France.
Legal scholars have emphasized that there are no laws governing a president’s use of an autopen, and the Supreme Court is unlikely to void Biden’s pardons on these grounds.
Trump’s dismissal of the NBC reporter aligns with his broader approach to media relations. His administration has taken various actions to restrict media access, including blocking reporters from covering news events, removing journalists from Pentagon offices, and investigating media companies critical of the administration.
Trump has previously shut down other reporters using similar tactics. Last week, he called NBC “one of the worst networks on television,” though a reporter quickly reminded him of his long-running relationship with the network through his reality TV show “The Apprentice.”
In February, Trump dodged a question from a HuffPost reporter using the same approach. When told the reporter was from HuffPost, Trump responded: “Oh, no wonder. I thought they, I thought they died. Are they still around? I haven’t read them in years. I thought they died.”
The ongoing tension between Trump and various media outlets reflects the administration’s contentious relationship with press organizations that have critically covered his presidency. Trump has repeatedly labeled critical coverage as “fake news” and has threatened legal action against media companies he believes have wronged him, including Comcast, the parent company of NBC News and MSNBC.
