Which U.S. presidents have legally used autopen to sign laws or executive orders?
Executive summary
Autopens have been used by U.S. presidents from Thomas Jefferson’s era through modern administrations; documented recent uses include Barack Obama signing the Patriot Act extension and Joe Biden using an autopen in May 2024 to sign a one‑week FAA funding extension while traveling [1] [2]. The Justice Department told Congress in 2005 that a president may direct a subordinate to affix his signature (for example, by autopen) and that such use is consistent with Article I, Section 7 [2] [3].
1. A long presidential history: from Jefferson to today
The autopen’s roots go back to a polygraph device Thomas Jefferson acquired; Jefferson and other presidents have used mechanical signature devices for centuries, and the Shapell Manuscript Foundation traces presidential autopen use through the 19th and 20th centuries [1]. Lyndon Johnson publicly displayed the device and Gerald Ford openly acknowledged using one; the practice has become a routine White House tool for duplicative or time‑sensitive signatures [1].
2. What the law says: DOJ guidance and constitutional framing
A 2005 Department of Justice opinion told Congress that the president need not personally perform the physical act of signing a bill and may direct a subordinate to affix the president’s signature, explicitly mentioning the autopen as an example; DOJ concluded that such use is consistent with the Constitution’s signing clause [2] [3]. News outlets cite that 2005 guidance to explain why autopen signatures have legal standing [3] [4].
3. Concrete modern examples of autopen use
Recent, well‑documented instances include Barack Obama’s use of an autopen while overseas in 2011 to sign an expiring Patriot Act extension and other appropriations deadlines, and reporting that Joe Biden used an autopen in May 2024 to sign a one‑week FAA funding extension while he was traveling in San Francisco [1] [2]. News organizations and the Shapell foundation treat these as routine responses to time zones, travel or deadline constraints [1] [3].
4. Presidents who have acknowledged or been reported to use autopens
Sources explicitly name Thomas Jefferson (early polygraph), Lyndon B. Johnson, Gerald Ford, Barack Obama and Joe Biden as presidents who have used autopen‑style devices; reporting also notes that Donald Trump has admitted he “sometimes uses an autopen” [1] [2] [5]. Multiple outlets emphasize that autopen use spans parties and decades [5] [6].
5. The political fight now: autopen as a partisan weapon
In late 2025, President Trump declared he would cancel documents he says were signed by Biden using an autopen and asserted a large portion of Biden’s signatures were automated; major outlets call those claims contested or “baseless” and note there is no public evidence that autopen use during Biden’s term reflected anything other than standard practice [7] [8] [6]. Coverage shows Republican actors and oversight reports have pressed the issue as a way to allege improper delegation or incapacity, while others—legal commentators and historical sources—point to long precedent and DOJ guidance [9] [2] [8].
6. Legal limits and unresolved questions highlighted by reporting
News reporting notes that while presidents routinely revoke predecessors’ executive orders and that autopen use has legal standing under prior DOJ guidance, disputes remain over whether unilateral political declarations—such as a blanket voiding of documents because they were autopen‑signed—would survive legal challenge; outlets note uncertainty about the scope and enforceability of such actions and that some claims (for example, that the autopen renders pardons void) face legal obstacles [4] [8] [7]. Available sources do not mention any definitive federal court ruling that has overturned an autopen‑signed presidential act on the ground that the physical signature was affixed mechanically.
7. How journalists and historians treat the evidence
Historical and investigative pieces treat autopen use as a functional tool for continuity and efficiency; the Shapell Manuscript Foundation and multiple news organizations present a narrative of widespread, bipartisan use and legal acceptance, while partisan actors now use the device as a political cudgel to question fitness and accountability [1] [3] [6]. Reporting indicates that allegations of illegitimacy rest on claims of deception rather than on a settled body of legal precedent that invalidates mechanically signed actions [8] [7].
8. Bottom line for the original question
Documented and cited users include Thomas Jefferson (early polygraph), Lyndon B. Johnson, Gerald Ford, Barack Obama and Joe Biden; reporting also indicates Donald Trump has acknowledged autopen use himself, and outlets stress that multiple presidents across eras have used the device [1] [2] [5]. The 2005 DOJ guidance supports the legal validity of autopen signatures applied at presidential direction [2].