President Donald Trump dismissed an NBC News reporter on Monday, March 17, 2025, when questioned about his critique of former President Joe Biden’s use of an autopen, despite Trump’s acknowledgment of using the device himself.
During an appearance at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., Trump discussed the release of 80,000 unredacted files concerning President John F. Kennedy’s assassination. An NBC News reporter asked Trump about his recent comments regarding Biden’s reported autopen usage.
The reporter asked, “You have criticized President Biden for using autopen in the last few days. Have you yourself ever used autopen, sir?”
Trump confirmed his use of an autopen, stating that he employed it only for less significant documents.
When the journalist attempted a follow-up question, Trump interrupted, asking, “Who are you with?”
Upon learning the reporter was from NBC News, Trump dismissed the query, stating: “I don’t want to talk to NBC anymore. I think you’re so discredited.” He then shifted the focus to other topics.
This interaction is part of a pattern where Trump uses “Who are you with?” to deflect challenging questions from media outlets he considers critical of his administration.
Trump’s criticism of Biden’s autopen use follows his claims that Biden signed pardons for House January 6 committee members using an autopen, which Trump argues invalidates those pardons.
In a social media post, Trump declared the pardons “void, vacant and of no further effect” due to their being signed with an autopen. He asserted this occurred without Biden’s knowledge, aligning with certain narratives about Biden’s cognitive state.
Legal experts, however, have consistently disagreed with Trump’s perspective. The Constitution does not mandate a president’s direct hand signature for pardons to be legitimate, and no legal mechanism exists to overturn pardons once granted.
A 2005 Justice Department opinion affirmed that presidents may legally use 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 was Harry S. Truman, who introduced it during his presidency (1945–1953) to manage the large volume of documents requiring his signature. Barack Obama was the first to use it for signing legislation into law in 2011, authorizing an extension of the PATRIOT Act while in France.
Legal scholars emphasize that no laws govern 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 reflects his broader media relations strategy. His administration has taken steps to restrict media access, including blocking reporters from news events and investigating media companies critical of the administration.
Trump has previously dismissed other reporters using similar tactics. Last week, he labeled NBC “one of the worst networks on television,” though a reporter noted his longstanding association with the network through “The Apprentice.”
In February, Trump similarly avoided a question from a HuffPost reporter by asking about their affiliation, responding: “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 illustrates the administration’s contentious relationship with press organizations that critically cover his presidency. Trump has frequently labeled unfavorable coverage as “fake news” and threatened legal action against media companies, including Comcast, NBC News, and MSNBC.
