Former Republican Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger has dared President Donald Trump to arrest him after the commander-in-chief erroneously claimed that the pardons issued by former President Joe Biden were “void” because of the use of an autopen.
Kinzinger was one of two Republicans on the House Select Committee investigating the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot and was pardoned by Biden amid fears that Trump would go after those who probed the insurrection that led to his historic second impeachment.
In a recent rant, Trump indicated that he may have an appetite to come after individuals such as Kinzinger. Trump said Sunday that the pardons were “void” because of claims that they were signed using an autopen.
Kinzinger appeared on CNN on Monday night, daring Trump to take action.
“First off, I’m trying to figure out what he’s trying to distract from because that’s what all this is — always a distraction to try to get people’s attention,” said Kinzinger.
“Or maybe he hasn’t felt like he’s gotten enough attention. But look … It’s like, bring it on,” he added.
The Oversight Project, which is part of the rightwing think tank the Heritage Foundation, took to social media earlier this month to share its claims that documents signed by Biden were not valid because they had allegedly been signed electronically. The preemptive pardons for members of the House Select Committee investigating the Capitol riot were part of that batch of files.
Many conservatives have claimed that the Biden pardons are invalid if an autopen was used, but former President Barack Obama also used the method, which isn’t forbidden by the constitution, with several legal experts making that point since the start of the controversy.
Similarly, memos from 1929 and 2005 from the Office of the Solicitor General and the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel state that a hand signature isn’t required to receive a pardon. Additionally, according to an 1868 ruling, presidential pardons are final after they have been delivered, HuffPost noted.
“I’m like, look, we made it very clear what happened on January 6,” said Kinzinger. “America made a decision. And there is one person that’s obsessed about the sixth because he still has been basically deemed guilty in the court of public opinion, and that’s Donald Trump.”
“And he can’t handle it,” he added. “He obsesses about it.”
Fox News reported that it had looked at more than 20 executive orders signed by Biden between 2021 and 2024 and found that they had identical signatures. But the network also noted that that signatures “were also the same” on Trump’s executive orders that he signed during both his first and his current term in office.
Speaking to NBC News on Monday, Trump said he had used autopen signatures.
Regarding possible charges, Kinzinger said, “My reaction to him is like, you know what? Then bring it!”
“Stop talking about it! Stop being all verbose. Stop pretending like you’re tough. Bring the charges then if you really want to do it because we will crush you in court,” he added.
