Rand Paul announces he will reissue his criminal referral of Dr. Fauci to Justice Department

It was reported that former President Joe Biden used an "autopen" for pardons and commutations during his administration.

By Charlotte Hazard

Published: July 14, 2025 6:08pm

Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., announced Monday that he would be reissuing his criminal referral of Dr. Anthony Fauci to the Department of Justice under President Donald Trump.

"Today I will reissue my criminal referral of Anthony Fauci to Trump DOJ!" he wrote on the social media platform, X.

The New York Times reported that former President Joe Biden told them in an interview that he had used an "autopen" for pardons and commutations during his administration.

Biden explained that his staff used an autopen for his signature on the clemency warrants because “we’re talking about a whole lot of people."

The Times confirmed Fauci's pardon was signed with an autopen.

Trump and congressional Republicans have argued that the autopen was used because of Biden's mental decline during office.

Paul has issued criminal referrals to Fauci in the past. In 2021, Paul accused Fauci of lying to Congress about gain-of-function research funding for the COVID-19 virus. In 2023, he issued another referral as part of an investigation into the origins of the virus, according to Fox News.