This is a developing story in its early stages.
PDJT’s administration has fired Liz Oyer, the head of the U.S. Justice Department’s Office of the Pardon Attorney. Oyer, who had served as the pardon attorney since 2022 in a career Justice Department position, was fired “effective immediately,” according to a memo she shared on LinkedIn. The memo cited Trump’s executive authority under the U.S. Constitution as the basis for her dismissal.
Oyer was appointed as the U.S. Pardon Attorney in 2022. As the head of the Office of the Pardon Attorney, she was responsible for reviewing and processing clemency applications, advising the president on pardons and sentence commutations.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche — on his second day in office – sent a written notice of termination to Liz Oyer.
With all of the layoffs, firings, resignations and retirements going on, why is this case different? Why could this firing be more than PDJT reshaping the pardon process to suit his views?
A interesting aspect of her dismissal that was reported by the Wall Street Journal the day after her firing – she was immediately escorted from the building by security.
Shipwreckedcrew noted:
This is done when there is an ongoing investigation that the individual is likely unaware of, and those conducting the investigation want to preserve all electronic records that might be available on a computer and cell phone. Asking her to leave immediately prevents any attempt to delete such records.
It seems that this might tie in with the fact that virtually all White House docs were not signed by Joe Biden. They were actually signed by a machine, an autopen. Now this in itself is not outlandish. There are so many docs requiring signatures that such a machine is an invaluable time saver.
However, Biden’s obvious cognitive decline raises questions about who may have authorized certain specific signings. There is one disturbing indication that all was not done according to Hoyle. That’s the well-known account of Speaker Mike Johnson, who has stated that Biden actually denied signing an executive order that Johnson was questioning.
Biden insisted that he never issued the order to freeze new liquid natural gas export permits — even though he signed off on that less than a month before. So, who signed the order and who authorized the autopen signature?
Oyer, of course, had no role in this mess. However, the massive pardons and clemencies done at the very end of Biden’s tenure in office raise serious questions about the legitimacy of such acts. And, let’s be reminded that Liz Oyer was in charge of the pardon process.
Pardons themselves are not normally subject to any review by the courts. The power of the pardon and clemency rest solely with the Executive branch. So, what might any investigation be looking at?
One aspect could be did Biden actually authorize the use of the autopen for these pardons? Or was the autopen machine used without authorization in some or many of these cases? Did Biden know about the individuals who were granted clemency or a pardon? Was the process, which has very specific rules and procedures, corrupted? If so, by whom?
Oyer is trying to deflect attention from this line of inquiry. Oyer is claiming she was fired because she refused to restore Mel Gibson’s gun rights. This is just a smokescreen to misdirect the public awareness of the mess that is brewing over the use of the autopen machine.
This story has a lot more questions than answers right now. What this story does expose once again is just how little control Joe Biden had over his administration. Just who was authorizing actions on behalf of his administration? It is time for answers.