Completing a bill with an autopen brings about controversy

The contentious Patriot Act has been given a new lease on life, thanks to President Obama. It went to the White House for approval, though President Obama is currently in Europe. The president’s signature is creating debate, as he authorized an autopen signature, which is a mechanical device that produces an exact copy of a persons’ signature.

Not ending government surveillance just yet

Unless a new bill was created and passed by Congress and signed by the president, some Patriot Act provisions would have expired. The controversial surveillance was passed and finalized into law by President Obama at the last minute. This was despite all the debate on it, states the Christian Science Monitor. The government can still use the internet, wiretaps and business records whenever they want without permission. Senator Paul did rally against the bill though, without any luck. Apparently the president used a robotic pen though which caused anger in Congress, reports CNN.

Refill the ink if you need to live

Since the president is currently in France, and the signature was needed urgently, the document had to be signed using an autopen. The autopen is a system that could be used. A person’s signature could be reproduced with it. It is almost extremely hard to tell the difference between the signatures. It might as well have been the same. Some of the machines are very complex. Some are not complex at all though, reports MSNBC. There are two companies in the U.S. that make them, and a brief interview with Bob Olding, owner of one of those companies, is being reproduced on many news sites. ABC spoke with Damillic Corp., owner Olding who said that the technology hasn’t changed much since the 1930s when it came out. He also stresses that Damillic goes out of its way to properly vet its customers and make sure that his goods are being used ethically.

Whether or not it is legal

The Constitution states “he shall sign it” in reference to the president signing the bill. As long as a signature is directed to be attached to a document, it is valid, according to the Department of Justice. As long as a president gives his consent of signature, it is legal and valid to auto sign something. This was the response the Justice Department had in 2005 when an autopen for President Bush was being looked into. V.P. Quayle admits that he used an autopen in 1992 while Donald Rumsfeld used one in 2004. This was for the letters he sent to families of troops killed. The signature and letter duplication machine was built in the 19th century. Thomas Jefferson was responsible for this. Government officials, astronauts and business executives all have used autopens in the past.

Articles cited

Christian Science Monitor

csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/2011/0527/Patriot-Act-three-controversial-provisions-that-Congress-voted-to-keep

CNN

whitehouse.blogs.cnn.com/2011/05/27/rise-of-the-machines-autopen-puts-bill-into-law/?hpt=T2

MSNBC

firstread.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/05/27/6731197-the-great-presidential-autopen-hullabaloo

ABC

blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2011/05/robama-is-it-ok-for-a-president-to-autopen-a-bill-into-law.html

Damillic Inc

realsig.com/index.htm