Plan For Higher Metal Tariffs Includes Aluminum
President Trump on Friday said that duties on imported aluminum will rise to 50% from the current level of 25%, in line with a planned increase in a levy on steel imports.
'It is my great honor to raise the Tariffs on steel and aluminum from 25% to 50%, effective Wednesday, June 4th,' Trump posted on Truth Social. 'Our steel and aluminum industries are coming back like never before.'
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CBS News
5 minutes ago
- CBS News
What is an autopen? Here's what to know about the devices used by presidents, writers and more.
The autopen — a machine first patented centuries ago — is having a moment in the political spotlight, following allegations made by President Trump that former President Biden used one to sign pardons. That's prompting questions about what autopens do, how they work and why the device is now stirring up controversy. The devices use pens or other writing instruments to place a person's signature on documents, books or other papers, such as in the case of a college president, for example, who would otherwise be required to sign hundreds or thousands of diplomas for graduating students by hand. Mr. Trump raised the issue in March when he claimed Mr. Biden's alleged use of an autopen to sign preemptive pardons to members of the House select committee that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol rendered them "void" and "vacant." Mr. Trump raised the issue again on Wednesday, when he posted on Truth Social, "With the exception of the RIGGED PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 2020, THE AUTOPEN IS THE BIGGEST POLITICAL SCANDAL IN AMERICAN HISTORY!!!" The autopen has also become a focus of the right-leaning Heritage Foundation's Oversight Project, which claims that Mr. Biden's alleged use of an autopen given his "clear cognitive decline ... raises additional questions for investigators." Regardless of the allegations, the autopen is hardly a novel device for the political sphere, with the Shapell Manuscript Foundation noting that one of the devices was bought by Thomas Jefferson soon after it was patented in 1803. Throughout U.S. history, presidents have relied on autopens, although the Shapell Manuscript Foundation notes that some commanders-in-chief have been guarded about their use of the machine. "Whereas once the official White House position was to deny the existence or usage of the autopen, today its existence is more of an open secret," the foundation notes. A spokesperson for Mr. Biden didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. What is an autopen? An autopen, also called a robot pen, is a machine that automates a person's signature with a pen or other writing instrument, versus a scanned signature, which is a digital image of a signature. Unlike people, the machine will never get writer's cramp, and can replicate a person's signature on high volumes of letters, certificates, diplomas and other documents, according to Automated Signature Technology, an autopen manufacturer. Its Ghostwriter machine uses a smart card or USB flash drive to store signatures and phrases that can be replicated on paper. The company's machines "write at human speed ... to produce quality handwriting reproductions," Automated Signature Technology says. The Ghostwriter can use any type of writing instrument, from a ballpoint pen to crayons, and can write on a variety of materials with different thicknesses, it added. Another autopen manufacturer, the Autopen Company, said its machines can be used for "signing certificates, correspondence, photographs and posters, almost anything up to 1/4 inch thick. Factory modifications can be incorporated for signing books and sports memorabilia." One site that sells autopens says that high-end machines used by governments can cost between $5,000 to $20,000 each. Neither the Autopen Company nor Automated Signature Technology immediately responded to requests for comment from CBS MoneyWatch. Have other presidents used autopens? Yes. President Johnson even allowed the autopen to be photographed in the White House. The photo appeared in The National Enquirer with a 1968 article titled, "The Robot That Sits in for the President," according to the Shapell Manuscript Foundation. Other presidents who have relied on autopens include John F. Kennedy and Barack Obama, among others. Presidents have typically used an autopen to sign routine correspondence to constituents, like letters recognizing life milestones, as well as legislation and pardons. During the Gerald Ford administration, the president and First Lady Betty Ford occasionally signed documents and other correspondence by hand, but White House staff more often used autopen machines to reproduce their signatures on letters and photographs. Mr. Trump has also used an autopen, telling reporters on Air Force One in March that he'd used the device "only for very unimportant papers." "You know, we get thousands and thousands of letters, letters of support for young people, from people that aren't feeling well, etcetera. But to sign pardons and all of the things that he signed with an autopen is disgraceful," Mr. Trump said at the time, in reference to his claims former President Biden used the technology to sign pardons. President George W. Bush asked the Justice Department in 2005 if it was constitutional to use an autopen to sign a bill, with the department concluding that "the president need not personally perform the physical act of affixing his signature to a bill he approves and decides to sign in order for the bill to become law. contributed to this report.
CNN
6 minutes ago
- CNN
US Education Department threatens Columbia University's accreditation over campus antisemitism concerns
The Trump administration has escalated its fight with Columbia University, declaring the school doesn't meet accreditation standards for failing to enforce nondiscrimination laws. 'After Hamas' October 7, 2023, terror attack on Israel, Columbia University's leadership acted with deliberate indifference towards the harassment of Jewish students on its campus,' US Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said in a statement Wednesday. CNN has reached out to Columbia University for comment. This is a developing story and will be updated.
Associated Press
6 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Unsealed records in Abrego Garcia case offer few details that are new, unknown
A federal judge on Wednesday ordered the unsealing of several court documents in the lawsuit over Kilmar Abrego Garcia's deportation, rejecting the Trump administration's arguments that it would risk national security. U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis in Maryland issued her order after media organizations, including The Associated Press, argued the public has a right to access court records under the First Amendment. Filings unsealed so far offer little information that's new or unknown publicly. Xinis described one document as 'relatively boilerplate.' It was a request by the Trump administration to temporarily halt discovery, an early phase of a lawsuit where parties share evidence. 'It does not disclose any potentially privileged or otherwise sensitive information for which a compelling government interest outweighs the right to access,' Xinis wrote. Xinis noted that some documents were public before the court was asked to seal them the next day. Those filings contained a back-and-forth between Abrego Garcia's attorneys and the U.S. government over efforts to return him from El Salvador. Trump administration lawyers often objected to answering questions, arguing that they involve state secrets, sensitive diplomatic negotiations and other protected information. For example, the U.S. attorneys mentioned 'appropriate diplomatic discussions with El Salvador.' But they wrote that disclosing the details 'could negatively impact any outcome.' Xinis also ordered the partial release of a transcript from an April 30 court hearing. Some of it will be reacted to protect potentially classified information. Wednesday's ruling was unrelated to the Trump administration pending invocation of the state secrets privilege, a legal doctrine often used in military cases. The administration has argued that releasing information about the Abrego Garcia matter in open court — or even to the judge in private – could jeopardize national security. Xinis is yet to rule on the state secrets claim. Abrego Garcia's attorneys have argued that the Trump administration has done nothing to return the Maryland construction worker. They say the government is invoking the privilege to hide behind the misconduct of mistakenly deporting him and refusing to bring him back. Abrego Garcia's deportation violated a U.S. immigration judge's order in 2019 that shielded Abrego Garcia from expulsion to his native country. The immigration judge determined that Abrego Garcia faced likely persecution by a local Salvadoran gang that terrorized his family. Abrego Garcia's American wife sued over his deportation. Xinis ordered his return on April 4. The Supreme Court ruled on April 10 that the administration must work to bring him back. President Donald Trumptold ABC News in late April that he could retrieve Abrego Garcia with a phone call to El Salvador's president. But Trump said he wouldn't do it because Abrego Garcia is a member of the MS-13 gang, an allegation that Abrego Garcia denies and for which he was never charged.
