United States President Donald Trump has ordered an investigation into the actions of his predecessor, pointing out concerns about Joe Biden's "cognitive decline".
On Wednesday, Trump ordered his White House counsel and attorney general Pam Bondi to investigate "whether certain individuals conspired to deceive the public about Biden’s mental state and unconstitutionally exercise the authorities and responsibilities of the President".
This follows Trump and Republican figures' long-term claims about Biden's mental health during his presidency.
Biden called the recent order "ridiculous and false".
What is the scope of the investigation?
Trump's memorandum will direct an investigation into "who ran the United States while President Biden was in office", according to the White House.
"This conspiracy marks one of the most dangerous and concerning scandals in American history. The American public was purposefully shielded from discovering who wielded the executive power," Trump wrote in the memorandum
The order will investigate whether certain individuals conspired to deceive the public about Biden’s mental state, and look into documents that were signed by an autopen.
An autopen mechanically replicates someone's signature.
Biden has denied these allegations.
"Let me be clear: I made the decisions during my presidency. I made the decisions about the pardons, executive orders, legislation, and proclamations," he said in a recent statement.
For decades, the US justice department, under both Democratic and Republican administrations, has accepted the use of an autopen to sign laws and issue pardons.
Unfounded accusations
The executive order comes after Trump reposted a post on his social media platform, Truth Social, saying Biden was "executed in 2020".
"Biden clones doubles and robotic engineered soulless mindless entities are what you see," the post stated.
Former US president Joe Biden at the funeral for Pope Francis in Vatican City in April. Biden has been diagnosed with prostate cancer. Source: Getty / Jaap Arriens/NurPhoto
Trump, who has not provided any evidence for these accusations, said in his memorandum: "They ought to find out who was using that autopen. Because whoever that person was, he or she was like the President of the United States."
"I think a President should sign it, not use an autopen. And we’re going to find out whether or not he knew what the hell he was doing.
“The real question — who ran the autopen, OK?"
What is the current status of Joe Biden's health?
Biden's health was at the centre of debate during the US presidential election.
In May, Biden's office announced that the former president was diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer that has spread to his bones.
"While this represents a more aggressive form of the disease, the cancer appears to be hormone-sensitive which allows for effective management," his office said.
Last week, in his first public comments since the diagnosis, Biden said he was "feeling good".
"It's all a matter of taking one particular pill for the next six weeks and then another one ... It's not in any organ, my bones are strong, so I'm feeling good."
In response to a question about his mental and physical capabilities the former US president said: "You can see that I’m mentally incompetent, and I can’t walk, and I can beat the hell out of both of them."
