Obama uses autopen to sign fiscal cliff deal into law - after playing a round of golf in Hawaii

•Obama is the only president in history to use autopen to sign bills into law
•Also used autopen to sign Patriot Act while in France in May 2011 and to sign legislation to fund the government while in Bali in November 2011
•Questions over whether using the gadget is unconstitutional

•He flew back to Hawaii after the House passed the fiscal cliff deal
It's a highly-anticipated deal that keeps his nation from teetering over the edge of the fiscal cliff - yet President Obama has not even shown up to sign the new bill into law.


Instead, Obama, who is vacationing in Hawaii, has signed the bill using an autopen, a mechanical device that copies his signature - allowing him to accept the deal after playing a round of golf.


While he's the only president in history to turn to the gadget to sign a bill into law, it is not the first time President Obama has used it.

In May 2011, he used the pen to sign the Patriot Act - extending anti-terrorism measures enacted in the wake of 9/11 - while he was 3,725 miles and six time zones away in France at a G8 meeting.

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[link to www.dailymail.co.uk]