Joe Biden has published the full text of the farewell letter left for him by Donald Trump on Jan. 20, 2021, revealing a surprisingly warm message that contrasts sharply with the bitter public disputes between the two men.
Inside the Oval Office Note
The two-page letter, written on official White House stationery and signed with Trump’s signature black Sharpie marker, was included in Biden’s upcoming memoir Promise Me, America, set for publication on Nov. 17. In the message addressed to the 46th president, Trump avoided any criticism of the election results and instead offered a reflective view on the presidency.
“Many presidents came and went, simply running the country as Republicans or Democrats. By and large, they didn’t change the course of history; they were simply carried along by its relentless current. That won’t happen to you, because I know how much you love the American people.”
Donald Trump, former U.S. President
Trump also said that millions of people relied on Biden’s success and that the weight of those expectations should serve as an anchor for every decision, according to excerpts published by The New York Times. The former president served his first term from 2017 to 2021 before losing the November 2020 election to the Democratic candidate, Joe Biden, and subsequently winning the November 2024 presidential election to return to the White House.
Contrasting Tones of Two Leaders
The private letter stood in stark contrast to the tumultuous transition period following the 2020 election, during which Trump challenged the results and skipped the inauguration to break longstanding tradition. Reflecting on the dichotomy in his book, Biden wrote that it felt as though two Donald Trumps existed.
In the memoir, the former Democratic leader reflects that Trump had deeply destabilized democracy, yet offered warm good wishes in the written note as though coming from an old friend.
Following the 2024 presidential election, Trump also remarked to Biden during a meeting at the White House that if not for politics, they would have been good friends.
