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Trump praised Biden in ‘very generous’ private letter upon exiting White House, ex-prez reveals in new memoir

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Cite

Associated Press. (2026, November 10). Trump praised Biden in ‘very generous’ private letter upon exiting White House, ex-prez reveals in new memoir. New York Post. https://nypost.com/2026/11/10/us-news/trump-praised-biden-in-very-generous-private-letter-upon-exiting-white-house/

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New York Post · collected 2026-11-10 · by Associated Press

Quick Summary

In his new memoir "Promise Me, America," former President Joe Biden reveals that Donald Trump left a private and unexpectedly generous letter for him when he departed from the White House in January 2021. The letter, written by Trump in black Sharpie ink on official White House stationery, includes praise for Biden's commitment to the American people and acknowledges his potential to make significant changes as president. Despite their public animosity, Trump referred to Biden as the 46th US President ("To '46'") and expressed thoughts about how much he believed Biden loved the country. This revelation contrasts sharply with Trump’s refusal to attend Biden's inauguration or engage in other customary transition practices.
Written by AI on 2026-11-10, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

President Donald Trump left a warm, personal letter for Joe Biden when he vacated the Oval Office in January 2021. The full text of this letter has now been revealed nearly six years later as part of Biden's upcoming book, "Promise Me, America," published by The New York Times. In the letter, Trump wrote that coming to work every day at the White House was a blessing beyond imagination and expressed hope for Biden’s tenure in office. However, despite the positive tone, Biden had earlier described encountering two different versions of Trump—one who destabilized democracy and another who offered warm wishes. The Associated Press has confirmed a photocopy of the original letter, handwritten by Trump on White House stationery, addressed to "To ‘46’" (referring to Biden as the 46th president). In response, White House communications director Steven Cheung called Trump’s actions before and during his presidency a disgrace.

Written for “Trump's Private Letter To Biden Revealed” on 2026-11-11, grounded in this article and the 2 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The model judged this article politically coded and scored it -0.65, but all 4 of its quote(s) are attributed speech - words the article quotes from someone, not the article's own narration, so the score is not published.
Written under an earlier scoring contract, which gave a paragraph rather than checkable quotes. Re-analysing this article replaces it.
Leaning score withheld for article 143005: attributed speech only · logged 2026-11-10

Story

Trump's Private Letter To Biden Revealed
Politics · 3 article(s) covering the same event. See how they differ ↓

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 6% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
Global News
Hedges 1 of 17 claims Outlet record 63/100
The Daily Wire
Hedges 3 of 29 claims Outlet record 95/100
Just The News
Hedges 0 of 17 claims Outlet record 95/100
“The articles describe different events: one about Biden's reduced book tour due to cancer recovery, and another about a private letter from Trump praising Biden upon leaving office.”
The Straits Times
Hedges 1 of 12 claims Outlet record 66/100
“The articles describe different aspects related to Joe Biden's memoir and his presidency, but they do not report on the same specific incident or occurrence.”
Global News
Hedges 4 of 45 claims Outlet record 63/100
“The articles describe different aspects of former presidents' actions and sentiments: one focuses on Biden's critique of Trump regarding the Jan. 6 riots in his memoir, while the other discusses a private letter from Trump to Biden upon leaving office.”
NBC News
Hedges 0 of 23 claims Outlet record 72/100
“The articles describe different aspects of former presidents' interactions; one criticizes Trump's actions during Jan. 6, while the other reveals a private letter from Trump to Biden upon leaving office.”
The Guardian
Hedges 2 of 25 claims Outlet record 65/100
“The articles describe different aspects of Joe Biden's memoir promotion and content, not the same specific incident.”
The Independent
Hedges 2 of 25 claims Outlet record 59/100
“The articles describe different parts of a conversation or letter between Trump and Biden, occurring at different times with distinct content.”
Washington Examiner
Hedges 1 of 2 claims Outlet record 68/100
“The articles describe different interactions: one is a face-to-face meeting with dialogue, while the other involves a private letter left for Biden upon Trump's departure.”
ABC News (US)
Hedges 6 of 28 claims Outlet record 67/100
“The articles describe different aspects of events related to Jan 6 and Trump's departure, not a single specific incident.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
18
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
6%
1 of 18 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
withheld
no quote in the article backed the model's score
Publisher signals
66/100
New York Post's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
3
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-11-10 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

New York Post · 18601 article(s) · 39 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 39 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Associated Press
703 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
Published Nov. 10, 2026, 3:56 p.m. ET President Donald Trump, who for years disputed his loss in the 2020 election and publicly decried the result having been stolen from him by Democratic forces, privately lauded incoming President Joe Biden as someone he believed “will be true to yourself and the American people.”
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He described Cullen Davis as someone who “stood with his arms wide open, willing to lovingly accept you regardless of where you stood in life.”
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US judge denies Lindsay Clancy’s motion to dismiss charges in the deaths of her 3 children Clancy’s team asked to end the case, arguing the judge should not have declared a mistrial when jurors could not reach a unanimous verdict A judge on Monday denied a motion to dismiss charges against Lindsay Clancy in the deaths of her three young children, potentially clearing the way for a retrial in the case next year.
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Wire or desk byline, not an individual reporter.
Also by Associated Press
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2026-11-10 · South China Morning Post
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 703 articles by Associated Press →

Topics

American Associated Press Democratic The New York Times White House

Subjects

Biden PERSON · 14× Trump PERSON · 12× White House ORG · 4× American NORP · 3× Associated Press ORG · 1× Democratic NORP · 1× Donald Trump PERSON · 1× Joe Biden PERSON · 1× The Associated Press ORG · 1× The New York Times ORG · 1×

Narrative

Published Nov. 10, 2026, 3:56 p.m. ET President Donald Trump, who for years disputed his loss in the 2020 election and publicly decried the result having been stolen from him by Democratic forces, privately lauded incoming President Joe Biden as someone he believed “will be true to yourself and the American people.”
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-11-10
Published Nov. 10, 2026, 3:56 p.m. ET President Donald Trump, who for years disputed his loss in the 2020 election and publicly decried the result having been stolen from him by Democratic forces, privately lauded incoming President Joe Biden as someone he believed “will be true to yourself and the American people.”

Claims (18 extracted, 1 hedged)

Trump praised Biden in ‘very generous’ private letter upon exiting White House, ex-prez reveals in new memoir By asserted
prez → praise → memoir
Published Nov. 10, 2026, 3:56 p.m. ET President Donald Trump, who for years disputed his loss in the 2020 election and publicly decried the result having been stolen from him by Democratic forces, privately lauded incoming President Joe Biden as someone he believed “will be true to yourself and the American people.” asserted
he → publish → yourself
That sentiment, along with others, was part of the letter Trump left for Biden upon leaving office in January 2021. asserted
Trump → leave → January
Biden showed the note to some members of his staff after his inauguration in 2021 but didn’t let anyone read it, describing it later that day as “very generous” but otherwise saying he considered it to be private. asserted
it → show → it
Inclusion of the letter in Biden’s “Promise Me, America,” his White House memoir slated for release Nov. 17, was first reported Tuesday by The New York Times. asserted
Inclusion → promise → Times
The Associated Press has reviewed a photocopy of the two-page letter, handwritten in Trump’s trademark black Sharpie on White House stationery and addressed “To ‘46,’” denoting Biden’s place as the 46th US president. asserted
Press → review → president
“Many presidents have come and gone who simply governed as Republicans or Democrats,” Trump wrote. asserted
Trump → come → Republicans
“Largely, they did not change history, they were just swept along in its relentless tide. asserted
they → change → tide
This will not happen to you because I know how much you love the American people.” asserted
you → happen → people
At the time of transition, Biden was said to have been surprised by how gracious he thought the letter was, given the animosity between the political rivals. asserted
letter → say → rivals
Trump had opted out of other presidential traditions, like attending Biden’s inauguration, or hosting the incoming president and first lady for tea at the White House. asserted
Trump → opt → House
Trump has said he thought it was up to Biden to share the letter, calling it “a nice note” during a September 2023 interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press,” adding, “I took a lot of time in thinking about it.” asserted
I → say → it
Elsewhere in the memoir, the first excerpt of which was published Monday by the Atlantic, Biden wrote of the deep damage Trump has inflicted, with an administration determined to “tear down institutions and inflame hatreds.” asserted
Trump → publish → hatreds
Lamenting Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency and his aggressive reversal of many of his policies, Biden wrote of Trump’s “dismissive and destructive nature,” describing his predecessor and successor as someone “who seemed unable to tolerate the idea that someone else’s accomplishments might be worth building on rather than tearing down.” But Biden’s harshest characterization so far was focused on Trump’s role in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, as Congress met to certify the 2020 election, which Biden had won. uncertain
Biden → lament → which
Writing that Trump “led an insurrection,” Biden said Trump’s ”goal was to remain in power after the American people had voted him out of office.” asserted
people → write → office
“What Trump did on January 6, 2021, should never be forgotten,” Biden wrote. asserted
Biden → forget → January
“It should follow him to his grave.” asserted
It → follow → grave
Asked for comment on both the letter and Biden’s memoir, White House communications director Steven Cheung called the former president “a disgrace” who “should have heeded the President’s wise words, but instead he tried to destroy this country and weaponize the justice system against his political enemies.” asserted
he → ask → enemies
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