Biden Calls for Trump to Carry Jan. 6 Legacy to His Grave in Memoir
The former president’s new book, scheduled for release next month, details his final meeting with Trump and critiques the current administration's early actions.
By Marco Whitaker ·
Former President Joseph Biden asserts that Donald Trump’s handling of the January 6, 2021, Capitol attack should be a permanent part of his historical record. In his upcoming memoir, "Promise Me, America," Biden argues that the event should follow Trump "to his grave." The book, which goes on sale on Nov. 17, offers a sharp critique of the current president's tenure and his interactions with Biden during the 2024 transition.
The timeline of the current administration began with Trump defeating Kamala Harris in the 2024 election, a race in which Biden withdrew in July of that year. Trump defeated Harris after Biden stepped aside from the race. Biden describes a nearly two-hour Oval Office meeting with Trump in November 2024 as having a tone that "bordered on fawning." He notes that Trump was "immediately chatty" and suggested that, without politics, the two would be good friends.
Biden writes that he was "too stunned to respond" to the warmth, adding that Trump seemed "intoxicated by the curious conversational path he had chosen." Trump reportedly told Biden that they would spend time golfing together if not for their political differences. The former president also claims Trump called his job creation record "extraordinary" and expressed relief at not having to run against him again.
In the book, Biden criticizes Trump for granting sweeping pardons and clemency to January 6 defendants on his first day back in office. He also admonishes Trump for not holding a formal ceremony to honor the officers who defended the Capitol. Biden states that Trump’s "lies" have continued since taking office, starting with the claim that he defeated Biden in 2020. The Electoral College had certified Biden's victory in December 2020.
Biden details specific policy reversals, including the withdrawal from the Paris climate accords, the opening of public lands to drilling, and the end of support for electric vehicles. He describes a rally where Trump announced these policies while oil and gas executives consumed champagne at a nearby hotel. Biden also criticizes the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, and the cutting of federal funding to Democratic states.
The memoir addresses the 2024 Supreme Court decision regarding presidential immunity. Biden describes the ruling as lacking precedent, common sense, and constitutional basis. He calls it a "death knell for accountability." He warns that no nation can survive leadership without character for long and states that the United States is no exception to that rule.
Biden notes that the new administration is stoking racial tensions and launching a campaign to end birthright citizenship protections under the Fourteenth Amendment. He writes that ICE officers will use expanded police powers to detain brown and Black people far from courts and local police. The former president concludes that the government has become "crueler" and less tolerant, with conspiracy theories actively promoted by the White House.
The book is set to hit shelves on Nov. 17. Early excerpts were published on Monday by The Atlantic. Biden’s account provides a first-person perspective on the transition of power and the early months of the Trump administration, offering detailed commentary on both personal interactions and major policy shifts.
