former president

President Trump, who for years disputed his loss in the 2020 election and publicly decried the the outcome of the vote that he said was stolen from him by Democratic forces, privately lauded incoming President Biden as someone he believed “will be true to yourself and the American people.”

That sentiment, along with others, was part of the letter Trump left for Biden upon leaving office in January 2021. 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.

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. 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 U.S. president.

“Many presidents have come and gone who simply governed as Republicans or Democrats,” Trump wrote. “Largely, they did not change history, they were just swept along in its relentless tide. This will not happen to you because I know how much you love the American 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. Trump had opted out of other presidential traditions, such as attending Biden’s inauguration or hosting the incoming president and first lady for tea at the White 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.”

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.”

Lamenting Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency and his aggressive reversal of many of Biden’s policies, the former president 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, 2021, attack on the Capitol, as Congress met to certify the 2020 election, which Biden had won. 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.”

“What Trump did on January 6, 2021, should never be forgotten,” Biden wrote. “It should follow him to his 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.”

Kinnard writes for the Associated Press.

Jim Nantz is fine.

The 67-year-old sportscaster didn’t actually injure himself demonstrating the so-called “Peanut” punch with CBS broadcast booth partner J.J. Watt — who is 37 and a three-time former NFL defensive player of the year — during the Buffalo Bills-Las Vegas Raiders game on Sunday.

He seems to feel foolish though.

“I learned a lesson,” Nantz said Tuesday on ESPN’s “The Pat McAfee Show.” “You got J.J. Watt cradling the ball like this. What am I — I’m going to like knock it out of his hands? Come on, the thing was vacuum sealed into his chest.”

Named after retired cornerback Charles “Peanut” Tillman, the “Peanut punch” has become an effective method for defensive players to cause fumbles. While showing viewers how offensive players should hold the football to counter the maneuver , Watt encouraged Nantz to “give that a good punch.”

“Really?” Nantz asked.

“Hard as you got, brother,” Watt replied.

So Nantz delivered a solid blow to the ball, which didn’t budge in Watt’s arms.

“I did kind of go aggressively here after this ball because J.J. encouraged me to do so,” Nantz told McAfee while watching a clip of the incident.

Back on the broadcast, Nantz immediately winced and grabbed his hand.

“I did not think you were going to go that hard,” Watt laughed. “That was so much harder than I thought you were going to go.”

Nantz clearly was in discomfort, but he chuckled about it as well.

“My wrist is broken,” he told his booth partner. “Like I’m going to knock it out of your hands.”

“Get Jim some ice,” Watt joked as they were going to commercial.

After halftime, Nantz could be seen in the booth with his hand wrapped. That led some people to believe he had seriously injured himself.

“I heard from people you can’t believe,” Nantz told McAfee. “[Bills quarterback] Josh Allen texted me an hour after the game and said, ‘Did you just break your hand? I hear you broke your hand.’ I heard from a former president of the United States, reached out and wanted to know if my hand was broken.”

McAfee and company speculated that the former president was Barack Obama, but Nantz did not reveal his identity.

After the game, Watt joked on X: “CBS Injury Report Week 7 — Jim Nantz: Questionable (Wrist/Hand).”

The NFL joined in the good-natured fun, posting the clip on Instagram and writing, “the peanut punch isn’t for everybody,” along with a laughing emoji.

While Nantz admitted his hand and wrist “did hurt for a while,” he told McAfee that any reports beyond that were “greatly exaggerated.”

“It did sting, I’m not going to kid you,” Nantz said. “But I gave it my best, and as soon as I did it, I regretted it because I felt like everything had been compressed. And I did think I was going to wake up Monday with this thing about triple the size, but I’m fine. I’m not going to be on the injury report this week. I’m going to be good to go. No broken bones.”