Former President Joe Biden revealed Wednesday that he’s writing a memoir and has been fielding calls from world leaders urging him to “get engaged” since leaving the White House.
Biden, 82, was asked about his post-presidency activities during a Q&A session at the Society for Human Resource Management’s (SHRM) convention in San Diego, where he delivered a keynote speech.
“Well, you know … it sounds strange … the problem is there is not a lot of time,” Biden responded, in what would be a rambling, nearly 10-minute-long answer.
“Every president is expected to write a memoir,” he continued, noting that “most take between 3 and 6 years to get it done” but his publisher wanted what would be his third memoir done by “March of this year.”
The former president said the new book will focus on only his four years as commander in chief, which he said made the task a bit easier.
“So, I’m working like hell with a publisher to write another 500-page book … I’ve been doing a lot of that, a lot of research,” Biden told SHRM CEO Johnny C. Taylor Jr.
The former president then bemoaned that “many of the things I worked so damn hard [on] that I thought I changed in the county are changing so rapidly,” in apparent reference to President Trump’s rollback of several Biden-era policies.
Biden went on to take credit for expanding NATO, arguing the transatlantic alliance was “in shambles” when he took office, and said he “took on” Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
The former president claimed he’s still fielding calls from US allies.
“And I’m getting calls – I’m not going to go into them, I can’t – from a number of European leaders asking me to get engaged,” Biden said, before noting, “I’m not, because things are different.”
“So, I’m doing that,” the former president said, as he began to think about what else he’s been up to since Jan. 20, promoting the moderator to interject, “World peace? That’s nice to do in retirement.”
“All kidding aside, how can you just walk away?” Biden said in his defense. “You don’t see me out there publicly doing a lot of this.”
The ex-president also claimed he’s been “dealing with a lot of Democrat and Republican colleagues calling me … wanting to talk and bounce things off of me.”
The Wall Street Journal recently reported that Biden, who was diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer in May, has been traveling from his home in Delaware to Washington, DC, roughly once a week for meetings.
“I’m also laying rubber with my 67 Corvette on my driveway,” Biden joked, referring to his prized antique muscle car.
Biden, who was forced to bow out of the 2024 presidential race last July following a Democratic Party revolt over his disastrous performance in his only debate against Trump, also indicated that he’s been spending time communicating with his family.
“Every single day, I contact every single one of my grandchildren,” Biden, who as president repeatedly failed to acknowledge the existence of the granddaughter his son, Hunter, fathered out-of-wedlock, claimed.
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