Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi have broken bread. In his new memoir, the former president reveals he sat down with the former House speaker over an Italian lunch to mend a close friendship that deeply ruptured after she pushed him to end his 2024 reelection bid. The same book recounts the July day Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer came to Biden's home in Delaware to tell him his support in the party had collapsed.

The revelations come from Promise Me, America, Biden's memoir of more than 400 pages, published on Tuesday, November 17, 2026. CNN purchased a copy on Thursday, and the excerpt was reported on Friday, November 13.

Key Points

• Biden met Pelosi over an Italian lunch to repair a friendship ruptured after she pressed him to quit the 2024 race; they had not spoken since her blunt White House visit.
• Biden writes: “We had been through too much together to allow a rift to go un-mended,” and that the two “fell into the old rhythms of friendship.”
• On July 13, 2024, Schumer visited Biden at home in Delaware to say his party support had collapsed; Biden told him he had “a lot of gumption” coming to tell him to get out.
• On July 21, 2024, Biden told campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon at 1:04 p.m., called Vice President Kamala Harris seven minutes later, and called Bill Clinton at 3:14 p.m. — but not Barack Obama.
• Promise Me, America, more than 400 pages, is published on Tuesday, November 17, 2026.

What Happened

The lunch was the first real conversation between Biden and Pelosi since the day she came to see him in the White House and bluntly told him he would lose the presidency if he continued to seek reelection. “I have to admit it was personally hard to take so many old friends turning on me,” Biden wrote.

He describes Pelosi as having worked “furiously behind the scenes to get elected officials and Biden delegates to defect” after his disastrous debate against Donald Trump in Atlanta on June 27, 2024, an event he calls “a terrible night.” Pelosi has repeatedly declined to discuss the status of their relationship.

The lunch changed that. “We had been through too much together to allow a rift to go un-mended,” Biden wrote. “We talked about life and family and politics and fell into the old rhythms of friendship. And I’m glad we did.” Their last real conversation, he wrote, had been the one in which she told him it was his decision whether to continue his run. At the lunch, he wrote, “We didn’t discuss that episode.”

Jill Biden offered her own account during her book tour, saying her husband and Pelosi exchanged peace at the funeral of Tatiana Schlossberg: “He went back to see Nancy and I found out later … they said ‘Peace, let’s be friends.’”

Background: The Collapse of the 2024 Campaign

The memoir offers an unapologetic window into the tailspin of Biden's reelection campaign after the June debate. Biden writes that he believed ordinary Democratic voters were still with him even as the party's leaders turned away.

“Party unity was weighing heavily on my mind. I believed the Democratic rank and file were still with me and would be with me all the way to November,” Biden wrote. “But it was clear that major Democratic elected officials and leaders weren’t.” He added: “I had arrived at exactly what I had most hoped to avoid: a divided party.”

On July 13, 2024, Schumer travelled to Biden's home in Delaware to advise him that his support in the party had collapsed. “I told Schumer he had a lot of gumption (I may have said it differently at the time), coming to my home and telling me to get out of the race,” Biden wrote. “Loyalty matters to me. If I give you my word, I stick with you.” Obama, Biden writes, was also working behind the scenes to persuade him to drop out, and he remains furious about it.

Biden and Pelosi Reconcile Over Italian Lunch

The reconciliation matters because of how long and close the Biden-Pelosi partnership had been. The two worked together for years, and Pelosi's intervention in the summer of 2024 was, in Biden's telling, the sharpest cut of all, because it came from a friend rather than a rival.

Pelosi has not given her own account of the lunch. For now, Biden's version is the only public one.

Reactions and Quotes

The book's sharpest passages are reserved for the men Biden believes pushed him out: “I told Schumer he had a lot of gumption (I may have said it differently at the time), coming to my home and telling me to get out of the race.” Of Pelosi, the tone is different: “We had been through too much together to allow a rift to go un-mended,” he wrote, and of the lunch: “We talked about life and family and politics and fell into the old rhythms of friendship. And I’m glad we did.”

The memoir also prints the full text of the handwritten letter Donald Trump left for Biden in January 2021, addressed “To ‘46’”. US News Pulse reported the full text of Trump's letter and covered Biden's PEOPLE interview.

Why It Matters

The memoir is Biden's own account of the most consequential political collapse of his life, and this excerpt is the first time he has described both the rupture and the repair with Pelosi in his own words. It shows a former president still angry at the Democrats who pushed him out, and at the same time willing to make peace with the one whose break hurt him most.

It also matters because the people in the book are still shaping the party. Schumer is now fighting to keep his job as Senate Democratic leader: Senator Chris Van Hollen has formally challenged him after the Democrats' midterm sweep.

What Happens Next

Promise Me, America is published on Tuesday, November 17, 2026. Biden, who turns 84 on November 20, has said his prostate cancer means he will only be able to make limited appearances to promote the book.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does Biden's memoir reveal about Nancy Pelosi?
Biden met Pelosi over an Italian lunch to mend a friendship ruptured after she pushed him to end his 2024 bid. They had not spoken since her White House visit.

What happened when Chuck Schumer visited Biden on July 13, 2024?
Schumer visited Biden at home in Delaware to say his party support had collapsed. Biden wrote Schumer had “a lot of gumption” coming to tell him to get out of the race.

When did Biden decide to drop out of the 2024 race?
On July 21, 2024. At 1:04 p.m. he told campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon, seven minutes later he called Vice President Kamala Harris, and at 3:14 p.m. he called Bill Clinton.

Did Biden call Barack Obama on July 21, 2024?
No. Biden did not call Obama, with whom he was furious for working behind the scenes to push him out.

When is Promise Me, America published?
The memoir, more than 400 pages, is published on Tuesday, November 17, 2026.