Biden reveals the surprising compliment Trump gave him during their Oval Office meeting

President Joe Biden revealed the surprising compliment Donald Trump gave him when the two men met in the Oval Office shortly after the November election.

Biden and Trump spent two hours having a personal conversation during their sit down, which took place a week after Trump defeated Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election.

Few details have emerged from that conversation. 

But Biden told USA Today that Trump, who has heavily criticized him in the past for his age, did have some kind words. 

'I spent two hours with him. He talked about, he was very complimentary about some of the economic things I had done. And he talked about − he thought I was leaving with a good record, kind of thing,' Biden said.

Publicly, Trump has blasted Biden's handling of the economy. He's also railed against the 82-year-old as being too old to be president. He nicknamed him 'Sleepy Joe' and questioned his mental capacity to do the job. 

Polls show voters blame Biden for the high cost of food and other essentials. 

Trump has bragged about the strength of the U.S. economy under his stewardship.

'In my administration, we have the greatest economy in history,' he told reporters at Mar-a-Lago on Tuesday.

'On January 20, we'll turn the economy around very quickly, because right now we have, when I think of our economy, I think about inflation, that's what we have. We have inflation, I believe, at a level that we never had before. There's never been anything like it. And over the next four years, the United States is going to take off like a rocket ship,' he added. 

Biden gave USA Today an extended interview as he prepares to leave the White House on January 20th.  His time with the news outlet is his only print interview.

He made his comments about Trump when asked about preemptive pardons to people like former Rep. Liz Cheney and Dr. Anthony Fauci, who Trump has threatened to target.

Biden said he hadn't ruled it out and noted he tried advise Trump that retribution wasn't necessary. 

'A little bit of it depends on who he puts in what positions,' he said. 'I tried to make it clear that there was no need, and it was counterintuitive for his interest to go back and try to settle scores.'

Biden said Trump didn't give him an indication of what he planned to do. 

'He just basically listened,' he noted.

Joe and Jill Biden will return to Delaware after their time in the White House. They have pledged to attend Trump's inauguration.

But, in his hour-long interview with USA Today, Biden also revealed his thoughts about the 2024 presidential race.  

Biden said he believed he could have won a second term if he stayed in the contest.

'It's presumptuous to say that, but I think yes,' he said.

Biden exited the contest in July after a disastrous debate with Trump, where he fumbled to find words and make his arguments. Party leaders, including former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, pushed him to step down.

But when asked if he could have handled four more years in the White House, Biden turned reflective.

'I don't know,' he said. 'Who the hell knows?'