Barack Obama's Oval Office letter to Donald Trump: Congratulations coupled with a pointed civics lesson

From one president to another. Donald Trump and Barack Obama at the White House after the election. Photo / AP

By Rob Crilly

In the final minutes of his time in the Oval Office, just before he left for his successor's inauguration, Barack Obama slipped a letter inside the top drawer of the Resolute Desk.

In it he offered Donald Trump, the incoming President, his congratulations, a rather pointed guide to the American constitution and some words of advice.

"Congratulations on a remarkable run," he wrote, according to a copy of the letter obtained by CNN. "Millions have placed their hopes in you, and all of us, regardless of party, should hope for expanded prosperity and security during your tenure.

"This is a unique office, without a clear blueprint for success, so I don't know that any advice from me will be particularly helpful. Still, let me offer a few reflections from the past 8 years."

Perhaps as a gentle rebuke to Trump's fiery rhetoric of building walls and putting America first, Obama urged his successor to build "ladders of success" for people less fortunate and to remember the importance of American leadership in the world.

But perhaps most pointedly he reminded the 45th president - a political neophyte - of his place in the constitution and the temporary nature of his time in the White House.

"That makes us guardians of those democratic institutions and traditions - like rule of law, separation of powers, equal protection and civil liberties - that our forebears fought and bled for. Regardless of the push and pull of daily politics, it's up to us to leave those instruments of our democracy at least as strong as we found them," he wrote.

In his initial days in office, Trump thanked his predecessor for wise counsel during the run-up to the inauguration.

George H.W. Bush’s letter to Bill Clinton, Inaugural Day 1993: pic.twitter.com/DDoObe0Anv

— Michael Beschloss (@BeschlossDC) September 3, 2017

The relationship has soured since he accused Obama of wire-tapping Trump Tower and he has spent much of his presidency trying to overturn much of the Obama legacy.

But the Oval Office letter is a tradition that spans party divides.

When George W Bush left, he wrote to Obama: "There will be trying moments. The critics will rage. Your 'friends' will disappoint you. But, you will have an Almighty God to comfort you, a family who loves you, and a country that is pulling for you, including me."

Obama struck a similar tone as he encouraged Trump to find comfort in the people close to him.

"And finally, take time, in the rush of events and responsibilities, for friends and family. They'll get you through the inevitable rough patches," he wrote.

This article originally appeared on the Daily Telegraph.