When George W. Bush moved into the White House in 2001, there was a letter waiting for him from Bill Clinton, and eight years later, he wrote his own missive to Barack Obama. Today, those notes were made public for the first time.

The letters were released by the National Archives and Records Administration, and include words of encouragement and reminders of the great responsibility that comes along with being president of the United States. Bush told Obama that there would 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. No matter what comes, you will be inspired by the character and compassion of the people you now lead."

In his letter, Clinton told Bush that the "burdens you now shoulder are great but often exaggerated," and the "sheer joy of doing what you believe is right is inexpressible." He called Bush "fortunate" to lead the United States "in a time of profound and largely positive change, when old questions, not just about the role of government, but about the very nature of our nation, must be answered anew," and said his prayers were with Bush and his family. Catherine Garcia

Former Vice President Joe Biden is the only Democrat in the 2020 race who has run for president more than once before. And as he "grows accustomed to the front-runner status he never enjoyed in his two previous White House bids," Jonathan Martin writes at The New York Times, his campaign is struggling with how best to showcase "Biden's never-met-a-stranger persona without exposing him to an environment where he may commit a gaffe."

So far, their effort has been largely successful, Martin argues:

The most notable feature of his campaign may be what hasn't happened: He has not blurted anything out that delights his rivals, horrifies his aide,s and reinforces his image as "Uncle Joe," America's there-he-goes-again relative who makes you smile and wince in equal measure. It is early yet — which even Mr. Biden's friends allow as they hold their breath — and precedent offers good reason to question whether his streak of mostly error-free days can last. [The New York Times]

Biden's staff has minimized the risks by sticking close to him and limiting questions. But so far, Biden is proving to be his best handler, the Times says, showing "uncharacteristic restraint in the face of temptation."

Biden doesn't take the bait when supporters insult President Trump, he offers supporters "selfies as often as embraces," and "when he does hug a supporter, it is usually when he is asked for one or after he asks permission," the Times reports. "When a woman yelled out, 'You can hug and kiss me anytime!' at a rally near Las Vegas last week, Mr. Biden smiled, made the sign of the cross and, after a pause, simply said, 'That's nice, thank you very much.'"

This low bar is presumably not why Biden is the clear Democratic front-runner. And not all Biden friends and allies think this restrained Joe is — or even should be — sustainable. You can read more at The New York Times. Peter Weber

Swedish prosecutors reopened a 2010 rape investigation into WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on Monday and revived an extradition request, complicating the U.S. bid to extradite Assange on hacking-related conspiracy charges. Sweden dropped the rape case two years ago after prosecutors decided that Assange's asylum in Ecuador's London Embassy deadlocked their case. London police arrested Assange, 47, and dragged him from the embassy after Ecuador rescinded its asylum protection in April, after seven years. He is currently serving 50 weeks in a British prison for jumping bail.

Sweden's deputy director of public prosecutions, Eva-Marie Persson, said she has "decided to reopen the investigation" because "there is still probable cause to suspect that Mr. Assange committed rape." The statute of limitations on the rape charges expires in August 2020. Second charges of sexual molestation and coercion were dropped in 2015 after the statute of limitations ran out.

It isn't clear which country's extradition request takes precedence, America's or Sweden's. British legal experts say the matter will probably be decided in the courts or by Britain's secretary of state, and resolution could take years. WikiLeaks editor in chief Kristinn Hrafnsson said Monday that "there has been considerable political pressure on Sweden to reopen their investigation, but there has always been political pressure surrounding this case." Sweden's decision to reopen the rape investigation "will give Julian a chance to clear his name," Hrafnsson said. Peter Weber

If we're to save the Earth from a climate-related catastrophe in 21 years, we need to take drastic action, and one proposal getting discussed a lot is the Green New Deal, John Oliver said on Sunday's Last Week Tonight. "The Green New Deal has been famously polarizing. On one hand, all the senators running for president co-sponsored it; on the other hand, Republicans have been foaming at the mouth to criticize it for all the crazy provisions that they insist it contains," like bans on hamburgers and airplanes.

"The first thing to understand is that the Green New Deal doesn't even mention the word 'cows' or 'airplanes,'" or even "specific programs to fight climate change," Oliver explained. "It is a nonbinding resolution that very briefly sets out some extremely aggressive goals," and the whole thing "is just 14 pages long — that is, seven pages shorter than the menu for The Cheesecake Factory."

The Green New Deal's main proponent, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), rightly "admits the rollout of the Green New Deal was 'the biggest mistake' she's made in Congress," largely because she released a draft Q&A that contained what's "clearly supposed to be a joke" about getting rid of "farting cows and airplanes," Oliver said, thus allowing certain named "idiots to pretend the Green New Deal was all about hamburger-stealing."

"But while the rollout of this conversation has been bumpy, it is great that the Green New Deal has started one," Oliver said. "No one solution is going to be nearly enough" to combat climate change, and there are lots of ideas. Oliver focused on, and explained, carbon pricing. "Look, I know that this can all seem hopeless, especially under the current administration, but there are actually some small signs that the tide may be turning here," he said. Watch to the end to see "gritty reboot" Bill Nye drop F-bombs and set the world on fire. Peter Weber

One way or another, Congress will almost certainly obtain President Trump's financial records, "and Republican efforts to investigate the Christopher Steele dossier could be one reason why," writes CNN's Katelyn Polantz. Specifically, Democrats could find an unwitting helper in Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.), a Trump ally who successfully subpoenaed the bank records of Fusion GPS when he was chairman of the House Intelligence Committee.

The House Oversight, Intelligence, and Financial Services committees have subpoenaed Trump's business and personal financial records from his accounting firm, Mazars USA, and lenders Deutsche Bank and Capital One. Like Fusion GPS, Trump has sued his banks and accountants to prevent them from releasing his records. Fusion GPS had to disclose who financed the Steele dossier after losing its fight in federal court, using some of the same arguments Trump's lawyers are testing. U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta has fast-tracked the accounting firm lawsuit, scheduling the first hearing for Tuesday.

"The difficulty that Trump faces is the same one that we faced," Bill Taylor, Fusion GPS's lawyer in the case, tells CNN. "There's a heavy presumption in favor of the validity of a congressional subpoena."

The House Ways and Means Committee has also legally requested Trump's tax returns from the IRS, though Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin is fighting that, too. The New York Senate, now controlled by Democrats, approved legislation last week that specifically permits three congressional committees to view the state tax returns of anyone who files in New York, as Trump and many of his businesses did. The State Assembly has enough to support to pass the bill, too, though no vote is yet scheduled.

But the important fight might end up being in Mehta's courtroom. "Arguably you could get a lot more information from the accounting firm than you could from the tax returns," former federal tax prosecutor Kevin Sweeney tells CNN. "They'd keep the documentation they used to prepare that return." Peter Weber

Saudi Arabia on Monday said four of its oil tankers were targeted Sunday morning off the coast of the United Arab Emirates, with two experiencing "significant damage" during the sabotage attack.

One of the tankers was on its way to pick up Saudi oil bound for the United States, The Associated Press reports. Saudi Arabia says no one was hurt in the attack, and no oil was spilled. The kingdom did not reveal which vessels were allegedly attacked, or who might have been behind the sabotage.

On Thursday, the U.S. Maritime Administration issued a warning that "Iran and/or its regional proxies" could be targeting commercial sea traffic in the region; on Sunday, the agency issued a follow-up warning, but said the "incident has not been confirmed." Last week, National Security Adviser John Bolton announced the U.S. was deploying an aircraft carrier and B-52 bombers to the Middle East, in order to send Iran a "clear and unmistakable message." Catherine Garcia

When his favorite restaurants didn't have menus written in Braille, Mason Fessenden decided to make them on his own.

Fessenden, 18, lives in Monrovia, California. The Temple City High School senior is blind, and he told ABC 7 Los Angeles that Braille menus give people who are visually impaired more independence. "Before the menus, I felt sort of like I wasn't included," he said. "I was excluded from what was on the menu. I heard my parents' voices."

Fessenden was inspired to create the menus as part of a school project, but he isn't going to stop once he graduates in June; in fact, he has launched a business called Clarity Menus and More, and plans on making menus while attending college. His mother, Martha Fessenden, said her son was born three months premature, and she was told he'd "never talk, walk, or read Braille. Now he's 18 years old and he's doing all the above and so much more." Catherine Garcia