In his election-night victory speech, President Obama announced that he would sit down with Mitt Romney "to talk about where we can work together to move this country forward." He has also said that Romney "presented some ideas during the course of the campaign that I actually agree with. So it would be interesting to talk to him about something like that."
And that's exactly what he'll do on Thursday in the private dining room at the White House, the Washington Post reports. Their last time meeting face-to-face was at a less-than-friendly presidential debate, so Obama's "interesting" is an understatement when it comes to speculation about how these two will transition to collaborative conversation. To be a fly on the wall! Unfortunately, the event will be closed to the press.
A Romney aide called the lunch a gracious invitation from the president that the former GOP presidential challenger was glad to accept. Romney is also meeting with former running mate Rep. Paul Ryan while in town Thursday …
Since election night, Romney has all but disappeared from the public sphere. He has emerged only in photos taken by bystanders who spotted him pumping gas and visiting Disneyland. He has not tweeted since Nov. 10; his recent Facebook messages are about Thanksgiving.
Obama met with Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) in Chicago shortly after McCain lost the 2008 presidential election. That meeting was private, as well, but photographers and a pool reporter were given a few minutes of access.
Read more at the Washington Post.