Romney Arrives to Dine With Obama

Former Gov. Mitt Romney arrived at the White House on Thursday for a private lunch with President Obama, their first encounter since the presidential election as both men try to put the bitterness of a hard-fought and often nasty campaign behind them.

Mr. Romney, the 2012 Republican nominee, arrived in a dark sport utility vehicle that pulled up to the White House entrance on West Executive Avenue just before 12:30 p.m., far away from the reporters and photographers waiting for his visit. He exited on the passenger side and walked into the West Wing without pausing.

The two are breaking bread in the private dining room just off the Oval Office. White House officials said no aides would join them for the one-on-one meal, nor would the media be invited to record the moment at the start or finish, as it typically does when the president hosts high-profile guests.

Mr. Obama said in his victory speech on election night that he wa nted to sit down with Mr. Romney, and aides said this week that Mr. Romney offered some ideas during the campaign that the president would like to explore. Among other things, Jay Carney, the White House press secretary, credited Mr. Romney on Wednesday with being a “successful businessman” who “did a terrific job running the Olympics” in Salt Lake City.

Mr. Carney said Mr. Romney might have good ideas for how to reorganize the federal government but added that there was no specific agenda for the meal. “He does not have a specific ask,” Mr. Carney said. “I'm sure that the topics will be many in their lunch.”

Other presidents have gotten together with their vanquished foes. Bill Clinton invited Bob Dole to the White House after their 1996 contest to award him the Presidential Medal of Freedom. George W. Bush in his second term invited Al Gore to the White House to celebrate his winning the Nobel Peace Prize and the two had a private, 40-minute con versation in the Oval Office. Mr. Obama introduced his first opponent, Senator John McCain, at a dinner honoring him the night before his own inauguration in January 2009.

Few, though, have gone as far as Franklin D. Roosevelt, who sent his 1940 opponent, Wendell Willkie, to Britain, the Middle East, the Soviet Union and China as his personal representative. Asked if Mr. Obama planned to offer Mr. Romney a cabinet post like commerce secretary, Mr. Carney said flatly, “No,” then added: “The president does not have a specific assignment in mind for the governor.”