HispanicBusiness

President Obama will host his former campaign rival Mitt Romney at a White House lunch on Thursday, fulfilling a promise the president made on election night.

The two will meet in the private dining room in the executive mansion, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said in a statement.

"It will be the first opportunity they have had to visit since the election," Carney said. "There will be no press coverage of the meeting."

Romney also intends to meet privately that day with his former running mate, Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wisc., a spokesperson for Ryan said. They'll likely meet in Washington but away from Capitol Hill.

Obama honored Romney's lifetime record of public service on election night and said that he looked forward to sitting down with the former Massachusetts governor to talk about ways they could work together "to move the country forward."

Though it's not known what the two might discuss, Obama said during a news conference two weeks ago that Romney might have ideas "with respect to jobs and growth that can help middle-class families that I want to hear."

Romney has been notably silent since losing the Nov. 6 election, including not weighing in on the debate over the looming fiscal cliff.

Someone leaked photos from a family visit to Disneyland, and Romney posted a casual photo of himself with wife Ann on his Facebook page the day after Thanksgiving, noting that they had "much to be thankful this year."

Romney lost the race by about 3.5 million votes.