Mitt Romney raves about Donald Trump following dinner together

(Image credit: Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

last updated 30 November 2016

Following his dinner Tuesday night with Donald Trump, Mitt Romney had nothing but praise for the man he just months ago called a "phony" and a "fraud" whose promises "are as worthless as a degree from Trump University."

Romney, a contender for secretary of state and the 2012 Republican presidential nominee, told reporters outside Trump Tower that his evening with Trump was "wonderful," and said the pair, along with incoming White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus, discussed world affairs. The conversation was "enlightening and interesting and engaging," Romney continued, and he believes "America's best days are ahead of us." He even went so far as to say that Trump has a "message of inclusion and bringing people together."

In the months before the election, Romney, who was endorsed by Trump in 2012, was one of his most vocal critics. He declared there was "something" to Trump's taxes, which was why he never released them, and he mocked Trump's touting of his professional prowess, saying, "a business genius he is not." Romney may have accused Trump of "playing the American public for suckers," but that seemed to be behind him on Tuesday, as the men dined at Nougatine, a swanky three-Michelin-star restaurant located — where else? — inside the Trump International Hotel and Tower in Manhattan. The menu included sautéed frog legs, diver scallops, and lamb chops — and possibly a little crow, too.

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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

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