Hillary Rodham Clinton visited the White House on Thursday and had lunch with President Obama — a meeting that was not part of the president’s daily schedule and was only acknowledged by the White House after People magazine revealed it in a tweet.
The clandestine lunch between Mr. Obama and his former secretary of state and 2008 Democratic presidential primary rival was confirmed by the White House late Thursday afternoon, hours after it had taken place.
“The president enjoyed an informal, private lunch with Secretary Clinton at the White House this afternoon,” a White House official said after being asked about the rumored meeting.
People magazine tweeted about the lunch earlier in the afternoon, though the post was quickly deleted.
Following the White House’s confirmation of the meeting, another tweet on the magazine’s feed showed Mrs. Clinton posing for a picture with People writer Sandra Sobieraj Westfall.
“SS Westfall chats w/ @Hillary Clinton before her @WhiteHouse lunch. Hope she wasn’t late for @BarackObama!” the tweet reads.
Mrs. Clinton is widely expected to run for president in 2016. The former first lady also appears to embarking on something of a media blitz to promote her new book, “Hard Choices.”
Mrs. Clinton reportedly will sit down with Fox News’ Bret Baier and Greta Van Sustern on June 17, and also will be featured in a one-hour ABC special next month.
While Mrs. Clinton was at the White House, her potential 2016 Democratic rival was literally on the other side of the country.
• Ben Wolfgang can be reached at bwolfgang@washingtontimes.com.
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