The makeup meal doesn’t even have to make the loser feel better. (In 2008, Obama had John McCain over for a postelection meeting in Chicago, and you can see what a healing effect that had on McCain’s ego.) The point is that you have two super-prominent men who hate each other doing something meaningless just because it’s the civil thing to do.

There was a brief and desperate speculation before this week’s lunch that Obama might be planning to offer Romney a post as secretary of commerce. It’s true that Commerce is not exactly a power hub in most administrations, but presidents generally appoint people from the other party to cabinet jobs because they want to please the opposition. Obama could get more Republican good will by giving Commerce to Alec Baldwin.

The idea of a get-together with Romney first came up during the president’s victory speech. He elaborated at his first postelection news conference, saying that Romney “presented some ideas during the course of the campaign that I actually agree with.”

The “actually” didn’t sound all that enthusiastic. Also, when it came time to praise his former rival, Obama said Romney “did a terrific job running the Olympics.”

Romney said nothing whatsoever about the invitation. Perhaps he’s reflected on his gifts for spontaneous comment since he told donors that Obama had won the votes of college-age women by offering them free contraceptives. Maybe he has decided never to speak in public again. But you do have to give him points for showing up for the lunch. He cannot be in a good mood. His lifetime dream is rubble. He got 47 percent of the vote. He’s working out of his kid’s office. Chris Christie is the most popular person in the nation.

As Romney’s SUV approached the White House grounds, police stopped a man who tried to reach for the car yelling “Mitt! Mitt!” It wasn’t clear what he had in mind. Perhaps he was an angry dog lover who still hasn’t gotten over the fact that Romney once drove to Canada with an Irish setter strapped to the car roof. Perhaps he was a disappointed fan, eager to discuss the Tea Party’s clever plan to resuscitate the Romney presidency by organizing a boycott of the Electoral College.

Anyhow, it was sort of par for the course. The man was arrested. The SUV rolled on, driving Mitt toward the White House and the white turkey chili.