Joe Biden encourages Mitt Romney to run for Senate . 
Mitt Romney
Biden encourages Romney to run for Senate . 
Park City , Utah -LRB- CNN -RRB- Former Vice President Joe Biden is encouraging onetime rival Mitt Romney to return to public life and run for Senate . 
Biden spoke at Romney 's ideas summit , an annual gathering of donors and business leaders in Utah . 
During a private event Friday night in Park City , Biden called Romney a man of integrity and said he should mount a challenge next year , according to two people in the room . 
The comment was quick and off-hand , but the crowd of Romney loyalists appreciated it and applauded . 
Romney , a former Massachusetts governor , is a Mormon and owns a home in Utah . 
The two men were on opposite sides of the 2012 election -- Biden as the running mate of President Barack Obama and Romney as the Republican presidential nominee . 
Romney and Biden both considered running for president last year , but both deferred to candidates they saw as having an overwhelming financial advantage -LRB- Jeb Bush on the Republican side ; Hillary Clinton on the Democratic side -RRB- . 
Romney , 70 , has not stayed far from politics , either . 
After being passed over for Trump 's secretary of state , Romney has campaigned for GOP candidates and weighed in on political matters via social media . 
Speculation has grown that Romney could run for the Senate in Utah .
Biden encourages [TGT] to run for Senate . 
Park City , Utah -LRB- CNN -RRB- Former Vice President Joe Biden is encouraging onetime rival Mitt Romney to return to public life and run for Senate . 
Biden spoke at [TGT] 's ideas summit , an annual gathering of donors and business leaders in Utah . 
During a private event Friday night in Park City , Biden called [TGT] a man of integrity and said he should mount a challenge next year , according to two people in the room . 
The comment was quick and off-hand , but the crowd of [TGT] loyalists appreciated it and applauded . 
[TGT] , a former Massachusetts governor , is a Mormon and owns a home in Utah . 
The two men were on opposite sides of the 2012 election -- Biden as the running mate of President Barack Obama and [TGT] as the Republican presidential nominee . 
[TGT] and Biden both considered running for president last year , but both deferred to candidates they saw as having an overwhelming financial advantage -LRB- Jeb Bush on the Republican side ; Hillary Clinton on the Democratic side -RRB- . 
[TGT] , 70 , has not stayed far from politics , either . 
After being passed over for Trump 's secretary of state , [TGT] has campaigned for GOP candidates and weighed in on political matters via social media . 
Speculation has grown that [TGT] could run for the Senate in Utah .