WSJ's Peggy Noonan shares recent encounter with Trump after avoiding him for 8 years: 'He was hilarious'

Wall Street Journal columnist Peggy Noonan spoke astir her caller brushwood with President-elect Donald Trump aft purposefully avoiding him for 8 years, revealing the interest she had that his "charming" property would unreality her judgment. 

"I ne'er met Trump until 2 oregon 3 weeks ago," Noonan said in a caller conversation with The Free Press laminitis Bari Weiss released Tuesday. "In 2015 and 2016, erstwhile helium was deciding to oregon had decided to tally for president- was running, his bureau and his aides did what they would bash with anybody other successful journalism, which was scope retired and say, ‘We privation to cognize you. We privation to conscionable you. Come connected in, conscionable the boss, person lunch.’ And I ever said, 'No, I don't privation to.'" 

"And the crushed was, I had a feeling that up adjacent helium would beryllium charming and funny, and that determination would beryllium thing endearing, and that it would messiness with my plaything arsenic an observer," she explained. "I didn't privation to spot him up close. I didn't privation to spot him acold away. I wanted- had this intuitive consciousness [to] spot him astatine a mediate distance. And I felt I saw him intelligibly astatine a mediate distance."

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Wall Street Journal columnist Peggy Noonan revealed she had lone met President-elect Donald Trump for the archetypal clip conscionable earlier the predetermination aft she refused to conscionable him since helium entered politics.  (William B. Plowman/NBC via Getty Images)

Noonan, a vocal Trump critic, acknowledged the warfare of words she and the erstwhile president person had implicit the years and the attacks she received done tweets and astatine his rallies, telling Weiss, "I'll look backmost connected it benignant of warmly, successful a weird way."

"So 2 oregon 3 weeks ago, helium came to the Wall Street Journal for an editorial committee meeting, and my instinct kicked successful again. 'Don't go.' But past I corrected myself," Noonan said. "I've been penning astir him for 8 years. I person occasionally clubbed him similar a seal. He has occasionally clubbed me. And it would beryllium truthful incorrect if helium came to my newspaper, and helium couldn't spell determination and instrumentality retribution oregon bash immoderate helium wanted to do. It conscionable struck maine arsenic the fair, close thing. And truthful I went."

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Noonan said she archetypal met President-elect Donald Trump during a gathering with the Wall Street Journal editorial committee up of the election.  (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

"And truthful we're waiting for him… I'm sitting adjacent to [Wall Street Journal editorial editor] Paul Gigot, and successful a soundlessness arsenic we nervously wait, Paul says, ‘How galore times person you met Trump?’ And I said, 'I've ne'er met Trump.' And helium said, 'You've ne'er met Trump?!?' And helium went, ‘Whoa,’ like, 'Oh, we're gonna person a play here.' And abruptly I thought, ‘Oh, gosh, possibly it volition beryllium a drama.’ You cognize however Trump acts, like, erstwhile he's gonna beryllium horrible- I mean, up close," she continued. "So anyway, astatine a definite point, the doors alert unfastened and the entourage comes in, and there's Trump, who successful idiosyncratic successful that bluish suit and the necktie is huge, and the hairsbreadth is huge, everything is huge. And he, like, blows by others, and helium conscionable says to me, ‘You are wonderful. You are the astir singular woman.’"

"And past helium sat down with us… He went connected and disconnected the record. But disconnected the record, helium was hilarious, rude, inappropriate, said things astir overseas leaders that should not beryllium said to a clump of journalists. And I conscionable sat backmost and thought by the end, 'Honey, your intuition was right. If you'd met him successful 2015, you would person loved him and not seen him,'" Noonan added.  

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Noonan said Trump blew past her Wall Street Journal colleagues and told her ‘You are wonderful' contempt their years-long icy relationship.  (William B. Plowman/NBC via Getty Images; Evan Vucci/AP)

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Noonan, the erstwhile Reagan speechwriter and writer of "A Certain Idea of America," precocious told Fox News' Bret Baier that the state is "in the mediate of thing precise big" pursuing Trump's victory. 

"I person a feeling that radical are reasoning that they don't truly similar each that they've seen of the 21st century, and they had a consciousness that Mr. Trump didn't similar it either. That's wherefore they elected him twice. And much than fractional the country, I think, is conscionable successful a large pushback against the establishment," Noonan said.