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 The former Massachusetts governor, who has sent mixed signals
about the likelihood of another campaign, told a small group of
donors in New York that he was thinking about running and to "tell
your friends" he was considering it, the source said.
The Wall Street Journal, which first reported the comments, said
Romney did not give a timetable for making a decision about whether
to launch what would be his third presidential campaign. Romney
failed to win the nomination in 2008 and lost the general election
to President Barack Obama in 2012.
Romney's statement comes as some of the party's top donors begin to
line up behind former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who said in December he
would actively explore a presidential run. If Romney entered the
race, he would be competing with Bush for many of the party's most
established major donors.
Romney has equivocated about another presidential campaign, going
from absolutely ruling it out after his 2012 loss to sounding more
uncertain recently. The comments in New York appear to be his most
open admission that he is seriously considering it.
 "He's more open to it, based on all the encouragement he's
received," a senior Romney adviser said of a possible run.
The Journal said one of the attendees at the meeting asked Romney if
he wanted to be president, and he said "yes, of course."
The topic of whether Romney would run for the White House came up at
a dinner he had with former advisers on Wednesday night in Menlo
Park, California. "The sense I got from him was that he was leaving
his options open," said a former adviser who attended the dinner.
The former adviser emphasized that the dinner was a social occasion,
not a strategy session, however.
As to whether Romney feels the likelihood of Bush running makes it
harder for him to enter the fray, the former adviser said Romney
believes the Republican field is in the "formational stages" and he
would not be deterred from jumping in.
Romney's entrance in the race would dramatically reshape what
promises to be a crowded and competitive field. Polls show him at or
near the top of the Republican race along with Bush.
Bush and his allies on Tuesday formed a pair of political committees
that allow him to speak with donors and raise money, formalizing his
political activity and putting pressure on Romney, with whom he
would compete for donors.
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A handful of former Romney donors and operatives have committed to
help Bush's likely bid. Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee
left his Fox News show over the weekend to ponder a bid, and more
than a dozen other possible serious contenders could still run.
Romney would likely compete for financial support with Bush and New
Jersey Governor Chris Christie, who is also considered a member of
the party's "establishment" wing. A Romney bid could similarly
complicate the aspirations of Florida Senator Marco Rubio, who was
vetted by Romney's campaign in 2012 as a vice presidential
possibility.
A Romney candidacy would make it very difficult for Wisconsin
congressman Paul Ryan, who was the Republican vice presidential
candidate in 2012, to run for the White House.
Others considering a White House bid include senators Rand Paul of
Kentucky and Ted Cruz of Texas, as well as governors Scott Walker of
Wisconsin, Rick Perry of Texas, John Kasich of Ohio, Bobby Jindal of
Louisiana, and Mike Pence of Indiana.
Great skepticism remains among key Republican Party figures that
Romney, 67, will actually run, however. "I just think a lot of the
money has already drifted away to other candidates," a former Romney
adviser said.
(Additional reporting by Gabriel Debenedetti and Caren Bohan;
Writing by John Whitesides; Editing by Will Dunham, Christian Plumb
and Richard Chang)
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