Sept. 17--Bill Clinton is scheduled to come to Chicago on Thursday for two high-priced fundraising events on behalf of wife Hillary Rodham Clinton as the former president moves into a role as a top surrogate for the Democratic White House contender.
The former secretary of state and first lady originally intended to return to her hometown to raise money. But she scrapped her appearance for planned campaign visits in New Hampshire, a signal of rival Sen. Bernie Sanders' emerging strength in the nation's first primary state.
Bill Clinton largely has been out of view as his wife makes her second bid for the White House. He appeared at her campaign kickoff rally this summer but did not make a speech.
The former president proved to be a big draw across the country during Hillary Clinton's unsuccessful 2008 presidential primary bid against then-U.S. Sen. Barack Obama. But Bill Clinton's comments, sometimes controversial and sometimes contradictory, often overshadowed his wife's candidacy and created complications for her campaign.
With campaign aides this time urging Hillary Clinton to make more campaign appearances rather than fundraising trips, the former president is expected to take a bigger role in helping to raise cash for her.
The morning Chicago fundraiser is hosted by billionaire J.B. Pritzker, 1871 CEO Howard Tullman, UI Labs CEO Caralynn Collens, health care technology startup CEO Steven Collens, PowerReviews CEO Matt Moog, ContextMedia founder Rishi Shah and Sittercity.com founder Genevieve Thiers, according to an invite. A noon event will be held at the home of Smita Shah, CEO of an engineering and construction management firm.
Like similar events Hillary Clinton has appeared at in Chicago, the price is $2,700 to attend, while raising $27,000 includes a VIP reception and membership in her Hillstarter program for fundraising bundlers.
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