Bill Clinton to visit Nashville for Hillary Clinton fundraiser

Former President Bill Clinton is set swing through Nashville next Monday for a private fundraiser to benefit the campaign of his wife, Democratic presidential frontrunner Hillary Clinton.

The event is scheduled for the morning of Monday, May 16 at Adele’s restaurant in the Gulch neighborhood.

Hosts of Monday’s event, according to an invitation obtained by The Tennessean, are to raise $27,000 for Clinton’s campaign. This top donor designation allows an individual to take part in the reception with the former president and membership in Hillary Clinton’s America Finance Committee.

To be a co-host, which includes access to the reception, a donor is to raise $10,000. The invitation has a "champion" fundraising level of $2,700 per donor to receive a photo with the former president but only limited availability with him. The smallest contribution level listed in the invitation is $500.

Nashville has become a regular fundraising stop for the Clinton campaign during the ongoing Democratic presidential primary.

Nashville businessman and former mayoral candidate Bill Freeman hosted Hillary Clinton and supporters in November for a fundraising event following a campaign rally at Fisk University earlier that day. More recently, Hillary Clinton attended a March fundraiser at the home of Nashville attorney Charles Robert Bone, also a recent Nashville mayoral candidate.

The invitation does not identify the main organizers of the fundraiser.

Bill Clinton campaigned for Hillary Clinton in Memphis in February ahead of the state's March Democratic Primary, which Clinton won easily over U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, D-Vermont.

In response to Bill Clinton's Nashville visit, Tennessee Republican Party Chairman Ryan Haynes argued that Hillary Clinton has "sidelined" the former president from the campaign trail by having him appear in Nashville. He pointed to instances in which protesters heckled Bill Clinton during recent stops. That includes a confrontation over the president's crime bill of 1994.

"The news here is that President Clinton has been sidelined from the campaign trail because of his recent gaffes," Haynes said in a written statement. "The only question remaining is whether he will charter two planes to Nashville: one for him and one for all his baggage?"

Reach Joey Garrison at 615-259-8236 and on Twitter @joeygarrison.