Jeb Bush is hopping aboard the Bruce Rauner bandwagon.
Weeks after New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie's pro-Rauner tour in Chicago, Bush—who governed Florida for an eight-year stretch ending in 2007—will travel here to stump for the Republican venture capitalist as part of a national GOP effort to flip Illinois from blue to red.
Bush will headline a Sept. 18 fundraiser at the Hilton Chicago alongside Rauner, who's shifting focus toward wooing Windy City voters in an increasingly successful campaign to unseat Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn.
Tickets for the lunch event range from $500-$5,000, with the most generous donors getting VIP roundtable access to the politicians as well as a photo-op.
The brother of W., Bush has stoked buzz over whether he'll stage a run for president in 2016. The self-professed policy nerd and self-styled GOP reformer, embraced as a potential candidate by many inside the party establishment, remains tight-lipped on his plans amid concerns that his sibling's legacy might hinder a play for the Oval Office.
Bush's Chicago visit will certainly keep people talking. It could also give him an opportunity to hobnob with Rauner's well-heeled, Forbes-branded billionaire campaign contributors.
