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Bill Clinton emerges on Chelsea's NY wedding eve

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By JIM FITZGERALD and MICHAEL HILL
Associated Press Writers

RHINEBECK, N.Y. (AP) - Former President Bill Clinton made a long-anticipated appearance in the upstate New York village where his daughter is getting married tomorrow, drawing crowds of onlookers Friday afternoon as preparations continued largely out of sight for the grand and secretive occasion.

The former president, looking relaxed in blue jeans and a black knit shirt, walked with security a few blocks north from the picturesque village's main intersection to Gigi Trattoria, whose chef is reported to be catering tonight's rehearsal dinner.

To questions blurted from the huge crowd he attracted, Clinton rattled off easy answers.

How are you?

"We're all fine."

"We love it here," he said. "Chelsea loves the area as well."

How's she doing?

"She's doing well."

Chelsea Clinton is expected to marry her longtime boyfriend, investment banker Marc Mezvinsky, at a Saturday evening ceremony attended by 400 to 500 people at the grand Astor Courts, an estate on the scenic east bank of the Hudson River. Rumors had abounded for weeks leading up to Friday, including one that Rhinebeck was an elaborate decoy planned by the media-shy Chelsea, and that the wedding would be elsewhere.

The appearance of the former president put all the conspiracy talks to rest.

And what does he think of his soon-to-be son-in-law?

"I like him very much," the popular Democrat said, picking up more people with each passing step. "I really do. I admire him. Hillary feels the same way."

That would be Hillary Rodham Clinton, Chelsea's mother, a former first lady and U.S. senator from New York, and the sitting secretary of state in President Barack Obama's Cabinet.

Some in the crowd were captivated by the sight of an ex-president. For the record, Dutchess County, which contains Rhinebeck, voted for Clinton and Al Gore in 1996.

"We thought it was great that he walked down here," said Carol Chestney, of Rhinebeck. "He could have parked right outside. He looks great."

Marybeth Cale, also of Rhinebeck, said: "It's amazing, all this excitement. We're thrilled that he's here."

There are still mysteries, though.

The VIP guest list is said to include such A-listers as Oprah Winfrey, Steven Spielberg and some of the Clintons' powerful political allies, and the village was filling up with the curious hoping to catch a glimpse of an honored guest.

State troopers directed the growing number of cars driving through the village and were posted outside the private estate just south of town that is reportedly the site of the rehearsal dinner Friday night. SUVs with dark glass silently guarded long driveways to secluded estates along the winding rural roads outside the village.

Chelsea and Mezvinsky were friends as teenagers in Washington, and both attended Stanford University. They now live in New York, where Mezvinsky works at G3 Capital, a Manhattan hedge fund, and Clinton is pursuing a graduate degree at Columbia University's School of Public Health. Mezvinsky worked previously at Goldman Sachs as an investment banker.

Mezvinsky is a son of former U.S. Reps. Marjorie Margolies-Mezvinsky of Pennsylvania and Ed Mezvinsky of Iowa, longtime friends of the Clintons. His parents are divorced.

Ed Mezvinsky was released from federal prison last year after serving a nearly five-year sentence for wire and bank fraud. Margolies-Mezvinsky served just one term in Congress before losing her seat in 1994 after voting in favor of President Clinton's 1993 budget, which was controversial at the time.

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