Getty Obama to skip Clinton summit The president's decision comes as his vice president is weighing whether to run against Clinton, his former secretary of state.

For the first time since he took office, President Barack Obama will skip an appearance at the Clinton Global Initiative during his annual trip to New York for the United Nations General Assembly next week.

This year’s gathering is the first during which Hillary Clinton is an active candidate for office. Former President Bill Clinton and his daughter Chelsea Clinton will be headlining the four-day, 1,000-invitee gathering of the global business and political elite.


But the event comes as Vice President Joe Biden weighs his own entry into the presidential race against Clinton, setting Obama and the White House up for months of divided loyalties in a presidential race.

At least for next week, Obama will avoid looking like he’s putting his thumb on the scale —though the White House says the only thing driving the decision was an otherwise busy schedule.

“Given Pope Francis’s trip, the State Visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping, and the convening of the United Nations General Assembly this week, an appearance at the Clinton Global Initiative was just not something we could fold into the president's schedule this year,” said White House spokesman Eric Schultz. “As the president has said in his previous appearances at CGI, he deeply values the critical work done by the Foundation around the world."

Secretary of State John Kerry and Biden are also expected to be in New York for parts of next week, but neither will be attending, either. The highest ranking member of the administration scheduled to attend is Megan Smith, the chief technology officer.

Last year at CGI, Obama took time out of his speech to heap praise on Clinton, then on the verge of making a decision about getting into the 2016 race.

“I think one of the best decisions I ever made as president was to ask Hillary Clinton to serve as our nation’s Secretary of State,” Obama said, speaking to the audience at the Sheraton in Midtown Manhattan last year, and joking, “she has the post-administration glow right now. She looks much more rested.”

