First Lady’s Father Is Listed in Serious Condition After Stroke

Hugh Rodham, the father of First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, was listed in serious condition Saturday after suffering a stroke. Mrs. Clinton and her daughter, Chelsea, flew to Little Rock, Ark., to be at his bedside, officials said.

Rodham, 81, was taken to St. Vincent Infirmary Medical Center shortly after noon on Friday, hospital spokeswoman Carolyn Lindsey said.

Dr. Susan Santa Cruz, an internist and Rodham’s personal physician, said Saturday that he had responded well to treatment, but she would not say if he was conscious. “We’re satisfied with his progress thus far,” she said.

At the family’s request, the doctor declined to discuss Rodham’s prognosis or to indicate if surgery was anticipated. She said she could not estimate how long he would remain in the hospital.

Lindsey said Saturday that Rodham was in serious condition, which she described as one in which vital signs may be unstable and not within normal limits.

A White House spokeswoman said it had not been decided if the President would go to Arkansas.

Rodham and his wife, Dorothy, originally from Illinois, moved to Little Rock in the late 1980s. He is the retired former owner of a Chicago textile manufacturing company.