Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign brushed off a high-profile supporter's warnings against doing campaign events with a Silicon Valley CEO whose company has since imploded under the weight of layoffs, a federal criminal investigation, and rebukes from top regulators.
Campaign staff circulated an internal schedule of fundraising events in March that included a "Conversation with Chelsea" event at the Palo Alto offices of biotech startup Theranos that featured the company's chief executive Elizabeth Holmes.
Theranos had been the subject of bad press since the previous October, when a Wall Street Journal story cast doubt on the accuracy of its innovative blood-testing technology.
Democratic mega-donor Herb Sandler warned campaign chairman John Podesta against holding campaign events with Holmes.
"There are significant questions concerning Holmes and her company," Sandler wrote in an email. "She may come out all right, but it is certainly possible that everyone associated with her venture will be embarrassed."
Podesta forwarded the email to Clinton campaign finance chairman Dennis Cheng, who dismissed Sandler's concerns.
"We vetted her and her company and also raised it to Chelsea’s team—as of now, everyone is still comfortable with her," Cheng wrote.
The event occurred a week later, though its location was changed from the Theranos offices to Holmes' private home. She was pictured beside Chelsea Clinton she addressed attendees.
Emails revealing internal campaign discussions of the event were among thousands released by Wikileaks after hackers believed to be acting in concert with the Russian government breached Podesta's email account.
Since the Holmes fundraiser, the Securities and Exchange Commission has opened an investigation into whether the company misled investors and federal regulators about the viability of its technology.
The Justice Department is currently pursuing a separate criminal investigation into the company.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services revoked Theranos' license to operate a blood-testing lab in California in July and banned Holmes from the industry for two years.
Earlier this month, Theranos announced that it would shutter its lab operations and lay off 40 percent of its workforce.
Requests for comment to Sandler, Theranos, and the Clinton campaign were not returned by press time.