President Joe Biden touched down at San Francisco International Airport Wednesday afternoon, on the second of a three-day fundraising swing through California.
Biden was met by Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi and Mayor London Breed as he disembarked Air Force One just after 3 p.m., before boarding Marine One to leave the airport.
From there, he headed to San Francisco's Marina Green with plans to take part in two campaign events in the city. Pelosi will be co-hosting at least one of those events Wednesday.
Get a weekly recap of the latest San Francisco Bay Area housing news. Sign up for NBC Bay Area’s Housing Deconstructed newsletter.
Then, on Thursday, Biden will be at a fundraiser in Los Altos Hills, hosted by Bob Klein. Tickets for that event range from $6,600 to $100,000.
NBC Bay Area Political Analyst Larry Gerston said California is an important place to raise funds this election cycle.
“We all know California is the great ATM,” Gerston said. “And as things look, very little of that money will be used in the state. Why? Because this state is bluer than blue. … So what the Biden team will do is take upwards of $10 million — which they expect to bring in from this two day trip — and send it out to places like Arizona, Nevada, Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, maybe Georgia.
In other words, swing states where infusions of money could make all the difference. Biden’s campaign said it raised around $42 million in January, ahead of what could potentially be a costly rematch.
“They now have more than $100 million, more than twice as much as the Trump campaign has,” Gerston said. “And we can expect both sides to redouble their efforts. This is going to be a $3 billion presidential contest by the time this all is said and done.
Biden started his trip in Southern California the day prior, and spoke about why his administration is forgiving $1.2 billion in student debt for certain borrowers.
“While a college degree is still a ticket to a better life, that ticket is too expensive,” he remarked. “And too many Americans are saddled with unsustainable debt in exchange for a college degree.”
Biden is not expected to hold any events while in the Bay Area.
Bay City News contributed to this report.
