SAN JOSE (KRON) — President Barack Obama is in the Bay Area this Thursday and Friday to attend and participate in various events.
President Obama landed at Moffett Field in Mountain View Thursday evening for his third trip this year to the Bay Area for a roughly 20-hour trip that includes a conference alongside tech industry leaders.
Air Force One landed at 5:06 p.m., and Obama came in from Joint Base Andrews in Maryland just outside Washington, D.C.
Obama was dressed in a dark-colored suit and blue and gray striped tie as he stepped out of the plane at 5:19 p.m. with Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Palo Alto, to windy and sunny conditions.
They were greeted by San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo, Santa Clara Board of Supervisors president Dave Cortese, Mountain View Mayor Pat Showalter and Sunnyvale Mayor Glenn Hendricks.
Obama shook hands with a crowd of more than 50 people waiting for him from behind a gate for about five minutes before he boarded a Marine One helicopter that departed shortly after 5:30 p.m. for Crissy Field.
For a brief time on the tarmac, Liccardo thanked the president for his leadership with San Jose in the gang prevention program My Brother’s Keeper, which is focused on providing education and opportunities to young people.
“This has been a great president who really understands big cities and has been a great partner with mayors throughout the country,” Liccardo said.
Cortese wished he had a brief conversation with Obama on the Supreme Court’s divided vote that blocked the president’s plan on immigration that would’ve stopped millions of undocumented immigrants from deportation.
The county has been one of the most progressive in the nation on immigration, according to the supervisor.
“It’s a big disappointment for him and for us,” Cortese said.The supervisor didn’t have a chance to discuss policy with Obama, but the president did accept an invitation to play golf in his district.
Obama also said Moffett Field was one of his favorite places and would return after he leaves the White House, according to Cortese.
Damon Preston was with his wife, Chanel, and sons Jaden, 9, and Ashton, 6, who were all dressed in black suits.
The family drove an hour and a half from Pittsburg to see the President for the first time.
Damon Preston said it was “truly an honor” to meet the President, who called his sons “nice-looking young men.”
Ashton said he was honored and excited to see Obama.Ricardo Nappier, 26, a senior airman with the California Air National Guard, said it was amazing to see Obama, who thanked him for his service.
Nappier, originally from Sacramento, has served with the Air National Guard for three years and is based at Moffett Field. He was with his supervisor and seven other co-workers to see the president.
It was amazing to see Obama for the first and probably last time, Nappier said.
This is the President’s third visit to the Bay Area in 2016. His past two visits in February and April consisted of attending Democratic fundraisers.
President Obama touched down in Moutain View Thursday evening and will be staying in San Jose overnight. He will be in the Bay Area for approximately 20 hours this trip.
While President Obama is in the Bay Area he will be participating and speaking at the Global Entrepreneurship Summit, the seventh installment of the Summit and final of his presidency, which will showcase America’s diverse entrepreneurial spirit and feature entrepreneurs from across the globe. The event is hosted at Stanford University’s Memorial Auditorium.
President Obama will meet with Facebook Founder and CEO, Mark Zuckerberg and participate in a panel that will air live, on Facebook live. He will also take part in a Google Portal virtual conversation with entrepreneurs.
Additional speakers at the event are Google CEO Sundar Pichai and AOL co-founder Steve Case.
The President will also be fundraising for Democratic candidates.
The President will depart from Mountain View after the entrepreneurial event on Friday afternoon.
The president is scheduled to depart from Moffett Field at 1:35 p.m. Friday for Seattle, where he will speak at a reception for Gov. Jay Inslee and a Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee event.
Obama attended Democratic fundraisers during his last two visits to the Bay Area in February and April.Bay City News contributed to this report.