President Obama has arrived in the Bay Area.
Air Force One touched down at San Francisco International Airport at about 3:12 p.m.
Obama is in the area to headline two Democratic fundraisers this evening.
He is traveling to a 5:40 p.m. event for San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris at a private residence in Atherton and will then appear at a 7 p.m. dinner for the Democratic National Committee at a home in Palo Alto.
The president, wearing a black suit with a white shirt and blue tie, smiled and waved as he made his way down the stairs from Air Force One.
Sen. Barbara Boxer, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom and Harris were among the dignitaries waiting to greet him on the runway.
He shook their hands then got into a black SUV and left the airport.
Harris said she is honored that Obama is lending his support to her campaign, and that it is important because “however goes California, so goes the nation.”
Obama last visited the Bay Area in May, when he came for two fundraising events in San Francisco and to tour a solar panel manufacturing facility in Fremont.
To accommodate the president’s visit, police are shutting down a portion of Bayshore Highway adjacent to the airport in Millbrae and Burlingame.
Bayshore Highway was closed to traffic between Cowan Road and East Millbrae Avenue at 2 p.m., Millbrae police said. The closure will remain in effect until 10 a.m. Friday.
Traffic congestion is expected in that area, and motorists are advised to use alternate routes.
Dan McMenamin, Bay City News
