Governor Joe Biden and President Joe Biden are assessing recovery efforts in California after the storms. Gavin Newsom is a prominent Democrat whose attention-grabbing exploits have sparked speculation about his future plans.
Biden will be accompanied by Newsom, Deanne Criswell (FEMA Administrator), and other first responders. They will also meet with state and local officials and those in need after the devastating floods and landslides that ravaged the region.
Criswell stated to reporters that she was traveling with President Obama on Air Force One and said they had been in close contact during the crisis. However, Criswell did not say if she could “speak to their relationship.”
The visit will be dominated by Biden’s expected bid for reelection, as well as Newsom’s maneuvers that have pushed the governor to the top of a list of candidates should he choose not.
Two-term governor said he had “sub-zero interest in a presidential race,” and urged Biden to use him as a political tool. The governor’s maneuvers did not stop the public from being interested in his future plans.
Newsom, who won reelection by a narrow margin, traveled to the U.S. border last month after Biden had defended his decision to not visit the region. The president then followed up with his own trip, a few weeks later.
Biden was struggling with low approval ratings and high gas prices last year. The Democratic governor added Republican targets to his list, filling the void by encouraging public spats between Govs. Ron DeSantis from Florida and Greg Abbott in Texas.
Newsom also attacked national Democrats, lashing at his party in the face of revelations last year about the Supreme Court’s plans to repeal the constitutional right to abortion.
According to polling, the governor is among his top candidates for the presidency in the future.
