Travel Pool Reports of February 16, 2021

Travel Pool 1 - JBA arrival and wheels up to Milwaukee

Good evening from JBA!

President Biden arrived at Joint Base Andrews on Marine One at 5:49 p.m. Biden, wearing a black overcoat, waved to the pool but did not gaggle.

He saluted at the top of the stairs before boarding Air Force one at 5:51 pm.

We will be wheels up for Milwaukee momentarily, where it is apparently a balmy 18 degrees Fahrenheit. Biden will be participating in a CNN town hall at 8 PM CST/9 PM EST from the Pabst Theater. Anderson Cooper is moderating. We should be in Wisconsin in less than two hours.

Fun fact: The last live headliner at Pabst was evidently Dave Chapelle last March before the country-wide shut down.

Passing along remarks from a senior admin official in response to questions on the plane on when the president will make his next forward looking address:

"We don't anticipate the president laying out the next components of his forward looking agenda until the American Rescue Plan passes"

No wifi access for press on the plane. See you on the other side.

Travel Pool 2 - MKE Arrival

AF1 landed at Milwaukee's Mitchell Airport at 6:31 p.m. CST. It is 16 degrees and the tarmac is coated in a layer of snow and ice. Biden exited the plane at 6:44 pm and chatted briefly with National guard official Colonel Adria Zuccaro, Commander of the 128th Air Refueling Wing, before boarding a black SUV. Motorcade is rolling to the Pabst Center — should be a very quick ride. Ten minutes.

Travel pool 3 - Pabst Center arrival

Motorcade arrived at the CNN town hall venue at 7:17 pm. A small group of Black Lives Matters protestors gathered outside the perimeter of the venue. A short hold up at the airport because Biden spoke briefly to the following:

Greeting the President:

• Representative Gwen Moore (D-WI-4)
• Tom Barrett, Mayor of Milwaukee (D)
• Kris Barrett, Spouse of Mayor Tom Barrett
• David Crowley, Milwaukee County Executive (D)
• Ericka Crowley, Spouse of County Executive Crowley

Pool was ushered through the venue at 7:20 pm. Your pooler briefly ducked her head into the main theater room - which is exceptionally striking. Your pooler encourages others to search images of the space - plush rows of red velvet theater seats topped by an expansive mezzanine.

It gives your pooler a small taste of the before time, where one could go into a theater and experience some live art, where one could gripe about their row mate texting or chewing too loud, when the world felt a little more normal.

Your pool is holding in a filing center in a hotel called the Saint Kate - it's in the same complex. The room is called The Arc Theater and it sits next to a mini art installation.

We will be here until Biden leaves the venue. See you back on the ice.

Travel pool 4 - Pool spray during commercial break

Your pooler stands corrected. The entire pool was ushered into the theater around 8:25 pm local time. We're loitering at the back and waiting to approach the stage during a commercial break. Stills are expected to be given two minutes to take photos of Biden and Cooper on stage.

Your pooler will let you know when we are back in our hold.

Travel pool 5 - back in our hold

Your pool safely returned to our art-adjacent hold room around 8:39 p.m. local time.

Travel pool 6 - en route to airport

Pool was ushered out of the theater area at 10:10 PM local time. Motorcade began heading back to the Milwaukee airport at 10:20 pm. Drive time ten minutes.

Travel pool 6a - time zone correction

Your pooler mistakenly used the ten o clock hour (EST) and not the 9 o clock hour like it is here locally. One of her phones did not adjust when the plane landed, and she is woefully under caffeinated. She regrets this error --

Travel pool 7 - departure / heading back home to DC

Motorcade arrived on the icy tarmac at 9:33 pm local time.

The President was joined by Governor Evers upon departure from Pabst Theater en route Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport

Pool did not see Biden board. We will be wheels up to DC momentarily. See you in under two hours.

CNN and MSNBC on the plane TVs BTW

Note the time zone change upon return.

Report 7a - GOV on plane

A small FYI here: Biden escorted the gov onto the plane for a brief chat. He also just escorted him off the plane. Unclear what they talked about but figured I should pass it along.

Also our snack bag has a donut from a local bakery, per flight crew. That's nice.

Travel pool 8 - JBA arrival

Greetings from DC once more. AF1 touched down at JBA at 12:13 am EST. Biden deplaned at 12:23 a.m. He waved to the pool.

Some notes from the flight - the donut on board is a Pacski, given to us for Fat Tuesday.

On BG from a White House official: The White House picked Wisconsin for the town hall location and CNN selected both the venue and the audience members.

Biden boarded Marine 1 en route to the White Hose at 12:25 a.m.

Over to you in town pool. Goodnight all.

Travel pool 8a - greeter info

You're not rid of me just yet. The WH passes on some traveler info:

Greeter at JBA:
Colonel Stephen Snelson, Commander, 89th Airlift Wing,Joint Base Andrews

Traveling with POTUS in M1:
Bruce Reed
Yohannes Abraham
Stephen Goepfert

Goodnight from the travel pool. For real this time.