Summit Hosted by Obama Gets Underway at Sunnylands

President Barack Obama exits Air Force One at Palm Springs International Airport on Feb. 12, 2016. Patch photo by Renee Schiavone.

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RANCHO MIRAGE, CA- President Barack Obama will welcome leaders from 10 Southeast Asian countries Monday for a two-day summit with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, concluding his Coachella Valley visit that saw him golfing with old friends and reacting to the death of Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonin Scalia.

Obama will be joined by Secretary of State John Kerry at Sunnylands for the gathering, scheduled to run through Tuesday.

The summit is aimed at strengthening the new U.S.-ASEAN strategic partnership, forged last November during a presidential trip to Malaysia.

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“This unprecedented gathering -- the first hosted by the United States with the ASEAN leaders -- builds on the deeper partnership that the United States has forged with ASEAN since 2009 and will further advance the Administration’s rebalance to Asia and the Pacific,” according to a White House statement.

Air Force One landed just after 11:30 a.m. Friday at Palm Springs International Airport, after being diverted briefly to fly over mountainous terrain that the president recently designated as national monuments.

Obama spent three days golfing with Honolulu boyhood friends and frequent golf partners -- Greg Orme, Mike Ramos and Bobby Titcomb -- at the Stadium Course at PGA West in La Quinta, and Sunday back at Ellison’s private course at his 249-acre Rancho Mirage estate.

The death of Justice Scalia roiled the nation’s political waters this weekend. Other than the standard somber and polite statement from the White House, the president did not address the court, now split between red and blue 4-4.

Road closures scheduled through 4 p.m. Tuesday include:

• Kirk Douglas Way, between Ramon and El Cielo roads
• Airport Center Drive at Kirk Douglas Way

The public can access Palm Springs International Airport via the main entrance at the intersection of Tahquitz Canyon Way and El Cielo Road.

Other road closures went into effect Sunday surrounding the Sunnylands Estate and were scheduled through 3 p.m. Tuesday.

These include:

• Gerald Ford Drive at Bob Hope Drive
• Bob Hope Drive at Frank Sinatra Drive
• Frank Sinatra Drive from Morningside Drive to Bob Hope Drive