“I’m going to make this as simple as I can: You either keep Gavin Newsom or you’ll get Donald Trump. It’s not a joke,” Biden told a crowd of nearly 1,000 elected Democratic state officials and supporters gathered at Long Beach City College.

“Well, this year … the leading Republican running for governor is the closest thing to Trump I’ve ever seen,” the president added moments later. “I really mean he is a clone. … Can you imagine him being governor of the state? You can’t let that happen. There’s too much at stake.”

Even as Biden described Elder as someone far too right-wing to represent the solidly blue state, he still seemed deeply worried about the possibility of that outcome. “The eyes of the nation — it’s not hyperbole — are on California because the decision you’re about to make,” he warned. “It’s gonna have a huge impact on California that’s gonna reverberate around the nation, and quite frankly … the world.”