Joe Biden's primary challenger unmasked as Rep. Dean Phillips announces run
Democrat Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota has launched his presidential campaign against President Joe Biden.
Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota formally launched his presidential campaign on Friday against President Joe Biden.
Phillips called for a Democratic primary challenge to Biden for months but drew no public interest from governors or lawmakers.
The 54-year-old congressman finally entered the race himself on Friday in an announcement outside New Hampshire’s statehouse, saying: “It is time for the torch to be passed to a new generation of American leaders.”
While Phillips is highly unlikely to beat Biden, his run offers a symbolic challenge to national Democrats claiming there is no reason to doubt the president’s electability - even as Americans question whether 80-year-old Biden should serve another term.
Phillips said in his speech that he would try to fix the economy and warned about high prices and “the chaos at our border” - all issues that are potential vulnerabilities for Biden as he heads into a likely rematch with Donald Trump.
READ MORE: Joe Biden suffers hammer blow as new polls shows Democratic approval collapse
Biden has long cast himself as uniquely qualified to beat Trump again after his 2020 win, with top Democrats lining up behind him while also positioning themselves for a future primary run.
Biden’s re-election campaign issued a statement Friday saying it was “hard at work mobilizing the winning coalition that President Biden can uniquely bring together” to beat Trump.
Although Biden will not officially run in New Hampshire’s primary and will rely on a write-in campaign, the president is planning to head to Minnesota next week for an event and fundraiser.
Phillips has already missed the deadline to enter Nevada’s primary and is little known nationally.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said: “You know, I have to say this about Minnesota: it’s a great state, full of great people. And sometimes they do crazy things."
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Walz added: “And sometimes…they make political side shows for themselves.”
But New Hampshire primary challenges have a history of wounding incumbent presidents.
In 1968, Dem. Sen. Eugene McCarthy built his campaign opposing the Vietnam War and finished second in New Hampshire’s primary, helping to push President Lyndon Johnson into forgoing a second term.
New Hampshire’s influence on Democrats also was curtailed this year by changes engineered by the Democratic National Committee.
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