Phillips, 54, is reportedly set to meet with Democratic donors this week to discuss the viability of his entry into the race. Photo: Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call
The centrist Democratic Congressman says he's considering challenging Joe Biden for the party's White House nomination after repeatedly claiming the president is too old for a second term.
Dean Phillips, who is in his third term representing suburban Minneapolis, said he was overwhelmed by “outreach and support” when deciding whether to throw his hat into the ring.
D – Mr. Phillips first openly addressed Mr. Biden, who will be 82 in the next election, rather than run for a second term a year ago.
“I think Joe Biden did an excellent job of serving our country with principles and integrity at a time when we most certainly needed it,” he said. in a radio interview.
“But I'm part of a caucus here in Congress where the top three leaders are over 80 and the president will be in his 80s next election. And I think it's time for a generational change. I am not ashamed to say that I believe that most of my colleagues feel the same way.”
He added: “I think the country would do well to have a new generation of compelling, well-prepared, dynamic Democrats to step up.”
Phillips, 54, is reported to be meeting with donors this week. Democrats to discuss the possibility of his participation in the race. > Mr. Phillips for the first time openly called on Mr. Biden, who will turn 82 in the next election, not to run for a second term a year ago
In recent months, age has become a key political issue in the US.
Nikki Haley, the Republican presidential candidate, openly called on politicians over 75 to take the competency test. Donald Trump will be 78 in the next election.
Senate Democrats, including Mr. Phillips, have called for Dianne Feinstein, 89, to step down, and concerns about the 81-year-old woman are growing. Republican leader Mitch McConnell, who had to be escorted away by his colleagues after he froze to death on the podium last week.
With a net worth estimated at more than $24m (£18.7m), Mr Phillips is one of the richest members of Congress, having a successful career in the family distillery before founding top-selling ice cream company Talenti Gelato, which was sold to Unilever.
He now owns Penny's Coffee, which has a chain of outlets in Minnesota.
Politically, Mr. Phillips is a hardline moderate who comfortably holds his suburban neighborhood.< /p>The campaign style is best described as folksy and creative.
His own campaign style, which helped flip the formerly Republican district in 2018 , best described as folksy and creative.
He could be found mixing drinks at an ax-throwing bar or driving a converted ice cream van.
To defeat Republican challenger Eric Paulsen in 2018, Phillips called him completely out of the field, creating a documentary-style ad featuring a man in a Bigfoot suit.
“I thought I could hide,” muses big Foot. “Then comes Eric Paulsen.”
Mr. Phillips, whose mother was Prince's cloth maker and grandmother a famous, agonizing aunt, is a member of the powerful bipartisan caucus of the Problem Solvers, a group of Republican and Democratic congressmen who are “working across the aisle” to mitigate political divisions and harmonize legislation such as the Covid relief plan.
“The Problem Solvers Group thrives because it recognizes that bipartisanship does not come from Congress, but from the American people,” he said. .
Early in his congressional career, Mr. Phillips, an ethnic Jew, was embroiled in an angry skirmish with fellow Minnesota Democrat Ilhan Omar after he demanded an apology from her for saying that Israel's American supporters were “committed to a foreign country.”
Polls show voters are unimpressed with Biden and Donald Trump.
It's been a tough week for the president, who has become embroiled in controversy over his son Hunter's business dealings as a plea deal. fell apart.
Mr. Biden also, after four years of silence, publicly acknowledged the existence of his seventh grandson, who was born to Hunter while he was battling drug addiction.
And on top of Biden's grief, it came to light that his dog Commander — supposedly a docile replacement for the exiled major — has bitten or attacked Secret Service agents 10 times in four months.
Trump's legal troubles are piling up every year. more indictments are pending, and, not least, Larry Hogan, a moderate and popular Republican former governor of Maryland, has refused to rule out running as a no-label candidate if the former president seeks re-election.
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