Rep. Dean Phillips is escalating his long-shot presidential primary challenge to President Joe Biden, vowing to invest as much of his multimillion-dollar fortune as it takes to win.
His defiance comes in the face of overwhelming rejection from his fellow Democrats, a reaction so fast and furious Phillips believes he’s torpedoed his own congressional career.
But instead of backing down, Phillips is opening the door to super PAC money that could air millions of dollars’ worth of negative ads in primary states that are likely pivotal in the general election, including Michigan and New Hampshire. And he’s escalating his attacks against the president’s message and political standing.
“I think in 2020, (President Biden) was probably the only Democrat who could have beaten Donald Trump. I think in 2024, he may be among the only ones that will lose to him. And that’s why I’m doing this,” Phillips told CNN in a lengthy interview Saturday.
Phillips says he’s likely tanked his future in Democratic politics by taking on Biden in what his critics say is a quixotic presidential primary challenge. But the angry reactions from his own party seem to motivate him.
Biden’s “approval numbers are historically low, rivaling only Jimmy Carter, who got slaughtered, of course, in that election,” Phillips said, referring to President Carter’s general election loss in 1980 after he faced a primary challenge from Democratic Sen. Ted Kennedy. “[Carter] had a Democratic primary challenger because he was going to get slaughtered in the election. It’s the same circumstance again. Ted Kennedy did not cause Jimmy Carter’s problems. I did not cause President Biden’s problems.”
And Phillips launched a direct attack on one of the core messages of Biden’s reelection campaign: “Bidenomics is not working. It is actually the opposite. It…
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