Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips, who ran an unsuccessful presidential bid against President Biden, defended his decision to oppose party leadership in a recent interview despite criticism.
Phillips announced that he would not seek re-election in 2023 or 2024. The decision comes after a long-running primary challenge to Biden. Although the campaign was unsuccessful, the Minnesota congressman used his media efforts to highlight concerns about Biden's age.
“We have a total lack of leadership. We have no rudder,” Phillips said. Interview with Politico.
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Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips, who ran an unsuccessful presidential bid against President Biden, defended his decision to oppose party leadership. (Mel Musto/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“If what I'm feeling right now is justified, it's very unsatisfying,” Phillips said. “The day I announced my campaign, I felt vindicated, because I knew this wasn't an opinion. This was a fact. The fact is, he wasn't in a position to win. The fact is, his approval ratings were. In fact, it was historically low. My physical decline was real, and the only validation I cared about was my own, and I regret that I should have traded that validation for success. I am completely disappointed in many of my colleagues and our party.”
Phillips became a pariah within the Democratic Party for a while after launching a major primary campaign against Biden late last year. He has been claiming for months that 81 year old president The torch needed to be passed to a new generation of leaders.
Phillips told Politico that Democrats need a “comprehensive change of direction” following President-elect Donald Trump's victory over Vice President Kamala Harris.
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Phillips said Biden's “deteriorating physical strength” is real and Democrats shouldn't ignore it. (Chip Somodevilla)
“A political party with multiple silos, election committees and external groups cannot execute its mission strategically, and that means leadership,” Phillips said.
“And I'm disappointed that in my presidential campaign, I wasn't able to create a platform to really wake people up to this nightmare that we were sleepwalking into,” he said.
Fox News' Paul Steinhauser, Elizabeth Elkind and Matteo Cina contributed to this report.
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