Updated 00.55 | Published 00.50
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Opponents in his own party call it “a midlife crisis” and some form of narcissism.
As the first top Democrat, liquor baron Dean Phillips, 54, is now challenging President Biden in the 2024 election.
– I can’t sit still when we are heading towards an emergency, he says.
The announcement came at the very last second to secure a spot on the ballot in the New Hampshire Democratic primary.
Congressman Dean Phillips, who is serving his third term in the House of Representatives, thus becomes the first top Democrat to challenge Joe Biden for the White House in 2024.
Need new generation
Despite the fact that anonymous voices from within the Democrats have long feared that Biden’s age and cognitive abilities could cost the party the presidency, no one has chosen to run against the 80-year-old.
Phillips is clear that he thinks Biden, whom he says he admires, is too old for another four years in the White House.
– It is time for a new generation of American leaders, he says.
The congressman believes that a presidential election between Joe Biden and Donald Trump could mean a nightmare for the Democrats.
– I cannot sit still and be silent when the numbers clearly show that we are heading for an emergency in November next year, says Phillips according to The New York Times.
Not many happy
The top Democrat, multi-millionaire and heir to a liquor company, believes that the fight to prevent Donald Trump from becoming president once again is the most important thing for the Democrats.
And that’s why he’s running.
However, Phillips is not met with cheers and happy embraces from his own party – where everything was invested in standing behind the president.
The 54-year-old is suspected of suffering through a midlife crisis and is portrayed as a narcissist, writes Politico.
– I have a difficult situation. But this country is built on long shots, says Phillips.
In the middle lane
Politically, Dean Phillips is in the center of the party and he thinks that the Democrats often deliberately fail to see both sides of the big issues that divide the United States.
– Two things not only cannot be true at the same time, they are often true at the same time, says Phillips according to The New York Times.
– We need security at the border and we need immigration reform. It is humane and it is an economic issue.
He also lists gun violence, abortions and drug policy as issues where a middle ground must be found.
“In cognitive decline”
And just as certain that Phillips’ candidacy will fail – just as certain is that Biden’s age will continue to be a factor in the election.
Republican Speaker-elect Mike Johnson met the president for the first time on Thursday.
A few hours later, he was interviewed on Fox News and was asked if he “saw cognitive decline in Biden and if in such cases it was a danger to the country”.
– Yes, I do, I think most of us do, Johnson replied according to the New York Post.