Democrats Are Trying To Hide the Belvedere Vodka Guy: Dean Phillips
Democratic voters deserve “not a coronation, but a competition.” Those are the words of Dean Phillips, current Minnesota Congressman and a 2024 Democratic presidential candidate, who gave America Belvedere vodka and Talenti gelato.
Odds are you haven’t heard of him. That’s by design.
Mainstream media has barely covered his candidacy. One of the few comprehensive articles I could find was this piece by Politico. There’s also a good interview of him by the venture capitalists and part-time political “experts” over at the All-In Podcast.
To illustrate how unknown Dean Phillips is, look at an early campaign event in New Hampshire where not even one voter showed up. Phillips was pouring coffee only for staffers.
But I don’t blame Dean Phillips for his lack of name recognition. I blame the Democrats.
The coronation of Joe Biden
Let’s get one thing clear. I have argued time and again that Donald Trump is a clear and present danger to American democracy. I have devoted much of my writing to trying to make the legal and political cases against him and his MAGA supporters.
But that doesn’t mean Joe Biden should be an automatic lock to win the Democratic primary in 2024. How is that democratic?
Yet that’s precisely what the Democratic Party is trying to achieve. A win by coronation. Instead of inviting competition to make Biden stronger – and more representative of Democratic voices – they’re protecting him.
No press conferences.
No podcasts.
No long-form interviews.
No support whatsoever for alternative candidates.
Isn’t a democracy supposed to be about the American people deciding who wins a primary? Not a political party?
This wouldn’t be a big deal if Dean Phillips was polling in the single digits, but he’s not. In New Hampshire alone, he commands 28% of the vote to Biden’s 58%. Still a long shot, but remarkably closer than he was just weeks ago.
Juxtapose that polling data with this recent polling data about Biden’s favorability amongst Democratic voters:
- Nearly 70 percent of Democratic voters believe Biden is too old to effectively serve another term (note: Dean Phillips is 54)
- 67 percent say they’d prefer a different candidate as the party’s nominee
Democrats, the majority of your voters are not happy with the incumbent. It’s as if the Democratic National Committee (DNC) has learned nothing from their Bernie Sanders debacle in 2016.
And then when you compare Biden’s current polling to Trump’s in key battleground states, you have to wonder: are the Democrats intentionally trying to lose the 2024 election?
Dean Phillips is a hidden gem
There’s a reason the Democrats are trying to hide Dean Phillips. They’re scared. He’s articulate and presentable, and not to mention: almost thirty years younger than Biden. Most importantly though, he has a great story.
His entrepreneurial upbringing, business success, and proven ability to win the hearts and minds of Democrats and Republicans alike is a lethal combination. Republicans held the congressional seat he won in 2018 for nearly 60 years before he snatched it.
Phillips is measured and nuanced when he speaks, refusing to simplify or sensationalize issues even when it might win him political points.
These attributes are precisely why the Democratic Party does not want you to know Dean Phillips. They have given him zero support. Almost everything he’s doing is self or grassroots-funded.
The media has also afforded him practically no coverage, good or bad. That could change if he shocks the country in the New Hampshire primary, which is a complete mess for the Democrats already.
For Dean Phillips, it all comes down to New Hampshire
There might be a 2024 Democratic path for him even if he doesn’t close the gap with Biden in New Hampshire, but it’s unlikely. He needs to be neck-and-neck with Uncle Joe. And he just might be on primary day because of a colossal error by the DNC.
Joe Biden is not on the primary ballot. Seriously.
In 2023, the DNC had the brilliant idea of eliminating first-state status in New Hampshire and instead starting their primary kick-off in South Carolina.
So you know what New Hampshire did?
It proceeded with an unsanctioned Democratic primary. Biden is not on the ballot, but Dean Phillips and other candidates like Marianne Williamson are.
While a grassroots campaign for Biden will probably give him enough write-ins to win the day, it could make things very interesting for Dean Phillips who is advancing in the polls. And he just might win, not because of his candidacy, but because New Hampshire state officials are so angry with the DNC and Biden administration for taking away their “first in the nation” status.
That’s like stealing all of the maple syrup from New Hampshire.
The Democrats may be doing everything to hide Dean Phillips, but they’re also giving him a clear lane to deal a major (or at least, embarrassing) first-round blow to Biden if Phillips takes advantage of the New Hampshire opportunity.
And he’s already exploiting the opportunity well through a great website that tracks how absent Biden has been from the state of New Hampshire (636 days absent as of this writing).
Dean Phillips is not like other third-party candidates
Whenever someone counters a political party’s preferences, they usually end up dead, politically speaking. Just look at what happens to Republicans who criticize Trump (although in many of those cases, Trump dissidents actually receive death threats).
Phillips has made it clear though that he’s not seeking a third-party run. So don’t compare him to Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (who I previously wrote about…) or No Labels.
He’s not looking to sabotage Biden in a race against Trump. He’s simply looking to challenge him in the primaries.
And he has some good stuff to say. Messages that would resonate with independent moderates – the exact demographic that Biden must win if he’s to defeat Trump in a second-round match.
Bringing more fiscally conservative principles to the Democratic Party. Prioritizing the lowering of healthcare costs.
He wants to “Make America Affordable Again.”
He also wants to promote bipartisanship from day one with a bipartisan cabinet.
It’s admittedly a very long shot. Dean Phillips would need a miracle to beat Joe Biden for the Democratic ticket. But it’s not because of his lack of skill, experience, or great ideas.
It’s due to the fact the entire Democratic apparatus is working against him.
The Biden Administration is the first to call out Trump (and rightfully so) on his authoritarian and increasingly fascist statements and actions. Yet they’re pulling some of the same authoritarian levers by coronating President Biden in a primary despite most (if not all) of the polling data suggesting it’s not what a majority of Democratic voters want.
How is that Democratic?
“It’s not about a personality contest. It’s not about rewarding someone who did a nice job four years ago. It’s about moving to the future and preventing the most dangerous man in the world from returning to the White House.”
– Dean Phillips
So give the Belvedere vodka guy a fair shot. You might like how it tastes.
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