Minnesota Congressman Dean Phillips, whose mom writes the famous Dear Abby column, enters presidency race.
A late contender in the race for the White House has put another name on the Democratic ticket for voters to choose from, with Congressman Dean Phillips (D-Minn.) filing paperwork on Thursday night to participate in the 2024 primaries for U.S. president.
With an official announcement expected on Friday, the 54-year-old is now the only Jewish American running for the presidency. He is also expected to file paperwork for the New Hampshire primary.
Mr. Phillips was among the first Democrats to condemn the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks on Israeli civilians and has taken to task fellow Democrats over anti-semitic comments. In 2019, he demanded an apology from fellow Minnesota Democrat Rep. Ilhan Omar after she denounced Americans who were allegiant to Israel.
He is also uniquely the grandson of the fabled Dear Abby columnist Abigail Van Buren, aka Pauline Phillips, now written by his mother, Jeanne Phillips.
Also, the former CEO of a popular ice cream brand, Mr. Phillips, has challenged President Joe Biden and has recently questioned the president’s mental capability to lead the Democratic Party and the country.
The filing confirms nearly a month’s worth of speculation that Mr. Phillips was eyeballing a bid for the Presidency.
In late September, he resigned from his leadership position as co-chair of the House Democratic Policy and Communications Committee in protest of President Biden’s decision to seek re-election.
The three-term Democrat had earlier in August told CNN that there are “ample well-prepared, competent people of great character” available to challenge Biden for the party nomination.
His entry into the race comes only days after President Biden confirmed speculation that he would not be filing paperwork to appear on New Hampshire’s 2024 primary ballot.
President Biden’s campaign released a letter stating that while “he would like to appear” on the New Hampshire ballot, he “is obligated” to comply with the new primary calendar set by the Democratic National Convention (DNC).
