I keep insisting that there are plenty of Democrats who are good and decent people who merely see the world differently from the way we do.
Admittedly, I don't focus my writing on them, because I believe that the current leadership of the Democratic Party, their elites, and the people who provide the energy and money to keep the party competitive are really bad people who hate our civilization and/or just want to skim the cream off the top before it collapses (or curdles, as the metaphor suggests).
But every once in a while, I think it is incumbent upon me and others to give the nod to Democrats who don't fit the mold. Democrats like Dean Phillips, the now-former Representative from Minnesota's 3rd Congressional District, and briefly a candidate for president.
I should say up front that Phillips unseated a friend of mine from Congress--Erik Pausen--so it is needless to say I was not happy he won his seat in Congress. Erik was a good guy and a rare principled conservative, so it was sad to see him unceremoniously booted.
But Phillips, while liberal, was hardly the most partisan Democrat in Congress. He didn't need the job--he has family money--and seemed genuinely interested in doing the right thing within the bounds of party loyalty.
Even though he climbed his way up the ladder in Congress, he was not exactly well-known. In fact, when he finally tossed his hat into the ring to challenge Joe Biden for the presidency, he was most commonly referred to as "obscure," which is pretty fair.
I bring this all up because my wife sent me an interview of Phillips that appeared in Twin Cities Business magazine, and Phillips was quite candid about why he ran, why he resigned from Congress, and why he resigned from leadership before that. That he is appearing in TCB Magazine is another indication of how far outside the mainstream of the Democrats he remains--it may be somewhat prestigious here in Minnesota, but it is hardly The New York Times doing a profile on a man who stood up to his colleagues to save the country as he best saw fit.
Dean Phillips was a rather obscure DFL congressman from the west ’burbs before he decided to take on Joe Biden. A scion of two different distilling families, Ed. Phillips & Sons and Johnson Bros., independent-minded politics was nonetheless a constant. (His great-grandfather Jay was Minnesota chairman of Democrats and Independents for Nixon in 1972.) Phillips Distilling brought Belvedere Vodka to the U.S. and established it as the first “super premium” vodka before selling it to luxury conglomerate LVMH. Phillips left distilling to enter the gelato business in 2011, helping to build the first premium national gelato brand, Talenti, which was sold to Unilever in 2015. In 2018 Phillips challenged incumbent Republican Erik Paulson for the 3rd District congressional seat, which had been in GOP hands for 60 years. He ran with the sole purpose of opposing President Donald Trump, but once in office he pivoted to three terms, characterized by bipartisanship and problem-solving, becoming a national spokesperson for a more functional Congress.
In 2024, Phillips became concerned that incumbent President Joe Biden’s cognitive decline had become so severe that he could not defeat Donald Trump. Rebuffed by party elders, he began to speak out, eventually challenging Biden for the nomination. He generated national attention, and the party turned on Phillips, who did not seek reelection. He has since become a spokesperson for governance reform in America and is actively pursuing ideas for challenging America’s two-party hegemony and what he labels its corrupt, corrosive influence on a functioning national government.
He had a point, don't you think, about Biden? And, of course, about how corrupt the current political environment is. He and I may not agree on policies, but I have to admit that his diagnosis of our current political climate is spot on.
TCB: What got you in leadership, given that you were an outlier?
DP: I campaigned for my position. When I did my presentation in front of the caucus, I did a show. I had a bottle of Belvedere and a Talenti gelato and talked about how the only reason these brands dominate is because of packaging and messaging, and [Democrats] have to start looking at brand building as well. People bought into it, but I barely won.
And then I made the decision to throw it away. I remember the first night sitting on the House floor, looking at this room with all my new colleagues, and literally thinking, “How did I get here?” It was awe-inspiring. But I came to realize that my esteem for those leading this country was more significant than they deserved.
TCB: How long were you ruminating on that?
DP: I loved [Joe Biden]. I want to give this backstory because it’s important. I have a couple of photos of him in my house in Minneapolis with my daughters, Daniela and Pia. He spent 30 minutes with them on the couch, answering every question on note cards from their class at Blake.
But that man who was at my house 10 years ago compared to the man who I flew in Air Force One with and saw in front of our caucus … it was an astounding decline. Not senile and not Alzheimer’s and not unable to prosecute his job, but in rapid decline.
And we all were talking about it in Congress. That’s what really flipped things, when I saw the people at the leadership table say, “We know, but we have to keep quiet.” I was just astounded by a party that had so impugned our friends across the aisle for their support of Trump doing the exact same thing on our side, lying to Americans, but most importantly, facilitating the return of [Trump].
I resigned [from leadership] because it was incompatible for me to sit at that table. But if there’s a notion that somehow I saw the writing on the wall or my career was coming to an end anyway, no, I had every intention to run again. I wanted to be in a position to effect some change.
Think about Phillips here and contrast him with so many of the NeverTrump "Republicans" who jumped from the party out of disgust with Trump--supposedly, at least--who immediately turned around to become grifters making a living off of their willingness to attack fellow Republicans.
Question: Is there room for you and Mamdani in the Democratic Party?
— Acyn (@Acyn) July 10, 2025
Phillips: The answer, ultimately, I think, is no
When you have socialists in the Democratic Party, I don't know how anybody could argue that that would be beneficial for the party or for the country pic.twitter.com/o6gWvfIUzY
Sure, some Republicans left the party and sacrificed their positions and power out of principle, but then again...the Lincoln Project and so many others.
Phillips gave up his position and career--not his income, of course, but his passion for politics--to force his colleagues to stand up and do the right thing. They turned their back on him, even though, if they had followed his lead, they might have saved their party. He sacrificed his seat in Congress; his colleagues sacrificed others to their own ambition.
TCB: Did you anticipate being blackballed within the party?
DP: Yeah, I did. I did not expect it from some of the Minnesota electeds who had been my friends, whom my family and I had supported for a long time. I will confess that surprised me.
But I was absolutely prepared for the consequences. Those consequences are well known, and the parties want them well known to prevent the sheep from getting out of the flock.
TCB: Because this whole idea of the party just being resigned to Biden’s candidacy and [an electoral] loss seems bizarre given how apocalyptically people spoke of another Trump presidency.
DP: You hit the nail on the head. Yet all the data that we looked at said [Biden] would lose.
TCB: Why the resignation to a losing cause?
DP: Self-interest is always the determining factor, unfortunately, in politics. And it’s a very rare person who’s willing to be courageous, because by definition that is self-sacrifice, and humans are not designed to do a lot of self-sacrifice.
TCB: When you talk about fear of losing a seat in Congress, I always wonder what is so enticing about a job where you must fundraise constantly and run for office every two years that makes people so unwilling to stand up for the national interest?
DP: People assign their identity to their profession, and politics is intoxicating. For many, it’s the first time they’ve been listened to. Many, maybe half, are earning more than they ever would in the private sector. It’s why they will compromise their own principles to return to a position that has some prominence but is as unsatisfying, I think, as any job in the United States of America.
TCB: Yet you were framed as the most self-interested person by the media and your colleagues.
DP: Yeah. And let the record show I invested almost $7 million into this thing; [it] took a massive toll on my life and relationships, my existence. It was laborious. And I’m not writing a book. I’m not making $100,000 speeches. I didn’t set up a PAC to take donations. There was not one element of benefit. Not one.
Now I don't want to get on my high horse and crow about how Republicans are much more willing to sacrifice their own political interests for the good of the country, because, frankly, it is hardly more common among Republicans than Democrats. I think that, on balance, Republicans are much more right than wrong on policy, but frankly, I think most politicians are sociopaths in it for themselves. Phillips is right about how intoxicating power can be, which is the only thing that explains why there are octogenarians in Congress.
Dean Philips:
— COINARA CRYPTO (@Coinara_Crypto) February 13, 2025
"I watched that hearing today. I was really embarrassed for my Democratic colleagues… this is not playing well around the country… They want Elon Musk to do this. Most Americans—" pic.twitter.com/kbYzx88lvP
What currently distinguishes Republicans from Democrats when it comes to their willingness to sacrifice the country to their ambitions is more the width of the Overton Window within the parties; Democrats are temperamentally more inclined to "change" and "revolutionary" politics, while Republicans are less likely to embrace truly extreme positions and methods to achieve them.
This Is Pathetic: Dems Apologizing to Dean Philips https://t.co/jMaHCMlLQf
— David Strom (@DavidStrom) July 12, 2024
The leftist ideology naturally leads to a wide Overton Window that accepts graft on the one side and violence on the other; that is a function of the cultural differences more than personality, I think. Although...fewer Republicans begin their careers in politics, with most having work experience outside the rough and tumble of the fight for power and power alone, it could be that their experiences lead them to a more balanced set of priorities.
I'll have to think about that, and perhaps I will be more inclined to be charitable towards Republicans' personal ethics.
In any case, too few politicians put principles above their own personal power. Some do, and they are often excommunicated for their virtues and not their vices.
Dean Phillips will likely wind up as a footnote, at best, in history. But I think he deserves a pat on the back for his willingness to give up power in a vain attempt to do the right thing.
Editor’s Note: The Schumer Shutdown is here. Rather than put the American people first, Chuck Schumer and the radical Democrats forced a government shutdown for healthcare for illegals. They own this.
Help us continue to report the truth about the Schumer Shutdown. Use promo code POTUS47 to get 74% off your VIP membership.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member