Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips explains why he wants to see a primary challenge to Biden

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• William Brangham:

  The crowded, but static GOP presidential primary has dominated national attention this summer.

  But, on the Democratic side, President Biden has largely avoided any serious primary challengers. The president has served in federal government for more than 40 years. And while the majority of his party is behind him, some are calling for a change.

  White House correspondent Laura Barrón-López has more.

• Laura Barrón-López:

  Dean Phillips is a third-term Democratic congressman from Minnesota, and he thinks President Biden should not seek reelection.

  Phillips wants the president to pass the torch. But, so far, none of the big names in his party want to pick it up.

  Congressman Phillips joins me now.

  Congressman, thank you so much for joining the "NewsHour."

  President Biden is the oldest sitting president in history. But you have said this isn't about age. So what is this about?

• Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN):

  Well, and let me start by complimenting him.

  I think President Biden is a remarkable man, a man who saved our country, certainly the best man for the job in the last four years, a man I honor, a man of integrity and competency and decency. And that's not the issue.

  Laura, I come from the private sector. I use data to drive decisions. I use, listening to inform my decisions. And then I use instinct to help make those decisions. So, as I look at the data, as I listen, I believe I'm simply giving voice to what an overwhelming majority of the country feels right now.

  It's not about the past, his policies, extraordinary, by the way. I voted for every one of them, and I help market them. I believe in him. But I also believe in what I read, what I see and what I'm feeling, and my job is to represent. And I believe that Democrats should have a thoughtful conversation now, before the primaries really begin.

  We already have a competitive primary, Robert F. Kennedy and Marianne Williamson in the race already. We already have Cornel West running as a third-party candidate. I simply want to see Cornel West enter the primary. If Joe Manchin wants to run, enter the primary. I believe Democrats do better when we have choices, freedom to choose.

  And the data right now is making me very concerned. And, Laura, I will just wrap with this. I woke up the morning after the 2016 election. I was living a wonderful life. My daughters, 16 and 18 at that time, woke up the next morning and were in tears. I saw fear in their eyes for the first time. I promised them I would do something. And I ran for Congress.

• Laura Barrón-López:

  Congressman — Congressman…

• Rep. Dean Phillips:

  Five years later, I'm not going to sit still and be quiet while we have that risk of him coming back. And I want to make sure that we are best prepared with the best candidates to take on Donald Trump.

• Laura Barrón-López:

  Congressman, on that note, though, your fellow Democrats have argued that your efforts to seek out a primary challenger for — against President Biden could actually weaken his reelection bid and could very well put the former President Trump back in the White House.

  So what do you say to their concerns about that?

• Rep. Dean Phillips:

  I think that's just patently untrue.

  And I — first of all, my call is for the president to pass the torch. I think that would be in the country's best interests, and certainly Democrats. We have an extraordinary bench of Democrats ready to go, prepared, proximate, well-positioned, but we will never know that.

  And I don't want to wait five years. Many people are telling me that. And the data is also. And I understand. We are people of different perspectives, sometimes different motives. And mine is very pure in this. This is not about me. It's not about running for president.

• Laura Barrón-López:

  And I know…

• Rep. Dean Phillips:

  It is about me trying to elevate a conversation that right now is surprising that nobody wants to have. And I do not want to repeat of 2016, when we essentially anointed someone, it was her turn.

  And, lo and behold, look what happened. I think we're sleepwalking into the very same mistake again. And the time to have the conversation, Laura, is right now.

• Laura Barrón-López:

  Congressman, some of your own Minnesota Democrats, like your own Governor Tim Walz, has said that you should stay in your own lane.

  Ken Martin, the chair of your state's Democratic Party, has called this effort disappointing and that you're repeating baseless Republican talking points. Have you talked to voters in your state, but also battleground states, about this push?

• Rep. Dean Phillips:

  Yes. And I'm so glad you bring that up.

  Let's talk about battleground states. I don't care about the national data. Joe Biden won by seven million votes nationally last time, and I — he will probably — he would do so again. I'm worried about the five or six swing states, the battlegrounds that are the most consequential.

  That's why I have called for some of the moderate governors, people representing those very states that have great organization, great influence and great capability, to consider entering as alternatives, because they can perform well.

  Yes, voters, to answer your question very directly, people all around the country are reaching out to me. And let me assure you, if they're reaching out to me, they're reaching out to every single one of my colleagues asking for the same thing. They want choices.

• Laura Barrón-López:

  Those…

• Rep. Dean Phillips:

  The data is really clear. And it's not very promising. And I'm simply trying to do that now.

  (Crosstalk)

• Laura Barrón-López:

  Right.

  Congressman, those moderate governors, though, that you have mentioned, whether it's Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, even Tim Walz of Minnesota have said that they aren't interested in running against the former president and they support him.

• Rep. Dean Phillips:

  Sure.

• Laura Barrón-López:

  The president actually in 2020 outperformed you in your own district by roughly three points. And you have said you're considering challenging him yourself if no one else steps up.

  So what would your strategy be to beat him?

• Rep. Dean Phillips:

  It's not about me. And I don't anticipate doing that, because I believe there are people, as you just referenced.

  This is not this — I'm not well-positioned for this. I am well-positioned as the only voice calling attention to something that we should be talking about. Think about Governor Whitmer and Senator Warnock from Michigan and Georgia, a pastor from the South, a man of color, a woman at the top of the ticket in a year in which reproductive rights will probably be front and center more than any other policy issue.

  And they're next-generation, exciting candidates that could activate, energize the Democratic base and get us excited. I'm looking at this as hopeful, optimistic, exciting. And I'm afraid that we are sleepwalking into the very circumstance of 2016. This is not about me. I'm using this 15 minutes, I'm using this opportunity with you tonight to simply ask people to give it a little thought.

  Look at the numbers. Don't listen to me. Look at the numbers.

• Laura Barrón-López:

  Congressman…

• Rep. Dean Phillips:

  Talk to friends. Are other people feeling the same? That's what I'm trying to do.

  I wish it this would not be about me. I'm trying to do a service to Democrats, but, most importantly, to a country that really, really needs it.

• Laura Barrón-López:

  Congressman Dean Phillips of Minnesota, thank you so much for your time.

• Rep. Dean Phillips:

  Thank you so much.