ST PAUL, Minn. — Minnesota Representative Dean Phillips officially launched his bid for the White House Friday, and now what could be a key component of the campaign, his X/Twitter profile, is up and running, too.
Phillips' campaign account, @Dean24Official, was suspended overnight but is back online as of 1:15 p.m. Friday. Phillips' personal and official House representative accounts always remained active.
In a statement shared with KARE 11 politics reporter John Croman earlier in the morning, campaign official Steve Schmidt called on X owner Elon Musk to reactivate the account, in no uncertain terms.
"The Dean Phillips Campaign would like to request the public sewer now known as X, formerly known as Twitter, and its shambolic leader Elon Musk, that they please turn on the Twitter account or X account of a Democratic presidential candidate, given the fact that supposedly Elon Musk is for free speech," the message said.
Phillips, who first floated the idea of a run against Democratic President Joe Biden earlier this year, formally filed paperwork Friday to run in New Hampshire's 2024 Democratic presidential primary. The New Hampshire Secretary of State's office confirmed Thursday that Phillips was on the calendar to file.
Early Friday, Phillips posted a clip of himself on CBS Mornings confirming his candidacy in a lengthy tweet, writing, "I didn’t set out to enter this race. But it looks like on our current course, the Democrats will lose and Trump will be our President again. President Biden is a good man and someone I tremendously respect. I understand why other Democrats don’t want to run against him, and why we are here. This is a last-minute campaign, but desperate times call for desperate measures, and courage is an important value to me."
Speaking with reporters outside his campaign bus in New Hampshire Friday morning, Phillips reiterated his choice to run is fueled by the goal of keeping former President Trump out of the White House.
"The man is a disaster for our country. He was four years ago. He will be again. That's why I'm doing this," he said.
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