Rep. Jim Clyburn , a key ally of President Joe Biden, hammered Rep. Dean Phillips over his presidential campaign.
Clyburn, the House assistant Democratic leader, derided Phillips's decision to run as"very, very disrespectful," he told Politico. He played a key role in having Biden win the Democratic nomination in 2020 due to a well-timed endorsement after a string of primary embarrassments.
"I think Dean Phillips has a huge opportunity here to just crack the Democrat Party wide open," Gov. Chris Sununu said last week.Meanwhile, Phillips has been beefing up his campaign, tapping Jeff Weaver, a central figure in Sen. Bernie Sanders's presidential campaigns, and Zach Graumann, who managed tech entrepreneur Andrew Yang's 2020 presidential campaign, the Washington Post reported.
Steve Schmidt, a top adviser for John McCain's 2008 presidential run, is planning to leave Phillips's campaign so he can form a super PAC, which will be used to raise money for the Minnesota Democrat.