Billionaire Bill Ackman Boosts Democrat Dean Phillips’ Presidential Campaign with $1 Million

Dean Phillips

Billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman is giving Rep. Dean Phillips a $1 million donation to boost the Minnesota Democratic congressman’s 2024 presidential primary bid against President Joe Biden. 

Ackman, who has already made the maximum individual campaign donation of $3,300 to Phillips, said he plans on donating $1 million to We Deserve Better, a political action committee supporting Phillips, on Tuesday, according to a post the financier made over the weekend on X, formerly Twitter.

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Presidential Candidate Dean Phillips Says He Won’t Seek Fourth Term in Congress

While Minnesota Congressman Dean Phillips continues his longshot campaign to wrest away the Democrat nomination for president from incumbent Joe Biden, the Wayzata millionaire officially announced on Friday that he’ll no longer pursue a fourth term in the U.S. House of Representatives.

“Representing our nation’s most civically engaged community in Congress has been the most joyful experience of my life,” Phillips said in a social media post shortly after noon on Friday. “Now it’s time to pass the torch — with gratitude and optimism.”

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Minnesota Rep. Signals to Colleagues He’s Planning to Challenge Biden for Presidential Nomination: Report

Minnesota Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips has signaled that he is planning on running against President Joe Biden in 2024, Politico reported Thursday.

Phillips has been considering a White House bid for months, and relayed his aspirations to run to House colleagues, two sources familiar told Politico. The congressman has signaled that he’s inching toward a presidential campaign, as the outlet reports that he reached out to the New Hampshire Democratic Party last week and approached potential staffers to bolster his expected efforts in the key early state.

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Two House Democrats Ask Their Voters to Support Liz Cheney in Primary

Two Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives are publicly asking Democratic voters in Wyoming to vote for Congresswoman Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) in her upcoming primary, as she faces likely defeat at the hands of a pro-Trump challenger.

According to the Daily Wire, Congressmen Tom Malinowski (D-N.J.) and Dean Phillips (D-Minn.) made their appeals to Wyoming Democrats in online campaign ads this week, voicing their support for Cheney’s re-election.

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Spanberger, Wittman Announce Bill to Allow 529 Funds to be Used for Technical Education

Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger (D-Virginia-07) reintroduced the Freedom to Invest in Tomorrow’s Workforce Act on Tuesday. The bill, HR 2171, allows tax-advantaged 529 education savings accounts to be used to pay for tuition, exam, and supplies for technical education. Spanberger was joined by cosponsors including Congressman Rob Wittman (R-Virginia-01), Congressman Fred Upton (R-Michigan-06) and Congressman Dean Philips (D-Minnesota-03.)

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The Star Trib Has Only Endorsed One Republican Gubernatorial Candidate In 30 Years

The Star Tribune, Minnesota’s leading news source, has only endorsed one Republican for governor during the state’s last eight gubernatorial elections. Apart from its 1994 endorsement of Republican Arne Carlson, The Star Tribune has otherwise supported six Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) Party candidates, and one Independence Party candidate since 1990. In order,…

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Dean Phillips Violates Own Campaign Pledge By Loaning Himself $1.3 Million

Democrat Dean Phillips has been railing against the corrupt influence of money in politics ever since announcing his bid for Congress, but on Thursday revealed that he was loaning his campaign $1.3 million. One of the pillars of Phillips’ campaign is his “Minnesota Way” pledge, which asks candidates to “reject…

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In Campaign of ‘Truth’ and ‘Decency,’ Phillips’ Campaign Manager Blames Republicans for Bomb Threats

Democrat Dean Phillips’ campaign manger suggested that Republican rhetoric is to blame for the recent bomb threat targeted at prominent Democrats, such as President Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. “I don’t know whether flipping the House is enough to put a stop to this madness, but just imagine what it…

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Ryan, Trump Step In for Paulsen In Final Weeks

House Speaker Paul Ryan and President Donald Trump both made last-ditch efforts to bolster Rep. Erik Paulsen’s (R-MN-03) campaign in its final weeks against Democratic challenger Dean Phillips. Phillips’ energized campaign has attacked Paulsen left and right for being a “rubber-stamp” politician who doesn’t make himself available to his constituents,…

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Letter Condemning Paulsen Attack Ads Written By Wealthy Dem Donors

A group of local business owners recently condemned Rep. Erik Paulsen’s (R-MN-03) attack ads in an open letter, but records show that almost all of the signatories are donors of his opponent. The letter, peddled by The Star Tribune and promoted by nearly every major Minnesota news outlet, rebuked the…

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Dean Phillips Dines With Liberal Elites for Massive Hollywood Fundraiser

Democrat Dean Phillips participated in a Hollywood fundraiser Tuesday night with five other congressional candidates at an attendance cost of $5,000 per person. Phillips, who is running for Minnesota’s Third Congressional District, has been highly critical of the influence of money in politics while on the campaign trail, so much…

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Erik Paulsen’s Wife Threatened at Their Minnesota Home

Rep. Erik Paulsen (R-MN-03) recently revealed that his wife was threatened at their Minnesota home last week, saying the political animosity towards him and his family has been taken to the “next level.” While the Minnesota congressman is used to receiving threats, he said his office has “had to refer…

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New Poll Shows Paulsen Gaining on Phillips

A new poll shows incumbent Rep. Erik Paulsen (R-MN-03) closing in on Democratic challenger Dean Phillips (pictured, right) in what could end up being Minnesota’s most expensive and competitive congressional race. According to KSTP and SurveyUSA, Paulsen trails Phillips 44 percent to 49 percent, a seven-point increase for Paulsen from…

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Paulsen and Phillips MPR Debate Devolves Into Attacks About Attack Ads

Dean Phillips and Rep. Erik Paulsen (R-MN-03) finally met for their second debate Friday, but each spent most of his airtime arguing over the other’s television ads. MPR’s moderator began the debate by questioning Paulsen on one of his ads that criticized Phillips as a “hypocrite” for his stance on…

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Obama Snubs Ellison and Omar In Latest Round of Endorsements

President Barack Obama endorsed a slate of candidates for Minnesota’s statewide elections Monday, but some high-profile Democrats were conspicuously absent from his list. Obama’s list of endorsements spanned 22 states and more than 100 candidates running for state and federal office, including gubernatorial candidates, their running mates, attorney generals, and…

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Minnesota Democrats React In Outrage Over Brett Kavanaugh Vote

Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh is expected to narrowly sneak by the Senate Judiciary Committee, and Minnesota Democrats are outraged at the prospect. During Thursday’s historic hearing, Kavanaugh and his accuser, Christine Blasey Ford painfully recalled a decades-old high school party at which the alleged assault occurred. After hours of…

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Phillips Campaign Compares Paulsen to Bigfoot While Attacking Republican for Not Making Enough Public Appearances

Democrat Dean Phillips recently called on Rep. Erik Paulsen (R-MN-03) to agree to more public appearances in the race for Minnesota’s Third Congressional District, even comparing the incumbent congressman to Bigfoot. Watch the ad: In an open letter to Paulsen, Phillips challenged his opponent to agree to meet for three…

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Flurry of Attack Ads Points to Importance of Minnesota in Midterm Elections

Minnesotans may soon resort to turning off their televisions lest they suffer through the swarm of political attack ads invading their homes. The high numbers of ads, and the even higher amount of money being spent on them, highlights Minnesota’s importance in the 2018 midterms. “There’s no way around it:…

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Polls Show Tight Races in Minnesota’s High-Stakes Elections

Pete Stauber, Joe Radinovich

A new poll shows that Minnesota Democrats are fighting to hang on to the state’s Eighth Congressional District, which has leaned blue for nearly 70 years. The new poll comes out of The New York Times’ partnership with Siena College, which has a goal of polling “dozens of the most…

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Questions Arise in Third Congressional District Whether Democrat Challenger Dean Phillips Offers Health Benefits to His Employees

Dean Phillips

Minnesota Democrat Dean Phillips likes to think of health care as a “moral right,” but it was recently brought to light that the candidate doesn’t appear to provide health benefits to his own employees. In a recent attack ad produced by the Congressional Leadership Fund, Phillips is outed as being…

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Democrat Congressional Candidate in Minnesota Supports Making It A Sanctuary State

Dean Phillips

In a heated first debate, incumbent Rep. Erik Paulsen (R-MN-03) squared off against his Democratic challenger Dean Phillips in their battle for Minnesota’s Third Congressional District. Although Paulsen has safely held the seat since 2009, Minnesota’s Democractic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) Party is hopeful that their candidate can pull off an upset, since…

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Minnesota Politicians Invade State Fair, But Voters Want to Leave Politics At Home

Each year, the Minnesota State Fair looks more and more like a political convention, but this year fair-goers seem to have had enough of the politicization of the Great Minnesota Get-Together. Both major parties, the Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) Party and the state GOP, have booths at the fair with their respective…

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Democrat Congressional Candidate Dean Phillips Supports Making Minnesota A Sanctuary State

In a heated first debate, incumbent Rep. Erik Paulsen squared off against his Democratic challenger Dean Phillips in their battle for Minnesota’s Third Congressional District. Although Paulsen has safely held the seat since 2009, Minnesota’s Democractic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) Party is hopeful that their candidate can pull off an upset, since the…

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