Gaetz says Dean Phillips would be ‘considerably more difficult’ for Trump to defeat in 2024

Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) responded to Rep. Dean Phillips‘s (D-MN) presidential campaign on Friday, predicting the Minnesota Democrat could pose a serious threat to President Joe Biden’s reelection bid — even going so far as to suggest that Phillips would be “considerably more difficult” for former President Donald Trump to defeat in 2024.

“If Biden debates Phillips, Dean will be the Democrat nominee and he will be considerably more difficult for Trump to defeat than Biden,” Gaetz said in a post on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter. “But Biden won’t debate.”

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Phillips announced on Thursday he would challenge Biden for the Democratic nomination, telling CBS News he could no longer “be quiet” amid polling numbers that show the president facing a serious challenge to defeat Trump next year.

“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,” Phillips said in a statement. “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.”

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Early polling shows a tight race should Biden and Trump face off in a general election rematch, with the most recent numbers showing the former president slightly leading the Democratic incumbent, according to data compiled by FiveThirtyEight.

However, it’s not clear how much of a threat Phillips will pose to Biden, as much of the party has already pledged to support his reelection. However, the three-term congressman said he is encouraging other Democrats to join the fray as well, pushing for a wide candidate pool for voters to choose from.