Rep. Jim Clyburn Says Dean Phillips Is Disrespecting Black Voters With New Hampshire-Focused Campaign (Exclusive)
Clyburn says in a statement that Phillips is ignoring the wishes of the party to diversify the electorate in early nominating states
Published 10/27/23 06:06 PM ET | Updated 10/27/23 06:20 PM ETDan Merica
CONCORD, N.H. - Rep. Jim Clyburn, the long serving South Carolina Democrat, slammed Minnesota Rep. Dean Phillips on Friday for launching a primary campaign against President Joe Biden and for focusing that campaign on New Hampshire.
Clyburn, whose endorsement of Biden in 2020 is credited with helping the president win the state’s key primary and turn his campaign around, said that Phillips, by campaigning in New Hampshire, was ignoring the changes to the primary calendar that Democrats made to diversify the early state electorate.
Democrats, led by Biden, opted to change the primary calendar after the 2020 election. The Democratic National Committee elevated South Carolina, and its majority Black Democratic electorate, to the first-in-the nation position, angering New Hampshire Democrats, who have refused to comply with the change despite the national party threatening to punish the party by awarding no delegates to the winner of the primary.
By campaigning in New Hampshire, Clyburn argues that Phillips is disrespecting Black voters in South Carolina.
“South Carolinians have demonstrated for decades that we are good predictors of great presidential candidates. Apparently, Dean Phillips disagrees,” Clyburn, who is a co-chair of Biden's re-election campaign, said in a statement to The Messenger. “The Minnesota congressman is not respecting the wishes of the titular head of our Party and the loyalties of some of our Party's most reliable constituents.”
He added: “Black voters are an essential piece of the Democratic coalition, and any candidate for President of the United States ought to know and respect their pivotal role in how Democrats win national elections. There is too much at stake to pay attention to this kind of silliness."
Phillips said on Friday that intends to file for the South Carolina primary, too, but his campaign has signaled that his early focus would be on New Hampshire, hence making it the location for his announcement.
Scores of Democrats have criticized Phillips for his campaign - and the candidate himself said he expected that when he decided to challenge Biden. But Clyburn’s attack may sting more than others, not only because the two serve together in the House, but also because of the power Clyburn has among South Carolina Democrats, a group of people he hopes to win over in the coming months.
Christale Spain, chair of the South Carolina Democratic Party, also faulted Phillips for starting with New Hampshire.
"South Carolina is an important testing ground for presidential candidates and so far, Dean Phillips is failing it,” the chair said. “The Congressman from Minnesota’s choice to disregard South Carolina’s historic first-in-the-nation primary, where Black voters, rural voters, and Southern voters will finally be at the forefront, in favor of competing in a state that will offer zero delegates, is saying the quiet part out loud – he’s an unserious candidate who doesn’t appear to care about what our majority Black Democratic electorate has to say.”
The Phillips campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment about Clyburn's criticism. But asked about the general barrage of pushback earlier Friday, Phillips said they were examples of Democrats just getting behind the President and ignoring polls that show voters want other options. He said they not only don’t dampen his spirits about a run, they push him to go on.
“So,” he said, “keep them coming.”
Rep. Jim Clyburn Says Dean Phillips Is Disrespecting Black Voters With New Hampshire-Focused Campaign (Exclusive)
Clyburn is a powerful ally of President Biden and widely seen as bringing his campaign back from the dead in 2020
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