‘You Are Literally Running Against President Biden’: NBC’s Kristen Welker Stunned When Opponent Says ‘I’m Not Running Against Joe Biden’

Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN), who is running against President Joe Biden for the 2024 Democratic nomination, claimed he is not running against President Joe Biden for the 2024 Democratic nomination.

Appearing on Friday’s Meet the Press Now, Phillips fielded questions from Kristen Welker.

“As some of President Biden’s supporters have pointed out, you have voted with President Biden nearly 100% of the time,” she said. “So, I guess the question is, do you have any major policy critiques about the Biden administration?”

“Well, Kristen, I admire the president,” Phillips replied. “I voted for those policies because they’re good ones and they will be making a difference over time. I’m not running against Joe Biden. I’m not running against President Biden. I’m running for the future. Yes, we have some policy differences, but I’m a proud Democrat.”

Phillips pivoted to “the cost of living in America” being “too high.”

“Congressman, respectfully, you are literally running against President Biden,” Welker responded. “So, can you tell voters, what is your major point of difference with President Biden?”

“I’m not running against President Biden,” Phillips insisted despite how words work. “I’m running for the majority of Americans, who want somebody different.”

“But you just announced you’re running for president, aren’t you?” an exasperated Welker responded. “That means you’re running against President Biden. That’s literally the definition of what that means.”

“And I’m running for president because America deserves to have someone listen to them,” he said.

Phillips has previously raised concerns about Biden’s low approval ratings. In an interview with CBS News, he said, “I will not be quiet in the face of numbers that are so clearly saying that we’re going to be facing an emergency next November.”

Watch above via NBC.