Dean Phillips wants to lead the Democratic challenge to Erik Paulsen [View all]

Dean Phillips wants to lead the Democratic challenge to Erik Paulsen. But what kind of Democrat is he?

If you wanted to formulate in a lab an ideal candidate for political office, you could do worse than Dean Phillips.

The 48-year-old — who announced on Tuesday his bid for Minnesota’s 3rd Congressional District seat — is a scion of an established Minnesota business and philanthropic family, and is himself an Ivy League-educated entrepreneur who launched a successful ice cream brand. He’s affable, relatively polished, and cautious, likely to be a solid presence on the campaign trail.

Phillips is taking on a difficult task, however: defeating Rep. Erik Paulsen, the five-term incumbent GOP congressman. For years, Democrats have tried to take down Paulsen, arguing he’s too conservative for this moderate west metro district and unsuccessfully linking him to Donald Trump.

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Phillips’ pedigree could be more of an asset in the 3rd District than perhaps anywhere else in the state. Encompassing the western suburbs of Minneapolis, the district is the most affluent in Minnesota, and it’s home to many of Minnesota’s most successful companies and their employees.

Phillips can speak the language of business, and he comes by it honestly: he headed his family’s company, Phillips Distilling Company, which is known for producing schnapps, vodka, and whiskey. In 2003, Phillips was part of a group that started a gelato company, Talenti, whose pricey frozen treats became wildly popular among high-end consumers.

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Right now, the Democratic Party base is fired up, and it’s desperate for progressive warriors to do battle with Trump and the congressional GOP. Grassroots backlash has been particularly severe in CD3, with activists putting pressure on Paulsen for his vote on the GOP health care bill.

In Phillips, though Democrats aren’t getting a firebreather, but a pro-business centrist. Phillips bristles at political labels, and he declined to talk about where he falls on the spectrum of the Democratic Party. He did say, however, “I’m fiscally responsible, and I’m socially inclusive, and I’m independent… I’m not a typical Democrat.”

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https://www.minnpost.com/politics-policy/2017/05/dean-phillips-wants-lead-democratic-challenge-erik-paulsen-what-kind-democra