Dean Phillips believes America is in dire need of a less-partisan president.

Unlike Democratic President Joe Biden and Republican Donald Trump before him, Phillips said he would bring political rivals together to solve the country’s biggest challenges. The Minnesota congressman who’s challenging Biden for the Democratic nomination said he would appoint Democrats and Republicans to his Cabinet, adopt fiscally conservative values and take an “all-hands-on-deck” approach to ending homelessness in the United States.

“When people ask me, ‘What do you differ about Biden other than your age and some modest policies?’ The difference is in style of leadership. And this is a massive underappreciated truth,” Phillips said in a recent interview. “It starts with the notion of every American knowing that they have a voice in the White House, not just one party. … I think that’s how we start repairing the country.”

The third-term Minnesota congressman will find out if his message is resonating on Tuesday, when New Hampshire voters head to the polls to pick their parties’ presidential candidates.

In a wide-ranging interview, Phillips detailed what his presidency would look like, from his philosophy and top priorities to the structure of his potential administration. Here are some highlights.

A Phillips administration

A member of the bipartisan House Problem Solvers Caucus, Phillips has sought to find common ground between Democrats and Republicans since he was elected to Congress in 2018. He said he would continue to do so in the White House by building a bipartisan Cabinet.

An experienced businessman and heir to the Phillips liquor fortune, Phillips said “you don’t succeed in business by surrounding yourself with people who all see things the same way. You succeed by surrounding yourself with people of very different opinions and backgrounds and life experience.”

He said he would also create a “youth cabinet” composed of high school- and college-age Americans that would weigh in on issues such as social media regulation, artificial intelligence, climate change and gun violence.

“Just because someone cannot vote in the United States does not mean they can’t have a loud voice in the White House,” Phillips said, adding he wants to “reimagine how the president’s advisers engage with him or her.”

Re-evaluating government

Phillips said he would prioritize fiscal responsibility and hire an outside firm to thoroughly review the federal government’s budget. That firm would look at every federal agency and program and recommend ways to improve efficiency, he said.

“I would ensure that the Pentagon passes an audit. We’re spending almost a trillion dollars a year and they cannot pass an audit,” Phillips said.

Similarly, Phillips said he would add a “commonsense czar” in the White House who would be charged with “constantly identifying ways to improve customer service, reduce expenses and generate incremental efficiencies.”

Phillips suggested his experience in the business and nonprofit sectors would give him a broader perspective than career politicians such as Biden.

“I don’t think if you’ve come from a background where it’s all public service in government in Washington for 50 years, you could even understand the possibilities of managing differently,” he said.

Key priorities

If elected president, Phillips said his “foremost mission” would be to end homelessness in America within eight years. He said he’s seen many people sleeping in the streets while campaigning in different parts of the country.

“It’s horrifying,” Phillips said. “For a country that’s spending $1 trillion a year on its defense and isn’t willing to spend the $20 billion it might take to actually create enough housing for everybody to at least have a roof over their heads is appalling.”

Among Phillips’ other priorities are the federal legalization of marijuana and immigration reform. The southern border needs stronger security and the asylum process for immigrants needs to be reformed, he said.

Phillips said he would seek to have immigrants file asylum cases in their home countries and have the cases decided there.

“We should build dormitories to keep people safe who have filed. If they are deemed appropriate cases and asylum is granted, we should bring them to America,” Phillips said. “And if you don’t qualify, you stay there and we have border security that actually makes sure that you don’t come across.”