Dean Phillips distances himself from campaign operative who reportedly paid $1 for AI-generated Biden deepfake

Longshot Democratic presidential candidate Rep. Dean Phillips, D-Minn., is distancing himself from a report that one of his campaign's former consultants hired a magician to create a deepfake of President Biden urging New Hampshire voters not to participate in last month’s primary.

Paul Carpenter, a magician from New Orleans, came forward and said he had made the deepfake for $1 and that a Democratic consultant Steve Kramer had paid him $150 to do it, according to an NBC report. Kramer is a get-out-the-vote specialist who worked on ballot access for the Phillips campaign and also worked on Kanye West’s unsuccessful 2020 presidential campaign.

"I’m disgusted that a consultant hired to assist my campaign [with] ballot access is alleged to have faked a robocall impersonating Joe Biden," Phillips wrote on X on Friday.

"While I don’t know the person, such behavior is despicable and I trust will be investigated by authorities. It’s also despicable that the Party actively limits access to state ballots and blackballs reputable consultants who would otherwise work with challengers like me. The corruption in politics is pervasive and must be exposed and addressed."