Former Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen acknowledged the fact that he has an uphill battle ahead of him in order to pull off a victory for the U.S. Senate seat being left open by the retirement of Bob Corker.
Bredesen, age 74, did not intend to get back into politics after leaving the governor's office in 2011, but in an interview Monday, he said the current political climate in Washington D.C. left him with no other choice.
"In terms of age, I can’t help that, but I don’t think it hurts to have a few people come to Washington who are grown up and have experience in these area," he said.
Bredesen will likely be facing Republican challenger Marsha Blackburn in the November 2018 election. Blackburn has previously said Bredesen is "out of touch" with Tennessee voters.
"I’m very much in touch with Tennessee values, at least as much as someone who spent the last umpteenth years in Washington. I spent years working on Tennessee problems right here, so I think one of the advantages to this is being in touch with the needs of Tennessee," Bredesen said.
