Knoxville — A $100 million Senate campaign in Tennessee?
Former Gov. Phil Bredesen thinks it's "absurd" but may be inevitable.
The Democrat businessman is running against Republican Marsha Blackburn to replace Sen. Bob Corker, R-Chattanooga, in the November general election.
Bredesen spoke with 10News this week as part of a taping of "Inside Tennessee," the station's public affairs program that airs 9:30 a.m. Sunday.
Blackburn, a U.S. representative and former state lawmaker, also is being invited as a featured guest on the program in the coming weeks.
The Bredesen interview covered a wide range of topics, from the opioid crisis to the future of federal health care guarantees to federal tariffs to U.S. Supreme Court nominees to possible projects for the Tennessee Valley Authority.
The two-term former governor is against selling off TVA assets as has been previously pitched by both the Obama administration and President Donald Trump.
Instead, he'd like to the utility giant tackle promoting wider access to the Internet, particularly in rural Tennessee.
"I'd love our country to get back to doing big projects every once in a while," Bredesen said.
He said he wasn't a fan of the Affordable Care Act when President Obama signed it, but it's law now and he said many Tennesseans rely on it.
Ongoing efforts by some Republicans to "sabotage" it are "unconscionable," he said.
Bredesen guesses he'll spend $18 million to $20 million contributed to his campaign in the race and suspects Blackburn will do the same. Many more millions will be spent independently on the race by organizations such as PACs, he said.
"Pushing toward $100 million for a Senate race in Tennessee is absurd. It's the way it is, unfortunately," he said.
During Sunday's Inside Tennessee show, the former governor also discusses the current senators he'd most compare himself to and which party he thinks will be in control of the Senate after the November election.
