Gov. Bill Haslam looked long and hard at the 2018 GOP primary for the Senate seat Bob Corker is leaving. He saw a "battleground."
While the governor said last week he was prepared for that fight, it's at least one reason he decided against a run. It's also indicative of a broader political shift within the Tennessee GOP and elsewhere in the country, one that has seen establishment-lane Republicans overpowered by the Trump-aligned conservative wing.
"We live in a divided country," Haslam said, pointing to the last seven presidential elections.
Read more at our news partner's website, tennessean.com.