KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – U.S. Sen. Bob Corker’s top aide says the Tennessee Republican has nothing to do with the Internet address corkerforpresident.com but he describes it as flattering and isn’t calling for its removal.
Corker chief of staff Todd Womack told The Knoxville News Sentinel that he could not say who owns the domain name that links directly to Corker’s official Senate .
“We are flattered by the compliment and kind gesture, but Sen. Corker is 100 percent focused on being a Tennessee senator,” Womack told the newspaper.
Womack declined to discuss the possibility of a Corker presidential bid in 2012 or beyond.
“It’s just not something that is a focus for us,” he said Tuesday.
A lifelong friend of Corker’s, David Blunt, said Monday that he registered the name.
Speaking from Denmark, where he now lives, Blunt cites Corker’s honesty and says he is “one of the few politicians I can trust.”
Blunt, who grew up with Corker on Signal Mountain and later attended the University of Tennessee with him, told the newspaper that he registered the name last January as Corker became a nationally recognized opponent of the auto bailout.
“I just reserved it for Bob just in case,” Blunt said.
Blunt said he never told the freshman senator or his staff what he was doing. In fact, he said he hasn’t spoken to Corker since Ronald Reagan was in the White House. Federal election records show no Blunt campaign donations to Corker.
Regardless, Blunt believes his childhood pal would make a terrific president.
“Bob is a great guy,” Blunt said. “He’s a very honest politician, which I think is unusual.”
Womack described Blunt and Corker as “acquaintances” and said no one in the senator’s office has spoken to Blunt.