In this Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2018, file photo, outgoing Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam answers questions during an interview in Nashville, Tenn. Former Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam has told The Tennessean that he won t run for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Republican Sen. Lamar Alexander. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey, File)NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Former Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam isn't ruling out a future run for office, though he says he isn't currently planning on it.
During an event Wednesday alongside former GOP Sen. Bob Corker, Haslam said he'd be sad if he never serves in some kind of public role again.
Haslam told reporters it was a hard decision, but the right one, not to run to replace retiring Republican Sen. Lamar Alexander in 2020.
President Donald Trump tweeted last month that former Ambassador to Japan Bill Hagerty would launch a Senate bid and endorsed him. Haslam said he's "really excited" about the presumed Republican run by Hagerty, Haslam's ex-economic development commissioner.
Corker said he wants to let the race evolve, saying he's friends with Hagerty and trauma surgeon Manny Sethi, another Republican who has launched a campaign.