Phil Bredesen
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Philip Norman Bredesen (born November 21, 1943) is the 48th Governor of Tennessee. He campaigned for governor in 2002 on a platform to manage state government better, improve Tennessee's schools and fix TennCare. He is considered by some pundits to be a potential contender for the 2008 Democratic nomination for President, a prospect that would improve if he is re-elected in 2006 and takes steps to raise his national exposure.
Bredesen's political career seemingly got off to a slow start. He lost for mayor of Nashville in 1987 to Congressman Bill Boner, then lost for the open Congressional seat to Bob Clement, son of a former Tennessee governor. This obviously did not sour him on politics, as he was easily elected mayor of Nashville in 1991 by a comfortable majority.
As mayor of Nashville from 1991 to 1999, he prided himself on having added more than 440 new teachers, building 32 new schools and renovating 43 others. He also implemented a back-to-basics curriculum to teach students the fundementals of learning. Also under the Bredesen Administration: the NFL Houston Oilers (now Tennessee Titans) were brought to Nashville and was furnished with a new stadium (The Coliseum); a new arena was built (Gaylord Entertainment Center); and a new downtown library was built as a cornerstone of major improvements to the entire library system.
In 1994, Bredesen ran for governor of Tennessee as the nominee of the Democratic Party, but lost to Don Sundquist. He was re-elected as mayor of Nashville the next year, and apparently began his negotiations with Oilers owner Bud Adams at about that time. In 2002 Bredesen was successful in his second gubernatorial campaign, beating GOP Congressman Van Hilleary. (Sundquist was barred from running due to term limits.) In 2003, Bredesen was inaugurated as the 48th Governor of the state.
Bredesen is a founding member of Nashville's Table, a non-profit group that collects overstocked and discarded food from local restaurants for the city's homeless population, and served on the board of the Frist Center, a major art gallery that was established to utilize the former downntown main Nashville post office. Bredesen also founded the Land Trust for Tennessee, a non-profit organization that works to preserve open areas and family farms.
Bredesen, along with wife Andrea Conte, moved to Nashville in 1975. While doing research at the public library, he drafted a business plan in the couple's small apartment that led to the creation of HealthAmerica Corp., a healthcare management company that eventually grew to more than 6,000 employees and was publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange. He sold his controlling interest the HealthAmerica Corp. in 1986.
Philip Bredesen grew up in Shortsville, a small agricultural community in upstate New York, and earned a bachelor's degree in physics from Harvard University. He and his wife Andrea have one son, Ben.
Links
Governor Phil Bredesen official page (http://www.state.tn.us/governor/)
| Preceded by: Bill Boner | Mayor of Nashville, Tennessee 1991—1999 | Succeeded by: Bill Purcell |
| Preceded by: Donald K. Sundquist | Governor of Tennessee 2003—present | Succeeded by: Incumbent |