this issue in a debate between the two, despite the fact that Bredesen had made most of his fortune as a managed health care executive. However, polling seemed to indicate that one of the major factors with public support of Bredesen was his knowledge of this issue. Bredesen was also a moderate Democrat; Republican charges against "ultra-liberal Democrats" could not be made to stick to him with any real degree of success. Another problem for Hilleary was that Bredesen showed himself able to raise support in East Tennessee (Hilleary's home region) far more readily than could previous Democratic candidates, especially considering that Bredesen was from Nashville. In addition, questions were raised regarding Hilleary's performance as a member of the House Budget Committee. Hilleary nonetheless received over 48% of the vote. Bredesen defeated him largely by doing far better than expected in heavily Republican East Tennessee, an area where Democrats are not normally competitive except in statewide landslides. For instance, Bredesen carried Knox County, the largest county in East Tennessee, by a few hundred votes; in contrast, George W. Bush won Knox County two years later by over 40,000 votes. 2006 Senate campaign Hilleary was a candidate for the United States Senate seat then held by Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, who did not run for re-election, fulfilling his promise to not to serve more than two terms when first elected in 1994. Despite over 80% name recognition, Hilleary placed a distant third with a mere 17% of the vote in the primary, behind fellow former Congressman Ed Bryant, who received 34% and the winner, former Chattanooga mayor Bob Corker, who won with a 48% plurality. Surprisingly, Hilleary lost 13 of the 22 counties in his old district. Hilleary endorsed Corker for the general election. Consultant Shortly after the November 2004 election, Hilleary moved his family to Murfreesboro, just outside Nashville. He now lives there primarily on weekends and through the week was employed as a consultant in Washington, D.C. until December 2018. According to a disclosure of personal finances from 2004 and part of 2005, as required by his 2006 Senate candidacy, Hilleary made $300,000 in salary in 2004 from Washington lobbying firm Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal, and more than $150,000 in salary from the firm through August 12, 2005. One of his clients was the Lumbee Indian Tribe of North Carolina, which was seeking federal status from Congress and