Robert Nelson Clement (born September 23, 1943) is an American politician and a member of the Democratic Party. He served in the United States House of Representatives, representing Tennessee, from 1988 until 2003, when he retired to run (unsuccessfully) for the United States Senate. Early life Clement is the son of former Tennessee Governor Frank G. Clement. During his father's third run for governor in 1962, he joined his father on the campaign trail, often making speeches when his father developed throat trouble. Clement graduated from Hillsboro High School in Nashville. He went on to attend the University of Tennessee graduating in 1967. He served in the National Guard from 1969 to 1971 and also served in the reserves until 2001, retiring as a colonel. Clement considered buying a telephone company while he was studying at the University of Tennessee, but his father would not lend him the money. He gained knowledge about the Tennessee Public Service Commission which regulated phone companies and other utilities. Clement wanted to work for the commission's staff. In 1972, Clement ran against Hammond Fowler in the Democratic primary for the incumbent's seat and won. He won by a 3 to 1 margin which was the most lopsided defeat of a statewide incumbent in Tennessee history. He went on to win against Republican nominee Tom Garland in the general election in what was otherwise largely a good year for Republican candidates in Tennessee. (No Republican was ever elected to the Public Service Commission in the state during its existence which later played a factor in its abolition in 1996. At 29 he was (and still is) the youngest person ever elected to statewide office in Tennessee history. In 1978, Clement ran for the Democratic nomination for governor. He ran second in the primary narrowly behind Knoxville banker Jake Butcher, who had finished second in the Democratic gubernatorial primary four years previously. In 1979, President Jimmy Carter tapped him for an unexpired term on the Board of Directors of the Tennessee Valley Authority. He tried to stop the overbuilding of nuclear reactors in the TVA service area, later telling The (Nashville) Tennessean that the agency was trying to pay for the projects by raising rates when there was plenty of power available. He stepped down in 1981. Congressional career In 1982, Clement announced his candidacy for the 7th Congressional District, his family's home district. The seat