Joe Powell has an excellent interview with Rob Russell, the Democratic candidate for U.S. House of Representatives in the Tennessee First Congressional District. The seat is currently held by Republican Rep. David Davis.

There's a lot of talk about whether a Democrat can compete in this district, which Republicans have controlled since 1881. Davis is finishing up his first term, but faces a credible Republican primary challenger, Phil Rowe, who has raised a lot of money.

(See here for a list of all the candidates.)

Davis hasn't accomplished much, and he has a lot of ties to special interests, including the pharmaceutical industry. Last year, his office was caught "scrubbing" Davis' Wikipedia page to remove information about his ties to King Pharmaceuticals. And now there are accusations that the staffer got a bonus for his efforts.

King Pharmaceuticals was involved in a 2005 $124 million settlement with the DOJ regarding "allegations that it underpaid rebates owed under the Medicaid program [including TennCare] and overcharged various federal and state governmental entities for its drug products." There is also controversy surrounding campaign contributions and PACs operated by the company's CEO.

Davis also came under fire for voting in support of dog fighting.

According to GovTrac.us, "David Davis has sponsored 18 bills since Jan 4, 2007, of which 16 haven't made it out of committee." None were successfully enacted. Among the bills Davis sponsored are designation of "American Eagle Day" and expressing support of "National Carriage Driving Month." His first bill, "To enhance the integrity of the United States against the threat of terrorism," would have provided Homeland Security funds to state and local law enforcement for immigration enforcement. The rest of his bills appear to be related to import duties on chemicals used in the pharmaceutical and chemical industries. Davis is endorsed by the National Right to Life and gets an "A" rating from the NRA.

While it's conceivable that Davis could be kicked out in the primary, it will be a tough row to hoe for Democrats in the general. But go read Joe Powell's interview with Rob Russell, and ask yourself, why not a Democrat, and why not now? That's the question for voters in the Tennessee 1st Congressional District. Do they want more of the same, or is it time to try something different?