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[[Image:000lamaralexander.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Lamar Alexander with Senate Republicans, 07/16/09]]In 2002, Lamar Alexander ran for the open seat of retiring Senator [[Fred Thompson]]. Seen as a moderate Republican by Tennessee standards, his candidacy for the GOP nomination was challenged by conservatives who supported Congressman Ed Bryant. However, Alexander went on to win the Republican primary and the general election. Making him the only Tennessean ever to be popularly elected both governor and United States Senator. Sen. Alexander is the third ranking Republican on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee. He serves on the Senate Appropriations Committee, the Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee responsible for overseeing the Tennessee Valley Authority as well as the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and is a member of the Senate Rules committee. In the 110th Congress, Alexander unsuccessfully ran for Senate Minority Whip, losing by one vote to Senator [[Trent Lott]] of [[Mississippi]].

[[Image:000lamaralexander.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Lamar Alexander with Senate Republicans, 07/16/09]]In 2002, Lamar Alexander ran for the open seat of retiring Senator [[Fred Thompson]]. Seen as a moderate Republican by Tennessee standards, his candidacy for the GOP nomination was challenged by conservatives who supported Congressman Ed Bryant. However, Alexander went on to win the Republican primary and the general election. Making him the only Tennessean ever to be popularly elected both governor and United States Senator. Sen. Alexander is the third ranking Republican on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee. He serves on the Senate Appropriations Committee, the Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee responsible for overseeing the Tennessee Valley Authority as well as the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and is a member of the Senate Rules committee. In the 110th Congress, Alexander unsuccessfully ran for Senate Minority Whip, losing by one vote to Senator [[Trent Lott]] of [[Mississippi]].

Lamar Alexander's voting record in the U.S. Senate is generally conservative. Since 2003, he has voted with his Republican colleagues 81% of the time. <ref>http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/members/a000360/</ref> Alexander voted against the [[American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009]]. "A number of things have been said about the so-called stimulus package, which I feel, many of us feel, is more of a spending bill than a stimulus bill. But there is no doubt about the fact that it increases our national debt." <ref>https://www.votesmart.org/speech_detail.php?sc_id=441175&keyword=&phrase=&contain=?q=print</ref> Alexander has also expressed concerns over [[Democrat]]'s government run health care initiatives. "This is the wrong first step on health care reform because it sets the stage for higher state taxes, more federal debt, government-run health care and Medicare cuts—and still leaves many Americans uninsured." <ref>http://alexander.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressReleases.Detail&PressRelease_id=468afdb8-1f82-4103-b7bc-e62af19698fb</ref>

Lamar Alexander's voting record in the U.S. Senate is generally conservative. Since 2003, he has voted with his Republican colleagues 81% of the time. <ref>http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/members/a000360/</ref> Alexander voted against the [[American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009]]. "A number of things have been said about the so-called stimulus package, which I feel, many of us feel, is more of a spending bill than a stimulus bill. But there is no doubt about the fact that it increases our national debt." <ref>https://www.votesmart.org/speech_detail.php?sc_id=441175&keyword=&phrase=&contain=?q=print</ref> Alexander has also expressed concerns over [[Democrat]]'s government run health care initiatives. "This is the wrong first step on health care reform because it sets the stage for higher state taxes, more federal debt, government-run health care and Medicare cuts—and still leaves many Americans uninsured." <ref>http://alexander.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressReleases.Detail&PressRelease_id=468afdb8-1f82-4103-b7bc-e62af19698fb</ref> However, he broke with his party after voting to confirm [[Sonia Sotomayor]] to the [[U.S. Supreme Court]].

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