Just over a month after announcing he was running for Congress, prominent country songwriter Lee Thomas Miller has ended his campaign.
Miller announced he was running for Congress in November, seeking election to represent Tennessee in the District 7 House seat that U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn has held for nearly two decades. Blackburn is vacating the seat to run for the Senate.
Miller pointed to his status as a political outsider and the fact that he is a Williamson County resident as two strategic advantages for his candidacy. The seventh district includes the affluent rural area outside of Nashville, which is home to a number of prominent musicians, songwriters and music business executives.
In a statement Monday (Dec. 18), Miller said the compromises inherent in the process have made it clear that running wasn’t the right decision for him.
“My amazing wife endorsed this massive challenge under the one condition: that I run as myself without becoming somebody I am not,” he states (quote via the Tennessean).
“These are complicated times with complicated and emotional issues. These issues affect real people’s lives. Washington has forgotten this. I looked forward to this race and the opportunity to change things that I think are broken,” he adds. “But as a husband and father it quickly became obvious that this campaign would require me to compromise far more of myself than I would ever be willing.”
Miller’s songwriting resume includes the No. 1 hits “The Impossible” for Joe Nichols, “The World”, “I’m Still a Guy” and “Perfect Storm” for Brad Paisley, “You’re Gonna Miss This” for Trace Adkins, Terri Clark‘s “I Just Wanna Be Mad” and Tim McGraw‘s “Southern Girl.” “You’re Gonna Miss This,” “The Impossible” and Jamey Johnson‘s “In Color” were also nominated for Best Country Song in the Grammy Awards.
He recently left his position as President of the Nashville Songwriters Association International, and Miller says he still has “the same desire to protect faith, family and freedom that I have always had. I will also go back to using my voice and experience to defend the American songwriter.”
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