After beating his latest opponents, has DesJarlais triumphed over his past?

photo Rep. Scott DesJarlais stands with his supporters in this file photo.

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NASHVILLE - Shunned by much of the Tennessee and Washington GOP establishment, given up for politically dead by most observers, U.S. Rep. Scott DesJarlais triumphed over his opponents this year despite the odds.

But does this mean the South Pittsburg physician also finally triumphed over the nationwide headlines about his scandalous past -- extramarital affairs with patients, pressing one to get an abortion, going along with his first wife's decision to have two abortions?

The answer appears to be yes, say some Republicans, among them Tennessee Republican Party Chairman Chris Devaney.

"I think the voters have spoken twice now after these issues have been brought out," Devaney said last week. "I think they're ready to move on."

He noted that the congressman had a "very decisive" victory over Democrat Lenda Sherrell in the very conservative 4th District, winning with 58.33 percent of the vote on Nov. 4. Sherrell, who heavily outspent DesJarlais, took just 35.32 percent of the vote.

Devaney also counts DesJarlais' razor-thin, 38-vote victory over Jim Tracy in the August primary as proof. Though he added that doesn't mean other Republicans might not try to topple DesJarlais in the future.

"I just think those issues [abortions and affairs] have been dealt with," said Devaney. "They've been hammered out in the press. People have listened to Scott about his reasons and how he handled the issue and all that, and I just think it's behind people."

The Times Free Press spoke with four GOP strategists with Tennessee ties who largely agreed. All discussed DesJarlais on condition their names not be used.

"It's probably over and done with unless he makes a mistake," said one. "That's a very conservative, churchgoing district that's into forgiveness when one asks for it. ... If he keeps his cuffs clean, that's probably behind him for the most part."

Tracy, a state senator from Shelbyville, outspent DesJarlais 3-to-1 and in the primary's final days hit the congressman relentlessly in television ads and direct mail on his messy personal life during his first marriage.

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DesJarlais has said that all happened more than 14 years ago and that he has since remarried happily and become religious. He has touted his record as a public official, his rating as the House's fourth-most-conservative member and his opposition to virtually anything to do with President Barack Obama.

And he struck back at Tracy, accusing him of having voted in the state Senate for the controversial Common Core education standards embraced by Obama's administration. Tracy denied it.

The announcement in the midst of this year's bitter primary that DesJarlais had been diagnosed with cancer in his neck and was undergoing radiation and chemotherapy also likely generated sympathy among some voters, the strategists said.

Dr. Bruce Oppenheimer, a political science professor at Vanderbilt University, said he thinks "nobody's going to beat DesJarlais in a general election unless he does something untoward again."

But regarding a future GOP primary challenge, Oppenheimer said, "I think the real question is how many young state legislators live in that district?"

"Some of them are going to get ambitious politically. I still think he's a target. He beat Tracy, but he didn't beat him by a heck of a lot," Oppenheimer said. "When you show yourself to be vulnerable, you invite opposition."

Still, he noted, any would-be GOP challenger will likely need to "start hitting him on something else."

Nathan Gonzales is deputy editor of the Washington-based Rothenberg Political Report, a nonpartisan newsletter that covers federal races. He said the congressman's next challenger could mount a better campaign than Tracy did, noting that it couldn't be a single-issue effort.

DesJarlais spokesman Robert Jameson said his boss has "always asked voters to judge him on his record in Congress and not on his 15-year divorce."

"I think it's fair to say there are some people who just won't be able to look past his past from 15 years ago," Jameson said.

But "the vast majority of constituents," he added, "... really just want a congressman who'll listen to their needs."

DesJarlais has had rocky relations with some top House leaders, especially with former Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va. Earlier this year DesJarlais refused to go along with raising the nation's debt limit despite a partial government shutdown.

"I think the congressman has made it clear that he will not compromise his principles and ideology just to curry favor with House leadership," Jameson said.

And, Jameson said, DesJarlais has a "very good" relationship with House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, R-La., as well as House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Darrell Issa, R-Calif.

Cantor was defeated by a tea party challenger in his GOP primary over the summer. Challenger David Brat won a special election when Cantor resigned early and was elected to a full term Nov. 4.

On election night in South Pittsburg, DesJarlais, accompanied by his second wife, Amy, and their children and other family members, came out to a cheering crowd when the contest with Sherrell was called in his favor.

"This campaign certainly had a little adversity and challenges for a number of reasons," the noticeably thinner candidate said as he spoke about campaigns and cancer treatments.

"I'm happy to report that everything is going well," he said to applause.

Contact staff writer Andy Sher at asher@timesfree press.com or 615-255-0550.

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