Thad Cochran

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** FILE ** This Feb. 4, 2014, file photo shows Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Miss, center, speaking during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

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Sen. Thad Cochran has introduced legislation backed by the National Rifle Association that would clarify a federal ban on storing information acquired during gun purchase background checks. (Associated Press)

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Sen. Thad Cochran (left) of Mississippi appears to be the only longtime Republican officeholder to face a tough challenge in his primary battle for re-election this year. State Sen. Chris McDaniel also has status among voters by having a high political post. (Associated Press)

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**FILE** Sens. Patrick Leahy (right), Vermont Democrat and president pro tempore of the Senate, and Thad Cochran, Mississippi Republican, walk to the floor of the Senate on Capitol Hill on May 6, 2013, during a vote on legislation to collect sales tax on Internet purchases. (Associated Press)

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** FILE ** Sen. Thad Cochran (left), Mississippi Republican, is pictured with then-Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, a fellow GOP member, in 2011. (Associated Press)