Michael Bradley Enzi ( ; February 1, 1944 – July 26, 2021) was an American politician who served in the United States Senate from Wyoming as a member of the Republican Party from 1997 to 2021. Prior to his tenure in the United States Senate, he served as mayor of Gillette, Wyoming, in the Wyoming House of Representatives from Campbell County, and the Wyoming Senate from the 24th district. He was the third-longest-serving senator from Wyoming.
Enzi was born in Bremerton, Washington, and raised in Thermopolis and Sheridan, Wyoming. He was educated at Sheridan High School, George Washington University, and the University of Denver. He served in the Air National Guard, and held positions in the American Legion Boys State, DeMolay International, and United States Junior Chamber. He entered politics after being convinced by Alan Simpson to run for mayor of Gillette and defeating incumbent mayor Cliff Davis in 1974. He was elected to the state house in the 1986 election and served until his appointment to the state senate in 1991.
In the 1996 U.S. Senate election Enzi defeated future senator John Barrasso and other candidates in the Republican primary and Democratic nominee Kathy Karpan in the general election. He was ideologically conservative, but was also one of the most bipartisan Republicans in the U.S. Senate. Enzi served as chair or ranking member of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, and Budget committees. He declined to seek reelection in the 2020 election and was succeeded by Cynthia Lummis. He died in 2021 following injuries resulting from a bicycling accident.
Early life and education Michael Bradley Enzi was born in Bremerton, Washington, on February 1, 1944, to Elmer J. Enzi and Dorothy Bradley. Elmer and Dorothy married on August 31, 1942, and moved to Thermopolis, Wyoming, after Elmer was discharged from the United States Navy. Elmer opened a shoe store in Thermopolis before moving to Sheridan, Wyoming, in 1952, where he opened another shoe store in 1958. Enzi graduated from Sheridan High School in 1962, from George Washington University with a degree in accounting in 1966, and from the University of Denver with a Master of Business Administration in retail marketing in 1968.
Enzi was elected as a city councilor in the American Legion Boys State youth program, a leadership and citizenship programs for high school juniors, in 1961, and junior councilor in the Wyoming DeMolay International organization in 1963. In 1970, Enzi was appointed to serve as vice-chair of the Public Health Nursing Advisory Committee in Gillette, and elected president of the Wyoming United States Junior Chamber, a leadership training service organization, in 1973.
The Selective Service (American conscription system) reported that Enzi was in good health in 1963, and in 1966. Enzi applied to the Officer Candidate School (OCS) as a civilian in December 1966, but was rejected on January 6, 1967, due to glycosuria. Enzi joined the Wyoming Air National Guard after being rejected by the OCS and served from 1967 to 1973. In 1996, Enzi stated that he tried to enlist to serve in the Vietnam War, but was ruled medically ineligible and joined the Air National Guard instead. Wyoming Veterans of Foreign Wars Commander Bill Saunders and others questioned how he could serve in the National Guard if he was medically ineligible for active service.
On June 7, 1969, Enzi married Diana Buckley and moved to Gillette, Wyoming a week later. The couple had three children. Buckley and Enzi opened NZ Shoes in Gillette, and opened two other locations in Sheridan and Miles City, Montana. He was an accounting manager, computer programmer, and safety trainer at Dunbar Well Service from 1985 to 1997.
Career Local politics State representative Alan Simpson convinced Enzi to run for mayor of Gillette in 1974. He defeated incumbent mayor Cliff Davis and was reelected without opposition in 1978. Stating that he was "not a career politician", Enzi declined to seek reelection on July 7, 1982.
Ed Geringer and Jack Babcock resigned within a month of each other in April and May 1976, leaving their two city council seats vacant. Geringer cited personal reasons for stepping down, while Babcock was moving out of the city. Enzi filled the vacancies with Jack Edmunds and Robert White respectively. Gillette's Planning and Zoning Commission was created in 1979, and Enzi appointed six of the seven positions on the board upon its creation. As mayor, Enzi approved the construction of a pipeline bringing water from Moorcroft, Wyoming; water was rationed in Gillette prior to the pipeline.
Enzi was appointed to serve on the National League of Cities' community development committee. He was vice-president and president of the Wyoming Association of Municipalities. Enzi's term as president of the Wyoming Association of Municipalities was meant to end in June 1983, but John Nickle had to serve the remainder of his term after Enzi left his mayoral office in January 1983.
Wyoming Legislature John Ostlund, a member of the Wyoming Senate, ran for governor rather than seek reelection in 1978. The Casper Star-Tribune speculated that Enzi might run to succeed him, but Enzi instead announced that he would run for reelection as mayor on July 17. Dick Wallis, John Hines, and Enzi were elected to the three seats in the Wyoming House of Representatives from Campbell County in the 1986 election without opposition as Republicans. All three representatives won reelection in the 1988 and 1990 elections against Democratic opponents.
State Senator Kelly Mader resigned on December 9, 1991, after moving with his family to Denver, Colorado, where he started a business. Enzi was selected to replace Mader on December 13, while rancher David Shippy was selected to replace Enzi in the state house. Enzi faced no opposition in the Republican primary or general election in 1992.
During Enzi's tenure in the state house, he served on the Education, Corporations and Elections, and Mines and Minerals committees. He served on the Joint Appropriations Committee and as the chair of the Revenue Committee in the state senate. He lost his position as chair of the Revenue Committee and was replaced by Grant Larson in 1996, as senate rules prohibited statewide candidates from serving as chairs of committee.
United States Senate Elections
Simpson, who was first elected to the United States Senate in 1978, announced on December 3, 1995, that he would not seek reelection in 1996. Enzi announced his campaign for the Republican nomination on April 9, 1996, and defeated eight other candidates in the primary; one of those candidates was John Barrasso, who would later be appointed to the U.S. Senate in 2007. Enzi garnered support due to his opposition to abortion, while Barrasso, who had been expected to win the primary, supported abortion rights at the time. Enzi defeated Democratic nominee Kathy Karpan in the general election. During the campaign, Enzi raised $1,020,906 and spent $989,572.
On March 22, 2002, Enzi announced that he would run for reelection in 2002. Dick Bratton served as his campaign chair. Enzi defeated Crosby Allen, a county commissioner from Fremont County, in the Republican primary and Democratic nominee Joyce Corcoran, the mayor of Lander, Wyoming, in the general election. During the 2002 election Enzi raised $1,443,925 and spent $1,130,628 compared to the $8,488 raised and $8,467 spent by Corcoran. In the 2008 election he raised $2,369,093 and spent $2,129,834 in order to defeat Democratic nominee Chris Rothfuss, who raised $32,326 and spent $27,258.
Liz Cheney, the daughter of Vice President Dick Cheney, initially opposed Enzi in the Republican primary during the 2014 election, but polling showed that Enzi would defeat her. Cheney dropped out of the race, citing family health concerns. Enzi defeated Democratic nominee Charlie Hardy and independent candidate Curt Gottshall in the election after raising $3,777,045 and spending $3,491,953 compared to the $91,678 and $76,631 raised and $88,284 and $76,431 spent by Hardy and Gottshall respectively. On May 5, 2019, Enzi announced that he would not seek reelection in 2020, and U.S. Representative Cynthia Lummis was elected to succeed him. Enzi's tenure of 24 years made him the third-longest-serving senator from Wyoming behind Francis E. Warren's 37 years and Joseph C. O'Mahoney's 25 years.
Tenure In 1997, Enzi asked the U.S. Senate parliamentarian if he could bring his laptop onto the floor of the U.S. Senate and was told to ask Sergeant at Arms Gregory S. Casey. Casey told Enzi that the rules only allowed "mechanical devices" that were deemed "necessary and proper", but that he could not determine what met that criteria without guidance from the U.S. Senate. The Rules and Administration Committee requested Casey to write a report. Casey conducted a three-month study and determined that the rules allowed members to use laptops on the floor, but not if they were connected to an outside network. John Warner, the chair of the Rules Committee, sent the report to all 100 senators for consideration in September. Robert Byrd was opposed stating that the sound of typing would be irritating. Robert Torricelli, Dianne Feinstein, and Kay Bailey Hutchison also opposed allowing laptops onto the floor. On November 5, the Committee voted against allowing Enzi to bring his laptop onto the floor. Rick Santorum was the only member to support the proposal. As of 2018, personal electronic devices remained prohibited from the floor.
Following Trent Lott's resignation, Enzi lobbied for Bill Frist to become Senate Majority Leader. The Central Wyoming Council and the Boy Scouts of America nominated Enzi for the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award, which was given to him in 1999; Enzi was the first Wyomingite to receive the award. The Air Force Association awarded the Stuart Symington award, given for outstanding civilian contribution in the field of national security and the organization's highest civilian award, to Enzi and U.S. Representative Cliff Stearns for co-founding the Congressional Air Force Caucus. The Golden Gavel Award, which is given to those who preside over the U.S. Senate for 100 hours in a single session, was given to Enzi in 1997 and 2004.
During the impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton, Enzi voted against calling Monica Lewinsky to testify. He voted to convict Clinton on both articles of impeachment, but neither article received enough support to remove Clinton. Enzi voted against convicting Donald Trump on both articles of impeachment in his first impeachment trial. The nominations of John Roberts, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court of the United States were supported by Enzi. He voted against Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan's nominations.
Andrea Palladio's influence on American architecture was recognized by Congress due to a resolution sponsored by Enzi and Bill Pascrell. A Congressional Gold Medal was awarded to Constantino Brumidi in 2012 due to legislation sponsored by Enzi and Pascrell. The Powell Shooting Range Land Conveyance Act, which directed the Bureau of Land Management to convey 322 acres of federal land near Powell, Wyoming, to the Powell Recreation District, was sponsored by Enzi and signed into law in 2013.
The conservative Heritage Action gave Enzi a lifetime score of 74%, Conservative Political Action Conference gave him a lifetime score of 91.10%, and the liberal Americans for Democratic Action gave him a score of 5% in 2020. National Journal rates members of Congress on how liberal or conservative they are in the categories of economic, social, and foreign policy; it gave Enzi a composite conservative score of 90.2 in 2011, 87.8 in 2012, and 95.8 in 2013.