Mike Enzi

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Mike Enzi
United States Senator from Wyoming
Incumbent
Assumed office  January 3, 1997 Serving with John Barrasso
Preceded by	Alan K. Simpson
Chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
In office January 3, 2005 – January 3, 2007
Preceded by	Judd Gregg
Succeeded by	Ted Kennedy
Born	February 1, 1944 (1944-02-01) (age 65) Bremerton, Washington
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Diana Enzi
Children	Amy Enzi Emily Enzi Brad Enzi
Residence	Gillette, Wyoming
Alma mater	George Washington University
Occupation	accountant, energy executive
Religion	Presbyterian
Military service
Service/branch	United States Air National Guard
Years of service	1967-1973
Unit	Wyoming

Michael Bradley "Mike" Enzi (born February 1, 1944) is the senior U.S. Senator from Wyoming. Before his election to the U.S. Senate in 1996, Enzi was a businessman who at one time owned family shoe stores. He later became a politician on the state level, having served in the Wyoming Legislature for more than a decade. He was reelected to the U.S. Senate in 2002 and again in 2008. Enzi is a Republican.

[edit] Early life and career

Born in Bremerton, Washington, to Elmer Jacob Enzi and the former Dorothy M. Bradley, ^[1] Enzi grew up in Thermopolis, Wyoming after his father's return from military duty on the Pacific Coast. He attended elementary school in Thermopolis and graduated from Sheridan High School in 1962. He is an Eagle Scout and a recipient of the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award from the Boy Scouts of America.^[2][3]

Enzi received a degree in accounting from George Washington University in Washington, D.C., in 1966. He is also a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity and Alpha Kappa Psi business fraternity. He received an M.B.A. in retail marketing from the University of Denver in Colorado in 1968. He also served in the Wyoming Air National Guard from 1967 to 1973.^[4] On June 7, 1969, Enzi married the former Diana Buckley; the couple has two daughters, Amy and Emily, and a son, Brad.

Soon after his marriage, Enzi moved to Gillette, where he expanded his father's shoe-sale business ^[5], NZ Shoes, which later also featured locations in Sheridan and in Miles City, Montana. As a young business owner, he served as president of the Wyoming chapter of the United States Junior Chamber. Enzi was elected as Mayor of Gillette, in 1974 at the age of 30 and held the position for two terms. He served until 1982, and during his tenure, the city doubled in size. From 1976 to 1979, Enzi worked with the U.S. Department of Interior on energy policy via its Coal Advisory Committee.

Enzi was elected to the Wyoming House of Representatives as a Republican and served from 1987 to 1991. He was then a member of the Wyoming Senate from 1991 to 1996. While a member of the State Senate, Enzi became a vocal opponent of proposals to allow legalized gambling within his state. He served as the primary spokesman of WyBett, an anti-casino group in 1994[2]. During this time period, he also worked professionally as an accountant with an oil drilling company, holding this job from 1985 to 1997. During the 1990s, he also worked as an executive director with the Black Hills Corporation, an energy holding company that owns utilities and natural gas and coal mining operations.

[edit] Senate career

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Enzi was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 1996. He endured a tough primary challenge during his first campaign, before winning election by an 8-point margin. Enzi won by a very comfortable margin in 2002. He became the senior U.S. Senator from Wyoming when his colleague Craig L. Thomas died on June 4, 2007, from leukemia. His new colleague is fellow Republican John Barrasso, a former State Senator from Casper, whom Enzi, as a then-State Senator himself, only narrowly defeated in the 1996 GOP senatorial primary 33 percent to 32 percent.

Enzi is currently serving his third term in the U.S. Senate which he won with over 76 percent of the vote against Democratic opponent Chris Rothfuss, a professor of political science at the University of Wyoming. ^[6]

Enzi served as Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions Committee from 2005-2007 and -- following the Democrats; taking control of Congress -- is now currently the Ranking Member on the committee. On this committee, Enzi has sent to the desk of the President several bills on reform for all of these areas. Enzi was also crucial in the passage of George W. Bush's controversial No Child Left Behind Act.

[edit] Political Positions

[edit] Committee assignments

• Committee on the Budget
• Committee on Finance
  • Subcommittee on Health Care
  • Subcommittee on Taxation, IRS Oversight, and Long-Term Growth
  • Subcommittee on Energy, Natural Resources, and Infrastructure
• Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (Ranking Minority Member)
  • As Ranking Minority Member of the full committee, Sen. Enzi may serve as an ex officio member of all subcommittees.
• Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship

[edit] Political views

Enzi was ranked by National Journal as the sixth-most conservative U.S. Senator in its March 2007 conservative/liberal rankings[3]. Despite his strong support of the War in Iraq, he was one of 14 U.S. Senators to vote against the Iraq War funding bill in May 2007 because he opposes the clauses of the bill which increase domestic spending.

On social issues, Enzi is strongly conservative. He opposes all types of abortion and has voted in favor of proposals that would provide restrictions on the procedure for minors, those stationed on military bases, and other groups. He has voted in favor of failed constitutional amendments that suggested banning gay marriage and flag desecration. Enzi also is a strong supporter of gun rights and is ranked very favorably by the National Rifle Association (NRA)^[7].

Enzi supports overall taxation decreases and has voted for the repeal of legislation governing such things as the death tax and "marriage penalty." He also calls for a partial privatization of Social Security and has consistently voted against measures to expand Medicare or to enroll more children or lower-class individuals in public health care. A strong supporter of the coal industry, Enzi also rejects alternative energy proposals and advocates Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) and offshore drilling. He has a somewhat mixed record on trade issues: he has voted to approve most free trade bills but has rejected the Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), one of the largest pieces of such legislation, and is opposed to presidential fast-tracking of trade relation normalization.^[7]

Enzi takes a hard-line view on illegal immigration and has been rated highly by groups that support tighter border controls. He has voted in favor of the construction of a fence along the U.S.-Mexican border and against the implementation of guest worker programs. Enzi has voted to uphold the PATRIOT Act and is opposed to calls to cut down on wiretapping and to extend rights to Guantanamo Bay detainees. Enzi has also rejected calls for a timetable for military withdrawal from Iraq.^[7]

In 2005, Enzi became the ninth U.S. Senator from Wyoming to ascend to the rank of Chairman on one of the 16 standing committees in the U.S. Senate. Enzi has been a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee since his arrival in the U.S. Senate in 1997.

Enzi's committee led the first revisions to mine safety laws in 28 years by promoting the use of new technologies to improve mine safety and save lives. During his time as Chairman of the HELP Committee, 37 bills were reported out of the committee, 23 bills passed the U.S. Senate, 352 nominations were reported favorably, and 15 laws came through the committee that were eventually signed by President George W. Bush.

Enzi has joined Barrasso in endorsing the nomination of Richard Honaker of Rock Springs to the U.S. District Court in Cheyenne. The selection has been pending in the Senate Judiciary Committee for more than a year because of opposition from secularists and supporters of abortion rights.

[edit] Health Care Reform

Enzi was one of the Gang of Six senators working to find a bipartisan solution to health care reform.^[8] Speaking on the topic, Enzi told the media, "We all want health care reform that will reduce costs, improve quality and expand access without breaking the bank. The bipartisan talks we're having in the Finance Committee represent the best chance we have of achieving our shared goals, and I urge Democrat leaders not to close the door on these productive discussions."^[9] Many people^[who?] question whether Enzi should lead health care reform efforts because of his close ties to the health care and insurance industries. Enzi has received $793,711 in contributions from the health care and insurance industries -- his largest contributor -- since 2005.^[10] Blue Cross Blue Shield was also the largest corporate contributor to his campaign in the 2010 election cycle.^[11] In addition, Enzi’s former health policy director is now a lobbyist for Wellpoint, a subsidiary of Blue Cross Blue Shield^[12]

[edit] Election History

[edit] See also

• United States Senate elections in Wyoming, 2008

[edit] Footnotes

[edit] External links

• United States Senator Michael B. Enzi official Senate site

• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Campaign contributions at OpenSecrets.org
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Issue positions and quotes at On The Issues
• SourceWatch Congresspedia — Mike Enzi profile
• Enzi2008.com
• Student Loan Justice - Who Did It? connections with student loan corporations and lobbyists

v • d • e United States Senators from Wyoming Class 1 Warren · Clark · Kendrick · O'Mahoney · Barrett · McGee · Wallop · Thomas · Barrasso Class 2 J. Carey · Warren · Sullivan · R. Carey · Schwartz · Robertson · Hunt · Crippa · O'Mahoney · Hickey · M. Simpson · Hansen · A. Simpson · Enzi