Four years ago, I claimed that if Wyoming were to build a Mount Rushmore celebrating its greatest leaders, a strong case could be made to put the late Mike Enzi’s image up there on the wall.
Here in the Cowboy State, we use terms like “still waters run deep” — that is the type of compliment one would give the late senator.
Four years ago this week, our great friend died July 26, 2021, from a bicycle accident in his beloved hometown of Gillette.
Some 20 U.S. senators traveled to the isolated county seat of Campbell County in northeast Wyoming to celebrate the life of their friend.
Enzi had retired in January, 2021, after representing Wyoming in the Senate for 24 years. About 2,000 people assembled at the Pronghorn Center at Gillette College (just off Enzi Avenue) for the service.
Unprecedented Turnout Of Senators
U.S. Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyoming, called the funeral turnout unprecedented.
“There has never been a turnout of this size of U.S. senators for the funeral of an ex-senator,” he said. “This was unparalleled and it just goes to show how beloved Mike was by his colleagues.”
In an almost unbelievable scenario, Barrasso described some of the problems other U.S. senators had getting to Gillette.
Because of historic congressional rules, senators are limited as to how many can travel together in the same plane or vehicle.
For some reason, Barrasso said, the federal government would not allow the senators’ planes to land in Gillette. Instead, the senators had to land in Casper and ride two hours north by bus.
In addition to Barrasso and Enzi’s Senate successor, U.S. Sen. Cynthia Lummis, plus then-U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney, other members of Congress in attendance included Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky and Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, Jim Inhofe, R-Oklahoma, John Boozman, R-Arkansas, James Lankford, R-Oklahoma, Mike Rounds, R-South Dakota, Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, Richard Shelby, R-Alabama, John Cornyn, R-Texas, Steve Daines, R-Montana, Thom Tillis, R-North Carolina, James Risch, R-Idaho, Bill Cassidy, R-Louisiana, Sheldon Whitehouse, D-Rhode Island, Amy Klobuchar, D-Minnesota, Tom Carper, D-Delaware, and Joe Manchin, D-West Virginia.
Former Wyoming Governors Matt Mead, Dave Fruedenthal, and Mike Sullivan were there along with former U. S. Rep. Barbara Cubin. Current Gov. Mark Gordon and his wife Jennie played a major role in the event, including presenting a Wyoming flag to the Enzi family.
Privilege To Know Mike
As a longtime journalist in Wyoming, it has been my good fortune to become good friends with many of our state’s greatest leaders.
I first got to know Mike when he ran for the U. S. Senate in 1996.
He came into our newspaper office in Lander. He was a big friendly guy. I confided that I may need to cut the interview short because I needed to go coach my son’s baseball team.
“Well, heck, let’s go now,” he said. “Can I tag along? Frankly, that sounds like a lot more fun.”
He hung around for the entire practice and even hit a few balls to our infielders. We sat in the dugout for 20 minutes afterward for a quick interview. He always referred to that as one of his most pleasant stops during his many campaign seasons.
When my wife Nancy won the Jefferson Award, we went to Washington D. C. and, again, spent way more time than was allotted with him in his office.
My first coffee table book was “Wyoming’s 7 Greatest Natural Wonders.” Enzi jumped at the chance to write the section about the North Platte River System.
Enzi’s first lines in the book were: “My North Platte - It’s More Than Just a River. It’s a Link to Our Past – And the Path to Our Future. By Mike Enzi, Fisherman and U.S. Senator.” Very eloquent, as always.
He fished that great river in all parts of the state as he and Diana travelled around every weekend meeting with constituents and solving problems.
America’s Accountant
Solving problems? Heck, he was an accountant. His national nickname was “America’s Accountant.” No man did more in his 24 Senate years to try to balance the federal budget and get national spending under control than Mike Enzi.
He was a doer. He was an expert at getting bills passed. Nobody else even comes close. He was responsible for the Senate passing hundreds of bills during his four terms, getting them signed by four different presidents.
Mike and Diana Enzi had a wonderful marriage. They were inseparable which explains how they got along so well in their 50-plus years together.
The town of Gillette, the state of Wyoming, the United States, and the world are all better places because of the lifelong dedication of Mike Enzi.
I concluded my column four years ago with this:
A giant has left us.
His shoes are impossible to fill.
Godspeed, Mike, friend to us all.
