Jul 27, 2021 - Politics & Policy

Former Sen. Mike Enzi dies at 77 after bike accident

Axios

Former Sen. Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.), who retired this year after 24 years in the Senate, died at age 77 after suffering serious injuries in a bicycle accident, AP reports.

The big picture: Though he ranked as one of the most conservative members of the Senate, Enzi had a reputation as a consensus builder and served as the chairman of both the Budget Committee and Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.

“Nothing gets done when we’re just telling each other how wrong we are,” Enzi said in his farewell Senate address last year. “Just ask yourself: Has anyone ever really changed your opinion by getting in your face and yelling at you or saying to you how wrong you are? Usually that doesn’t change hearts or minds.”
Enzi was succeeded by Sen. Cynthia Lummis, a former congresswoman and Wyoming state treasurer.

What they're saying: “Mike’s colleagues on both sides of the aisle were sorry enough to see him depart the chamber and begin his well-earned next chapter just a few months ago,” Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said in remarks on Monday, as news broke of Enzi's hospitalization.

"Mike and Diana were a fantastic Senate couple in every respect — from the major legislative accomplishments, to the generosity and kindness they showed to everyone from Senate staff to the pages."

Go deeper: Read an AP obituary

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Former Sen. Mike Enzi dies at 77 after bike accident

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