Incumbent won’t endorse in Liz Cheney primary

Wyoming’s retiring at-large Rep. Cynthia Lummis said Thursday she’s not getting involved in the crowded GOP primary race to replace her.

The conservative congresswoman said she’s spoken to many of the candidates vying for her seat; Liz Cheney, the elder daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, called her last weekend to let her know she was jumping into the race.

{mosads}But Lummis said she won’t endorse because of her political ties to many of the candidates. She’s known Dick Cheney since 1978, when the future vice president ran for Wyoming’s only House seat and Lummis ran for the state legislature.

Lummis’s daughter is managing the campaign of one Cheney rival, state Sen. Leland Christensen. Another candidate Lummis knows well is state Rep. Tim Stubson.

Despite withholding her endorsement, Lummis, the only female member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, offered praise for the Cheneys.

“I think that is a lovely family. Dick is a superstar, intellectually and as a policymaker. And [his wife] Lynn is, in her own right, an extraordinary historian and author,” Lummis told The Hill in an interview. “They’re well established and fabulous people, and I like them.

“I wouldn’t call them close friends but they are more than just acquaintances,” she added.

As for Liz Cheney, Lummis called her “an extremely bright woman” who is “certainly qualified” to serve in the House.

Liz Cheney, 49, is an attorney and former George W. Bush administration official. She challenged incumbent Sen. Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.) in the GOP primary during the 2014 cycle, but faced a spate of negative headlines over a spat with her younger sister, who is gay.

Cheney abandoned her Senate bid months later, citing family health issues.