Liz Cheney to Run for Senate
BLITZER: The American man on the run from espionage charges in the United States may be leaving the Moscow airport soon. And he's been there a while, we should say, almost a month already. Edward Snowden sitting in the airport, no passport, unable to leave New York, no clear destination if he does leave. He's now formally requested asylum in Russia, if you call this handwritten=letter formal. The letter is dated Monday. Snowden's lawyer in Moscow predicts his client will be able to leave the airport eventually. His words, in fact, "in the next few days." Let's see what happens there. Senator Lindsey Graham is jumping into the dispute over the NSA leaker. The South Carolina Republican says he wants the U.S. to boycott the 2014 Winter Olympic Games if -- if Russia grants asylum to Snowden. Russia will host those games. Graham says letting Snowden stay would be, in his words, "a slap in the face to the United States." Snowden has been holed up in that Moscow airport and, as we reported, he's applied for temporary asylum in Russia. Another Cheney enters the political arena. Liz Cheney, the former Vice President Dick Cheney's eldest daughter, will run for the United States Senate from Wyoming next year, hoping to unseat Mike Enzi. In her campaign announcement, Cheney says, "The country needs a new generation of leaders to step up to the plate. But Senator Enzi says, wait a minute. He thinks voters in Wyoming will eventually stick with him. Our chief congressional correspondent, Dana Bash, caught up with Mike Enzi on Capitol Hill. Dana is joining us. What did he have to say about Liz Cheney's challenge, Dana?</s>DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, the idea of Liz Cheney running for Senate is a big deal, last name Cheney. She's one of Dick Cheney's daughters and also because challenging a fellow Republican and somebody who is a longtime family friend. Mike Enzi might not have national name recognition, but he's somebody who is well known in the state where she's running in Wyoming. He was quoted, Mike Enzi, as telling some reporters, yesterday when the news broke, that, I thought we were friends. When I caught up with him today after a Health Care Committee meeting, I asked him about that and a few other things.</s>BASH: Why do you think that she believes that you aren't doing a good enough job as a Republican Senator representing Wyoming, that she would be better?</s>SEN. MIKE ENZI, (R), WYOMING: I don't know. She's never been to any of my listening sessions. I do listening sessions all over Wyoming where I sit and listen to what constituents have to say. I'm an old shoe salesman. So I know there is a customer, I know who the customer is, I listen to the customer, and I see how that fits with inventory that I've got, which is what we're doing with legislation.</s>BASH: One of fascinating things about this decision by Liz Cheney to challenge Mike Enzi is, as you know, Wolf, we've seen in many instances where you've had intra-party fights, particularly inside the Republican Party during the last few election cycles, it's because a Senator has been here for a long time, maybe work too much with Democrats, and somebody has challenged them from the right, somebody who is more conservative. Mike Enzi is considered extremely conservative. The other instance is when somebody has just lost touch with people back home. Mike Enzi's not known as somebody who has done that. He does go home to Wyoming every weekend, as you saw there. He talks to people there all the time. It's not the case with him. But from the perspective, Liz Cheney -- I talked to people close to her. They say she bought a house in Wyoming just last year. She has been there growing up with her father and her mother, who have been -- from Wyoming. In fact, she said in her video announcing her candidacy her family goes back there to 1852. So she clearly wanted to run for the Senate. Mike Enzi decided he was going to stay in, even though he's a third- term Senator, and decided now's the time to do it. Better strike while the iron is hot. We'll see how hot it is.</s>BLITZER: It's going to be intense. We'll have more with Dana on the story later in "The Situation Room" as well. Dana, thanks very much. Coming up this hour, here in CNN's NEWSROOM, attention all shoppers out there, retailers may be tracking your movements in department stores. We'll explain what's going on.