Paul and Cheney stand at opposite poles of the conservative national security debate. | AP Photos Rand Paul mocks Cheney's bid

Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul mocked Liz Cheney’s newly announced Senate campaign Tuesday, questioning her Wyoming residency in a barbed statement.

“When I heard Liz Cheney was running for Senate I wondered if she was running in her home state of Virginia,” Paul said.


Cheney declared this afternoon that she would run in Wyoming’s GOP primary against incumbent Sen. Mike Enzi.

( Also on POLITICO: 10 fiery quotes from Liz Cheney)

Asked last week about the brewing matchup, Paul told POLITICO he viewed Enzi as a solid conservative.

Paul and Cheney stand at opposite poles of the conservative national security debate, with Cheney supporting a hawkish foreign policy and Paul openly questioning the value of American military action overseas, and advocating for cuts to the defense budget.

Cheney’s father, former Vice President Dick Cheney, endorsed Rand Paul’s primary opponent in the 2010 Kentucky Senate race.