Being labeled a “carpetbagger” isn’t the kiss of death in U.S. politics.

However, Liz Cheney is going to have deal with being called one as she runs for the U.S. Senate seat in Wyoming, a state where she has virtually no connection — other than the fact that her father once represented the state in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Cheney’s foe in the 2014 Republican primary will be three-term incumbent Sen. Mike Enzi. Cheney says it’s time for a “new generation of leaders” to set policy. Cheney is 46; Enzi is 69.

But back to the carpetbagger issue.

Former U.S. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton had the same issue when she ran for the Senate in New York. She’d never lived there. But she and her husband, former President Bill Clinton, bought a home there. She acquainted herself with the New York political infrastructure, developed a huge fundraising base and won in a breeze in 2000. Clinton ended up becoming a first-rate lawmaker, winning high praise among from her colleagues — both Democratic and Republican.

Let’s go back a bit further. Robert F. Kennedy only had a slight connection to the Empire State when he decided to run for the Senate in 1964; RFK attended a boarding school there as a child. He also had been called a “carpetbagger” by his Republican foes, but brushed it off with the trademark Kennedy wit and charm. Kennedy also won in a walk that year and served for four years before his life ended so tragically at the hand of an assassin.

Liz Cheney has the family name in Wyoming. Her father, ex-Vice President Dick Cheney, is one of the most polarizing figures in politics today. Liz Cheney was born in Wisconsin, grew up in Washington, D.C., attended law school in Illinois. She does have a passing acquaintance with her new home state.

This question remains, however: Cheney is like many contemporary conservatives who cry out for “authenticity.” Will she be able to make the claim that she’s authentic while fending off claims of being a cheap carpetbagger?

Liz Cheney — a harsh critic of President Obama — is known to play rough, just like her dad. We’ll see in due course whether she can take it as well as she can dish it out.