Cheney Not Attending Republican Convention: 'Going Fishing'

While fellow Republicans are meeting in Tampa at the end of August to formally nominate Mitt Romney to be their standard bearer, former Vice President Dick Cheney will be doing something entirely different — probably in a lake or river.

"I've got a fishing trip planned that week," Cheney told ABC News. "I've done a lot of conventions over the years, but this is a special trip I've been planning on for a long time."

A fly-fishing enthusiast, Cheney won’t even be in the country that week. He’ll be in Canada, where the closest elephant will likely be in a zoo.

Other notable Republicans, who are planning to miss the convention include former Cheney bosses — Presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush, the network reports.

Cheney also skipped the 2008 convention in St. Paul, Minn., at which the party nominated Sen. John McCain.