Cheney shoots man on Texas quail hunting trip

[Surfergal]

updated: 5:39 p.m. ET Feb. 12, 2006
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11312757/
WASHINGTON - Vice President Dick Cheney accidentally shot and wounded a companion during a weekend quail hunting trip in Texas, spraying the fellow hunter in the face and chest with shotgun pellets.

Harry Whittington, a millionaire attorney from Austin, was “alert and doing fine” in a Corpus Christi hospital Sunday after he was shot by Cheney on a ranch in south Texas, said Katharine Armstrong, the property’s owner.

He was described as in stable condition by Yvonne Wheeler, spokeswoman for the Christus Spohn Health System in Corpus Christi

Armstrong in an interview with The Associated Press said Whittington, 78, was mostly injured on his right side, with the pellets hitting his cheek, neck and chest during the incident which occurred late afternoon on Saturday

She said emergency personnel traveling with Cheney tended to Whittington until the ambulance arrived.

Cheney’s spokeswoman, Lea Anne McBride, said the vice president was with Whittington and his wife at the hospital on Sunday.

Cheney's office delays announcement
The shooting was first reported by the Corpus Christi Caller-Times. The vice president’s office did not disclose the accident until nearly 24 hours after it happened.

Armstrong said she was watching from a car while Cheney, Whittington and another hunter got out of the vehicle to shoot at a covey of quail.

“The vice president didn’t see him,” she continued. “The covey flushed and the vice president picked out a bird and was following it and shot. And by God, Harry was in the line of fire and got peppered pretty good.”

Whittington has been a private practice attorney in Austin since 1950 and has long been active in Texas Republican politics. He’s been appointed to several state boards, including when then-Gov. George W. Bush named him to the Texas Funeral Service Commission.

Whittington owns property in Travis County worth at least $11 million, the Austin American-Statesman reported last year, not counting a downtown block at the center of a long-running dispute with the city over a condemnation issue.

Armstrong, owner of the Armstrong Ranch where the accident occurred, said Whittington was bleeding and Cheney was very apologetic.

‘It knocked him silly’
“It broke the skin,” she said of the shotgun pellets. “It knocked him silly. But he was fine. He was talking. His eyes were open. It didn’t get in his eyes or anything like that.”

“Fortunately, the vice president has got a lot of medical people around him and so they were right there and probably more cautious than we would have been,” she said. “The vice president has got an ambulance on call, so the ambulance came.”

Cheney is an avid hunter who makes annual hunting trips to South

[Chiizii]

I await the response to this common accident. :cool:

[Surfergal]

I await the response to this common accident. :cool:
I guess since it is a "common" accident, that you think it makes it ok?

[Snooty]

I couldn't believe this when I heard it on the news. I wonder if there will be a big "stink" about it? You would think a skilled hunter would know better. Poor Cheney will catch it for this... :eek:

[Chiizii]

I await the response to this common accident. :cool:



I guess since it is a "common" accident, that you think it makes it ok?

Makes it okay? What are you talking about? Where in the name of Pete is there any other suggestion than the responses will come out of the wall from the bizarre to the sensible. That is what I await.

[tngirl]

It's W's fault. :D

[Snooty]

It's W's fault. :D

I'm sure it will be too! :eek:

[stresseater]

Apparently the guy didn't announce himself when he rejoined the hunting party. Common mistake and I'm sure the guy that got hit would say so. However be prepared to start hearing about all the accidental gun deaths in the USA and how we need to give our guns up. LMAO ;)

[Snooty]

Apparently the guy didn't announce himself when he rejoined the hunting party. Common mistake and I'm sure the guy that got hit would say so. However be prepared to start hearing about all the accidental gun deaths in the USA and how we need to give our guns up. LMAO ;)

I'm waiting and I'm sure it will happen too! :rolleyes:

[Surfergal]

I think the story itself and the comments you all are making already, says it all...no need for any more... :rolleyes:

[tngirl]

We are all happy that the man is ok and not severly injured. But as a hunter, unfortunately these types of accidents happen. My roommate has been peppered before. It was an accident.

[Jolie Rouge]

John Podhoretz: http://corner.nationalreview.com/06_02_12_corner-archive.asp#089912


This story is a very big deal, despite all the mitigating factors -- the accident involved a friend, his medical team was right there to help, and all that. Something like this has never happened before, and it is a genuinely disturbing thing to think that the vice president of the United States actually shot somebody last weekend, even for fans of his. It's disturbing as well that there was a news blackout that lasted nearly a day about this serious incident. It seems beyond question that the vice president is going to have to go before the cameras, explain what happened, and show genuine remorse for his actions, however inadvertent. It's a difficult challenge for someone as reticent as Dick Cheney. But unless he does so, and makes a good showing of it, he will be damaged goods for the remainder of the Bush presidency.

:rolleyes:

Bryan Preston dissects left-leaning Editor and Publisher's coverage over at Junkyard Blog and says "Get a grip."
http://junkyardblog.net/archives/week_2006_02_12.html#005396


Sheez Louise, “genuinely disturbing,” “news blackout”, “remorse for his actions”? It may well be the other guy’s fault. When you’re out hunting and you get shot, it’s usually because you were unclear about your intented movements or because you snuck up on somebody who was amped up looking for the quarry. I’m not saying it’s Whittington’s fault, but it may well be. So how can Cheney express remorse for some other guy’s mistake, if that’s what it was? JPod wants Cheney to shed Sally Field tears in front of a snarling Washington press corps. That sounds like a bad idea to me.


Along the lines of Bryan's point about uncertainty over whose fault the accident was, Jeff H. sends along some important info included in Fox News's coverage:
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,184657,00.html


According to Armstrong, who is friends with both the Cheneys and the Whittingtons and set up the two for the hunting trip on her property, a group of hunters was traveling in a vehicle on the ranch when it spotted a covey of quail in the late afternoon.

Armstrong, who remained in the car, said Whittington shot a bird and went to look for it in the tall grass, while Cheney and a third hunter walked to another spot and found a second covey.

Armstrong told FOX News that Cheney, thinking he was the last hunter on the right of the party, turned and fired at a quail. Whittington was standing on lower ground with the sun to his back. He was knocked to the ground, but not knocked out. All members of the hunting party were wearing blaze orange, she said.

"Mr. Whittington decided to join them. He came up from behind the other two hunters, and unfortunately, he did not announce to the hunters he was there and trying to join the line ," Armstrong said. "The vice persident and other hunter believed that Whittington was 200 yards away, when, in fact, he was 30 yards and behind the line."



Dan at GayPatriot: http://gaypatriot.net/2006/02/13/msm-cheney-hunting-trip-eager-to-find-scandal-in-every-administration-error-no-matter-how-minor


Scott McClellan calmly made clear that the Vice President, not on an official trip, was not traveling with his normal entourage and that the first priority of those there was tending to Harry Whittington, the man injured. There’s no scandal here, no attempt to cover up. It doesn’t seem a decision was made not to report this, but that the Vice President’s staff handled this in a clumsy manner. Given that this is not a matter of government policy nor of national consequence, it is only a minor misdeed. For the hunting accident is merely an indication that the Vice President, like all his predecessors, is human and makes mistakes.

I would hope the White House Situation Room serves to address issues of national security and domestic policy — and not the imperfections of the Vice President on his own time. The press’s persistent baiting of Mr. McClellan says far more about them than it does about the Vice President or the delay in reporting the story. From the tone of their questioning to the content of those questions, it seemed they were certain this delay amounted to scandal.

That the Vice President — and his staff — did all in their power to see to the health of Mr. Whittington after the accident occurred is evidence enough that there is no scandal here, merely a good man concerned for the health of a hunting companion whom he had accidentally injured. With angry Islamicists stirring up Muslims and an anti-American tyranny trying to get nuclear arms, the press should not dwell so much on an inconsequential delay in reporting an error (unrelated to his official duties) the Vice President made on his own time. And so we add one example of the MSM’s bias against this Administration — and its zeal to find scandal in every Administration mistake.


What Mark Levin said: http://levin.nationalreview.com/archives/089919.asp


The local sheriff's office has investigated and concluded it was an accident — which, of course, it was. And don't give me "the public's right to know." Not from this media — which still refuses to publish those Danish cartoons. I'll leave it to others to split hairs about who knew what and when, as I know they will, but I just don't care.

[Jolie Rouge]

"I'd still rather hunt with Dick Cheney than ride with Ted Kennedy ."

[Surfergal]

Cheney Violates Cardinal Rule of Hunting
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/13863786.htm
Feb 13, 7:32 PM (ET)
By NEDRA PICKLER

WASHINGTON (AP) - Vice President Dick Cheney apparently broke the No. 1 rule of hunting: be sure of what you're shooting at. Cheney wounded fellow hunter Harry Whittington in the face, neck and chest Saturday, apparently because he didn't see Whittington approaching as he fired on a covey of quail in Texas.

Hunting safety experts interviewed Monday agreed it would have been a good idea for Whittington to announce himself - something he apparently didn't do, according to a witness. But they stressed that the shooter is responsible for knowing his surroundings and avoiding hitting other people.

"We always stress to anybody that before you make any kind of a shot, it's incumbent upon the shooter to assess the situation and make sure it's a safe shot," said Mark Birkhauser, president-elect of the International Hunter Education Association and hunter education coordinator in New Mexico. "Once you squeeze that trigger, you can't bring that shot back."

Cheney, an experienced hunter, has not commented publicly about the accident. He avoided reporters by leaving an Oval Office meeting with United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan before the press was escorted in.

President Bush was told about Cheney's involvement in the accident shortly before 8 p.m. Saturday - about an hour after it occurred - but the White House did not disclose the accident until Sunday afternoon, and then only in response to press questions. Press secretary Scott McClellan said he did not know until Sunday morning that Cheney had shot someone.

Facing a press corps upset that news had been withheld, McClellan said, "I think you can always look back at these issues and look at how to do a better job."

,,,Despite all the safety tips and training, hunting accidents are an unfortunate part of the sport. In Texas, there were 30 accidents and two hunting deaths last year, according to the state Parks and Wildlife Department. National figures kept by the International Hunter Education Association show 744 shooting accidents, with 74 deaths, in 2002, the last year for which figures were available. Twenty-six accidents involving quail hunting were reported.

The association estimates there are 15.7 million hunters who will spend about 250 million days hunting in the United States this year.

[Chiizii]

"I'd still rather hunt with Dick Cheney than ride with Ted Kennedy ."

I saw that quote by T.S. over at M. Malkin's site and darn near wet my pants laughing at the humor.

But seriously, I can't believe the hoo-haw over this incident. The MSM news people asking the questions of why was it a day before the incident and that the White House is trying to squash the story. Sixty five questions about this incident at the briefing. Questions that even included "is the VP handing in his resignation".

Who gives a rip that it was 24 hours before the public found out...
A few decades ago, this news would of taken just as long if not longer to reach the public...
that would be before Mass Media and the Internet.

Never-mind that it was more important to make sure that Whittington was alright, ask the property owner how far her privacy is to be invaded, how upset a the VP would be after a hunting accident that involves a good friend. Ignoring the fact that the VP was a private citizen during this hunting trip. The history that the VP is normally pretty tight lipped with the media. Which I do not blame him at all.

Whittington did not announce his approach to a group of hunters. A basic hunting safety rule was violated. His wounds are superficial. Wounds that are expected with a 28 gauge birdshot at that distance. If the man had been critically wounded and his life was in the balance, I imagine that this story would of unfolded differently. It is so much better to blow things right out of proportion than to deal with it as it is...

Oh and BTW: I have been shot in the behind with 28 gauge birdshot by a seasoned hunter. It was a hunting accident and it was my fault for not disclosing my location.

[Njean31]

"I'd still rather hunt with Dick Cheney than ride with Ted Kennedy ."


omg, love it :D

[Jolie Rouge]

See Dick. Run!
First official report released in Cheney hunting accident

FEBRUARY 13--The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department today issued a report on Vice President Dick Cheney's accidental shooting Saturday of a fellow quail hunter on a sprawling Texas ranch. The hunting accident report, a copy of which you can find below, briefly recounts how Cheney plugged Harry Whittington, a 78-year-old Austin lawyer, with birdshot in the face, neck, and chest. According to the state report, Cheney was wearing a "blaze orange" cap and "coat/vest" and brown trousers and was toting an Italian-made Perazzi 28-gauge shotgun.

In addition to the document's release, wildlife officials reported today that while Cheney had purchased a valid non-resident hunting license, he did not obtain a required "upland game bird stamp." As a result, a warning citation--which carries no fine or penalty--will be issued to Cheney, which state officials described as "routine." And as for whether Cheney would have needed to previously take a hunters education course, state wildlife officials noted that such classes are only required of hunters born on or after September 2, 1971. Cheney was born January 30, 1941.

While yet to release its report on the shooting, the Kenedy County Sheriff's Office this afternoon issued a press release noting that an "investigation reveals that there was no alcohol, or misconduct involved in the incident."

In an interview with deputies, Whittington "collaborated Vice President Cheney's statement," according to the release, which concluded, "This was no more than a hunting accident." (3 pages)

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/0213061cheney1.html

[Jolie Rouge]

Washington Post reporter Dana Milbank turned up on an MSNBC show to talk about the Cheney accidental hunting trip shooting wearing this costume:

http://michellemalkin.com/archives/images/milbankpic.jpg

Download and watch the video (Windows Media .wmv file). http://michellemalkin.com/

Hat tip: Tom Elia at The New Editor, who rightly raises his eyebrow at Milbank's display of less-than-objective journalism. http://www.theneweditor.com/index.php?/archives/2206-Good,-Clean-Objective-Journalism.html


The Washington Post's Dana Milbank just appeared on Keith Olberman's MSNBC show, wearing a reflective hunting vest while talking about Vice President Cheney's shooting accident in Texas.

Classy.

This is the face of the professional media. Michelle Malkin has the video of an utterly pathetic attempt to mock a near tragedy. I can only imagine Milbank enjoys popping balloons near Jim Brady and making gargling noises near the Kopechne family.


What does the Post have to say about Milbank's stunt?

Write the ombudsman: [email protected].

***

More reaction:
http://newsbusters.org/node/4025
Newsbusters' Dave Pierre, "Think back to 1998. Imagine a female newspaper reporter (not an opinion columnist, but a reporter, mind you) showing up for a television interview dressed in a beret and looking like Monica Lewinsky. Or a male columnist wearing a Clinton wig and holding a cigar."

:eek:




Quotes on Cheney's Hunting Accident
By The Associated Press

"I know that Vice President Cheney has been hunting a long time. He's an experienced veteran. But an accident with a firearm is just like an accident with a vehicle. If he looks left one time, somebody comes and crosses the center lane." — Rocky Evans, president, Quail Unlimited, Edgefield, S.C.

___

"We always stress to anybody that before you make any kind of a shot, it's incumbent upon the shooter to assess the situation and make sure it's a safe shot. Once you squeeze that trigger, you can't bring that shot back." — Mark Birkhauser, president-elect of the International Hunter Education Association.

___

"The shooter is responsible to make sure there's nobody in the way. ... When you bird hunt like that in a group or you change your plan, typically you would announce, 'Hey, hey, everybody.' When you rejoin the hunting group you would announce your presence." — Julia Dixon, spokeswoman for the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.

___

"Birds don't always get up right in front of you. A lot of times you'll just pivot and if you don't consciously know where everybody's at, that's when someone gets hurt." — Duane Harvey, president, Wisconsin Hunter Education Instructors Association.

___

"I would be proud to hunt with the vice president — cautious, but proud." — Democratic Wyoming Gov. Dave Freudenthal.

___

"When a bird gets up, you sort of lock into this `I want to get this bird,' and for a split second you can forget what is around you." — Thomas Baumeister, head of education programs for the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks.

___

"Typically when you are coming back to a line, you would say, `I'm coming up,' or whatever. It was completely unbeknownst to the vice president or the other shooter that Mr. Whittington was coming back up." — Katharine Armstrong, owner of the Armstrong Ranch and witness to the accident.

___

"You can always look back at these issues and look at how to do a better job." — White House press secretary Scott McClellan, when asked if he was satisfied with the way the incident was handled.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060214/ap_on_go_pr_wh/cheney_quotes;_ylt=AprLWHh.onQKZwY7kzUEa.AGw_IE;_y lu=X3oDMTA3OXIzMDMzBHNlYwM3MDM-

[Surfergal]

TV Comedians Target Cheney Accident
Feb 14, 4:09 AM (ET)


LOS ANGELES (AP) - Television talk shows took aim Monday at Vice President Dick Cheney's accidental weekend shooting in Texas of a hunting companion. Here are a few of the jokes.

---

"Late Show with David Letterman," CBS:

- "Good news, ladies and gentlemen, we have finally located weapons of mass destruction: It's Dick Cheney."

- "But here is the sad part - before the trip Donald Rumsfeld had denied the guy's request for body armor."

- "We can't get Bin Laden, but we nailed a 78-year-old attorney."

- "The guy who got gunned down, he is a Republican lawyer and a big Republican donor and fortunately the buck shot was deflected by wads of laundered cash. So he's fine. He took a little in the wallet."

__

"The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," NBC:

- "Although it is beautiful here in California, the weather back East has been atrocious. There was so much snow in Washington, D.C., Dick Cheney accidentally shot a fat guy thinking it was a polar bear.

- "That's the big story over the weekend. ... Dick Cheney accidentally shot a fellow hunter, a 78-year-old lawyer. In fact, when people found out he shot a lawyer, his popularity is now at 92 percent."

- "I think Cheney is starting to lose it. After he shot the guy he screamed, 'Anyone else want to call domestic wire tapping illegal?'"

- "Dick Cheney is capitalizing on this for Valentine's Day. It's the new Dick Cheney cologne. It's called Duck!"

---

"The Daily Show with Jon Stewart," Comedy Central:

- "Vice President Dick Cheney accidentally shot a man during a quail hunt ... making 78-year-old Harry Whittington the first person shot by a sitting veep since Alexander Hamilton. Hamilton, of course, (was) shot in a duel with Aaron Burr over issues of honor, integrity and political maneuvering. Whittington? Mistaken for a bird."

- "Now, this story certainly has its humorous aspects. ... But it also raises a serious issue, one which I feel very strongly about. ... moms, dads, if you're watching right now, I can't emphasize this enough: Do not let your kids go on hunting trips with the vice president. I don't care what kind of lucrative contracts they're trying to land, or energy regulations they're trying to get lifted - it's just not worth it."

---

"Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson," CBS:

- "He is a lawyer and he got shot in the face. But he's a lawyer, he can use his other face. He'll be all right."

- "You can understand why this lawyer fellow let his guard down, because if you're out hunting with a politician, you think, 'If I'm going to get it, it's going to be in the back.'"

- "The big scandal apparently is that they didn't release the news for 18 hours. I don't think that's a scandal at all. I'm quite pleased about that. Finally there's a secret the vice president's office can keep."

"Apparently the reason they didn't release the information right away is they said we had to get the facts right. That's never stopped them in the past."

[Jolie Rouge]

White House Finds Humor in Hunting Mishap
By NEDRA PICKLER, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - The White House has decided that the best way to deal with Vice President Dick Cheney's shooting accident is to joke about it.

President Bush's spokesman quipped Tuesday that the burnt orange school colors of the University of Texas championship football team that was visiting the White House shouldn't be confused for hunter's safety wear.

"The orange that they're wearing is not because they're concerned that the vice president may be there," joked White House press secretary Scott McClellan, following the lead of late-night television comedians. "That's why I'm wearing it."

The president's brother, Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, took a similar jab after slapping an orange sticker on his chest from the Florida Farm Bureau that read, "No Farmers, No Food."

"I'm a little concerned that Dick Cheney is going to walk in," the governor cracked during an appearance in Tampa Monday.

Cheney, an experienced hunter, has not been joking or saying anything publicly at all about the accident Saturday, when he accidentally sprayed a hunting partner with shotgun pellets when aiming for a quail.

The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department issued a report Monday that found the main factor contributing to the accident was a "hunter's judgment factor." No other secondary factors were found to have played a role.

The department gave Cheney and the victim, prominent Republican attorney Harry Whittington, warning citations for breaking Texas hunting law by failing to buy a $7 stamp allowing them to shoot upland game birds. A department spokesman said warnings are being issued in most cases because the stamp requirement only went into effect five months ago and many hunters weren't aware of it.

Cheney's office said Monday night in a statement that Cheney had a $125 nonresident hunting license and has sent a $7 check to cover the cost of the stamp. "The staff asked for all permits needed, but was not informed of the $7 upland game bird stamp requirement," the statement said.

The state's report said Whittington was retrieving a downed bird and stepped out of the hunting line he was sharing with Cheney. "Another covey was flushed and Cheney swung on a bird and fired, striking Whittington in the face, neck and chest at approximately 30 yards," the report said.

Whittington remained in stable condition Tuesday at Christus Spohn Hospital Corpus Christi-Memorial. He was moved from intensive care to a "step-down unit" Monday after doctors decided to leave several birdshot pellets lodged in his skin rather than try to remove them. The hospital planned a news conference for 1 p.m. EST Tuesday.

Katharine Armstrong, owner of the ranch where the shooting occurred, said it happened toward the end of the hunt, when it was still sunny but as darkness was encroaching and they were preparing to go inside. She said Whittington made a mistake by not announcing that he had walked up to rejoin the hunting line, and Cheney didn't see him as he tried to down a bird.

Armstrong said she saw Cheney's security detail running toward the scene. "The first thing that crossed my mind was he had a heart problem," she told The Associated Press.

She said Cheney stayed "close but cool" while the agents and medical personnel treated Whittington, then took him by ambulance to the hospital. Later, the hunting group sat down for dinner while Whittington was being treated, receiving updates from a family member at the hospital. Armstrong described Cheney's demeanor during dinner as "very worried" about Whittington.

Pamela Willeford, the U.S. ambassador to Switzerland, another member of the hunting party, told The Dallas Morning News for a story in Tuesday's editions that she and Cheney didn't realize Whittington had picked up a bird and caught up with them.

Willeford said she has hunted with Cheney before and would again.

"He's a great shot. He's very safety conscious. This is something that unfortunately was a bad accident and when you're with a group like that, he's safe or safer than all the rest of us," she said.

But the accident raised questions about Cheney's adherence to hunting safety practices and the White House's failure to disclose the accident in a timely way.

Several hunting safety experts interviewed agreed it would have been a good idea for Whittington to announce himself. But every expert stressed that the shooter is responsible for avoiding other people.

Bush was told about Cheney's involvement in the accident shortly before 8 p.m. Saturday — about an hour after it occurred — but the White House did not disclose the accident until Sunday afternoon, and then only in response to press questions.

Facing a press corps upset that news had been withheld, press secretary Scott McClellan said, "I think you can always look back at these issues and look at how to do a better job."
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060214/ap_on_go_pr_wh/cheney_hunting_accident;_ylt=AuSSxndWl1m01IgBoU.V6 pKs0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTA3b2NibDltBHNlYwM3MTY-

___


On the Net:

White House: http://www.whitehouse.gov

[Jolie Rouge]

[b]Birdshot = WMD?
The Nation

The Nation -- For Bill Clinton it was a stain on a blue GAP dress; might Cheney's Waterloo be an errant spray of birdshot? The way the normally dormant Washington press corps has seized upon this so-called "scandal," you'd think the country's lifeblood (and this administration's credibility) flowed through Harry Whittington's 78-year-old veins. Finally succumbing to pressure from Democrats (Nancy Pelosi demanded Cheney "come clean on what happened in Texas"), the nation's editorialists, and even fellow Republicans like Ari Fleischer, Dick is going to make a rare public appearance in a few hours on FOX news. Not exactly enemy territory, but give the man a break. He shot a buddy and hasn't held a press conference in 3 1/2 years.

The folks over at HuffPo though have really gone bananas over this one though. Torture proponent Alan Dershowitz hypothesizes that the VP must have been up to something really bad (like drinking and hunting). Bob Cesca repeats Sirius radio's Alex Bennett's rumor that Cheney's missing hours gave the administration time to cover up his own private Lewinsky. It's like mock trial club meets Weekly World News over there.

The only voice of reason in the lot is Harry Shearer's Eat the Press which attributes the whole brouhaha to a little "psychological theory called displacement." The lesson the Bush administration might actually learn from all this: Lie about uranium to provoke war (no big deal), don't report a minor accident for a few hours (get strung up). The next time someone stubs a toe in the White House, I'm sure they'll convene an emergency meeting of Congress. I suppose politics by proxy is better than no politics at all, but I just want to scream: It's the war, stupid.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/thenation/20060215/cm_thenation/1560349;_ylt=AhJ6XUB6LTc_oaHe3t2tbZr8B2YD;_ylu=X3o DMTA3YWF***A2BHNlYwM3NDI-

[Jolie Rouge]

Cheney Breaks Silence on Hunting Accident
By NEDRA PICKLER and LYNN BREZOSKY, Associated Press Writers


WASHINGTON - Vice President Dick Cheney on Wednesday accepted full blame for shooting a fellow hunter and defended his decision to not publicly disclose the accident until the following day. He called it "one of the worst days of my life."

"I'm the guy who pulled the trigger that fired the round that hit Harry," Cheney told Fox News Channel in his first public comments since the shooting Saturday in south Texas.

Cheney described seeing 78-year-old Harry Whittington fall to the ground after he pulled the trigger while aiming at a covey of quail.

"The image of him falling is something I'll never ever be able to get out of my mind," Cheney said. "I fired, and there's Harry falling. It was, I'd have to say, one of the worst days of my life at that moment."

Cheney has been under intense political pressure to speak out about the shooting incident, which has become a public relations embarrassment and potential political liability for the White House. Until Wednesday, Cheney had refused to comment on why he withheld information about the shooting, which prolonged the controversy and made him the butt of jokes.

Cheney was soft-spoken and somber during the interview with Fox's Brit Hume.

"You can talk about all of the other conditions that exist at the time but that's the bottom line and — it was not Harry's fault," he said. "You can't blame anybody else. I'm the guy who pulled the trigger and shot my friend."

Cheney said he had had a beer at lunch that day, but nobody was drinking when they went back out to hunt several hours later.

Texas officials said the shooting was an accident, and no charges have been brought against the vice president.

A report that the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department issued Monday said Whittington was retrieving a downed bird and stepped out of the hunting line he was sharing with Cheney.

"Another covey was flushed and Cheney swung on a bird and fired, striking Whittington in the face, neck and chest at approximately 30 yards," the report said.

"I ran over to him," Cheney said. "He was laying there on his back, obviously, bleeding. You could see where the shot struck him."

He said he has no idea if he hit a bird because he was focused on Whittington.

"I said, `Harry, I had no idea you were there.' He didn't respond," Cheney said.

Whittington was reported doing well at a Texas hospital Wednesday, a day after doctors said that a pellet entered his heart and he had what they called "a mild heart attack."

Hospital officials said the Texan, though still listed in intensive care, had a normal heart rhythm again Wednesday afternoon and was sitting up in a chair, eating and planning to do some legal work in his room.

Cheney has been roundly criticized for failing to tell the public about the accident until the next day. He said he thought it made sense to let the owner of the ranch where it happened reveal the accident on the local newspaper's Web site Sunday morning.

"I thought that was the right call," Cheney said. "I still do."

Cheney said he agreed that ranch owner Katharine Armstrong should make the story public, because she was an eyewitness, because she grew up on the ranch and because she is "an acknowledged expert in all of this" as a past head of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. He also agreed with her decision to choose the local newspaper as the way to get the news out.

"I thought that made good sense because you can get as accurate a story as possible from somebody who knew and understood hunting and then it would immediately go up to the wires and be posted on the Web site, which is the way it went out and I thought that was the right call," Cheney said.

"What do you think now?" he was asked.

"I still do," Cheney responded. "The accuracy was enormously important. I had no press person with me."

Armstrong told reporters that Whittington made a mistake by not announcing himself as he returned to the hunting line after breaking off to retrieve a downed bird. But Cheney, an avid and longtime hunter, said Whittington was not to blame.

Through hospital officials, Whittington has declined to comment.

"He still kind of wonders what all the hoopla is about," said Peter Banko, administrator of Christus Spohn Hospital Corpus Christi-Memorial.

Cheney was using No. 7 1/2 shot from a 28-gauge shotgun. Shotgun pellets typically are made of steel or lead; the pellets in No. 7 1/2 shot are just under one-tenth of an inch in diameter.

The pellet that traveled to Whittington's heart was either touching or embedded in the heart muscle near the top chambers, called the atria, officials said.

___

Lynn Brezosky contributed to this report from Corpus Christi.

___

On the Net:

White House: http://www.whitehouse.gov


http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060215/ap_on_go_pr_wh/cheney;_ylt=As8WunLXbjyFYcQKqcPDLm6s0NUE;_ylu=X3oD MTA3OXIzMDMzBHNlYwM3MDM-

[Jolie Rouge]

Bias ?? What Media Bias ??

February 15, 2006
What Condition My Condition Was In[/b]

From a story filed by ABC News on the Cheney hunting accident, I noticed this status report on Harry Whittington’s condition.


Whittington, 78, suffered a mild heart attack Tuesday after a birdshot in his chest traveled to his heart, Christus Spohn Hospital Corpus Christi-Memorial officials said. He is still in the hospital's intensive care unit. A hospital spokesman said that was "strictly due to personal privacy issues," and that he was sitting up, eating regular food, and planning on doing some of his legal work today.

Now, let me say up front that getting shot is a serious matter, especially if you’re a 78–year old man. I’m not trivializing this. What concerns me is the disparate information coming from Mr. Whittington’s doctors and the media. The doctors, who know better than anyone involved in this matter, are painting as accurate a picture as they possibly can concerning the health status of Whittington. Yet, the media reports create the impression that Whittington is still in the path of death. As a result, the pot stirring continues, and speculation and what-if scenarios continue to grow hour-by-hour.

Just this morning I heard a sound bite from Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, who characterized Harry Whittington as a “very sick man”. How does this square with what Whittington’s doctors are saying about Whittington? I don’t want to get into a “what is the meaning of sick” debate here. I’m simply illustrating a serious gap in tone. What if Whittington was to appear today on video, “sitting up, eating regular food, and doing legal work”? Would anyone really think they’re looking at a “very sick man”?

I predict that we’ll see something exactly like this within the next 48 hours. Some brief video clip or sound-bite from Whittington will be released, probably with him smiling, laughing, and shrugging his shoulders over this whole thing. And then what can we expect, a story about Harry Whittington’s miraculous recovery? News about how a 78–year old man beat back a visit from Mr. Death? A honest account of Whittington’s real condition as opposed to the hyped drama?

Nope, we won’t hear, see or read anything of the sort. The New York Times will probably file a story which floats yet another conspiracy theory – like, this:

“Was the man identified as Harry Whittington in video released today really Harry Whittington, or a stand-in hired by the White House?”

http://www.punditguy.com/2006/02/harry_whittingt.html

[excuseme]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lawrence-odonnell/was-cheney-drunk_b_15646.html

Was Cheney Drunk? (264 comments )
READ MORE: Dick Cheney, Tom DeLay

The L.A. Times is edging closer to the most likely reason for the 18 hour delay in reporting that the Vice President of the United States shot someone:

"This was a hunting accident," said Gilbert San Miguel, chief deputy of the Kenedy County Sheriff's Office. "There was no alcohol or misconduct."

How do we know there was no alcohol? Cheney refused to talk to local authorities until the next day. No point in giving him a breathalyzer then. Every lawyer I've talked to assumes Cheney was too drunk to talk to the cops after the shooting. The next question for the White House should be: Was Cheney drunk?

I have never gone hunting with ultra-rich Republicans on a Saturday afternoon, but I have seen them tailgating at Ivy League football games, so it's hard for me to believe that any of their Saturday lunches are alcohol free.

[excuseme]

http://www.prisonplanet.com/articles/february2006/150206matchup.htm

Cheney Shotgun Ballistics Don't Match Up

Alex Jones/Prison Planet.com | February 15 2006

What we had deducted almost immediately after Cheney machine began rolling on this shooting is now finally starting to filter out into the rest of the media: It is not only unlikely that Whittington was injured in the way he reportedly was if Cheney had shot him from 30 yards it is impossible.

After reviewing the Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife report on the shooting, there is no doubt that this is a cover-up.

The pattern of the birdshot depicted in the diagram on the report indicates about a foot spread from cheek to chest.

As we previously reported, birdshot is not like a traditional bullet. Birdshot is composed of hundreds of tiny lead BB's with very low mass which are designed to spread out and slow down very quickly. The idea is basically to shoot out a bunch of tiny pellets to catch a bird that may be taking wing at the instant it recognizes the shot has been fired. Many points ensure greater likelyhood of hitting the target.

These pellets are incredibly tiny and the further they get away from the gun, the slower and less forceful they become. So at a distance of about 90 feet (or 30 yards as reported by the White House) the pellets would have hit Whittington with the force equivilent to a gentle shove and have left maybe some tiny surface marks on any exposed skin.

The only way to account for the pattern indicated on the TDPW report is if Cheney was about 10 feet away from Whittington when he shot him.



Click to Enlarge

Reports and press releases that followed the event explained that some of the pellets had become lodged in his heart tissue. The only way this is possible, the only way that the tiny pellets designed to spread over distance could have maintained the force necessary to penetrate Whittington's hunting vest, clothing, skin, muscle, bone and finally into his rock-hard heart would have been if they came from a much shorter distance than the White House is claiming.

The initial reports have Whittington making jokes and feeling fine after the shooting, but doctors would have been able to diagnose with a simple x-ray that there was a chunk of metal in his heart tissue immediately upon receiving him. Now that he has taken a turn for the worse, they are in scramble-mode to cover-up what really happened in case he dies.

[excuseme]

http://www.nasdaq.com/aspxcontent/NewsStory.aspx?cpath=20060214%5CACQDJON20060214194 1DOWJONESDJONLINE000958.htm&

White House Livid About Handling Of Cheney Incident -CBS

NEW YORK -(Dow Jones)- A source described as close to the Bush administration said people inside the White House are "livid" about the way Vice President Dick Cheney's office has handled the hunting accident he was involved in over the weekend, CBS News reported Tuesday.

According to CBS News, the source said the issue was no longer Cheney's view of press management but rather about Iraq, Hurricane Katrina and a range of other issues that play into the public's view of the administration's arrogance.

CBS News reported that private signals were being sent that the matter has been handled badly and Cheney needs to come out and say something.

On Saturday Cheney accidentally shot Harry Whittington, a 78-year-old lawyer, while on a quail hunt in Texas. The news wasn't made public until Sunday, and all this week the White House has been peppered with questions about how slowly the information was made known.

Doctors announced Tuesday that a birdshot pellet is in or touching Whittington's heart and that he had a mild heart attack.

Cheney's office issued a written statement saying the Vice President had called Whittington on Tuesday, wished him well and asked if there was anything he could do.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires
02-14-061941ET
Copyright (c) 2006 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

[excuseme]

http://rawstory.com/news/2005/Beer_quote_pulled_from_MSNBC_Cheney_0215.html

'Beer quote' pulled from MSNBC Cheney hunting party article

Ron Brynaert
Published: February 15, 2006

Print This | Email This

Updated to include coverage in The Nation, and re-edited MSNBC story

An article at MSNBC's Website was edited to remove references to alcohol, that may have been available at a picnic, which preceded the accidental shooting of a 78-year-old lawyer by Vice President Cheney last Saturday, RAW STORY has learned.

The change to the article was quickly noticed by a number of liberal bloggers, and their readers, many of whom have been following this much discussed story very closely for the last few days.
Advertisement

In the article, credited to Aram Roston and the NBC Investigative Unit, Katherine Armstrong, a member of the family who own the ranch, revealed new details about her lobbying for the Bush Administration, and about circumstances surrounding the incident itself, which wasn't reported to the media until the following morning. Armstrong was the one who reported the news to a local news reporter, and she said that Cheney agreed with the decision.

The following paragraph was removed for unexplained reasons from the article sometime after it first was published on the Internet:
#

Armstrong also told NBC News that she does not believe alcohol was involved in the accident. She says she believes no one that day was drinking, although she says there may have been beer available during a picnic lunch that preceded the incident. "There may be a beer or two in there," she said, "but remember not everyone in the party was shooting."
#

Jane Hamsher at the popular firedoglake blog included the "beer quote" in a post she wrote while it was still on the Web live, then later noted in an update that the article appeared to have been "scrubbed" (or removed) from the MSNBC Website. Hamsher also linked to an earlier post she wrote in which a similiar "scrubbing" occurred, but that time at the CBS News Website.

Other blogs and Websites that spotted the change include Democratic Underground, Thought Crimes, and Daily Kos.

JohnnyCougar, who left the comment at Democratic Underground, appears to have been the first blogger to catch the switch, and he also covered it at his blog, Someone Took In These Pants....

Since Armstrong was interviewed by telephone there may be lingering questions as to why MSNBC "scrubbed" the story.

Screenshot of the article as it originally appeared on Tuesday: link.

Screenshot of the Google News listing including the "beer quote": link.

The article as it appears now: link.

(Special thanks to all the RAW STORY readers who sent us links by email. Keep the tips coming!)

Excerpts from an article written by John Nichols at The Nation:
#

Vice President Dick Cheney, who was forced to leave Yale University because his penchant for late-night beer drinking exceeded his devotion to his studies, and who is one of the small number of Americans who can count two drunk driving busts on his driving record, may have been doing more than hunting quail on the day that he shot a Texas lawyer in the face.

....

The MSNBC story, which appeared only briefly before the website was scrubbed for reasons not yet explained, has been kept alive by the able web investigators at www.rawstory.com and other progressive blogs. And so it should be, as the prospect that alcohol may have been involved in the Texas incident takes the story in a whole new direction.

....

As with her over-the-top efforts to blame Whittington, the victim, for getting in the way of Cheney's birdshot blast, Armstrong's line on liquor smells a little more like an attempt to cover for the vice president than full disclosure.
#

On Wednesday, MSNBC updated their article, but provided no explanation for the "scrubbing" the day before, even though they now emphasize that the interview was a "recorded, on-the-record phone call."

Excerpts from the updated version:
#

In a recorded, on-the-record phone call with NBC News, Armstrong said that beer may have been available at lunch that day. "If someone wants to help themselves to a beer," she said, "they may, but I did not see anyone do that," Armstrong says. She says she was not sure if there were beers in the coolers but wasn't ready to rule it out: "There may be a beer or two in there, but remember not everyone in the party was shooting," she told NBC News.

Armstrong added that she did not believe that Cheney or anyone else shooting in the hunting party had alcohol on Saturday before the hunting accident.

NBC News called the vice president’s office for comment four times Tuesday and Wednesday and asked whether the vice president or anyone in the hunting party had consumed any alcohol on Saturday prior to the accident. In an e-mail statement Wednesday to NBC News, the vice president’s press secretary referred NBC News to the Kenedy County Sheriff’s Department report on the incident. Later in the day on Fox News, Brit Hume stated that Cheney told him during a taped interview that he had had "a beer at lunch" before the hunting incident.
#

Hamsher's reaction at firedoglake to the update: "Big whopping kudos to readers who spotted the MSNBC scrub of Katharine Armstrong's "beer" comments yesterday, and also to everyone who contacted MSNBC about it. I have no doubt that the only reason Dick admitted to drinking a beer before shooting an old man in the face came because of that particular dust-up; he's not one particularly given to candor."

Hamsher also linked to blogger digby, who linked to a CNN article which also referred to the Vice President's consumption of alcohol last Saturday: "Armstrong had previously told CNN that she never saw Cheney or Whittington "drink at all on the day of the shooting until after the accident occurred, when the vice president fixed himself a cocktail back at the house.""

Developing...

[excuseme]

[Placeholder] Insert story blaming Clinton for all this here. [Placeholder]

[Jolie Rouge]

Bwahahahahahahahahahahaha !

coming from a card carrying memeber of the ABB Club - that is the best joke I have heard all day !

Thanks for the laugh :)

[tngirl]

Excerpts from an article written by John Nichols at The Nation:
#

Vice President Dick Cheney, who was forced to leave Yale University because his penchant for late-night beer drinking exceeded his devotion to his studies, and who is one of the small number of Americans who can count two drunk driving busts on his driving record, may have been doing more than hunting quail on the day that he shot a Texas lawyer in the face.

....

As with her over-the-top efforts to blame Whittington, the victim, for getting in the way of Cheney's birdshot blast, Armstrong's line on liquor smells a little more like an attempt to cover for the vice president than full disclosure.

Excerpts from the updated version:
#

In a recorded, on-the-record phone call with NBC News, Armstrong said that beer may have been available at lunch that day. "If someone wants to help themselves to a beer," she said, "they may, but I did not see anyone do that," Armstrong says. She says she was not sure if there were beers in the coolers but wasn't ready to rule it out: "There may be a beer or two in there, but remember not everyone in the party was shooting," she told NBC News.

Armstrong added that she did not believe that Cheney or anyone else shooting in the hunting party had alcohol on Saturday before the hunting accident.

NBC News called the vice president’s office for comment four times Tuesday and Wednesday and asked whether the vice president or anyone in the hunting party had consumed any alcohol on Saturday prior to the accident. In an e-mail statement Wednesday to NBC News, the vice president’s press secretary referred NBC News to the Kenedy County Sheriff’s Department report on the incident. Later in the day on Fox News, Brit Hume stated that Cheney told him during a taped interview that he had had "a beer at lunch" before the hunting incident.
#

Hamsher's reaction at firedoglake to the update: "Big whopping kudos to readers who spotted the MSNBC scrub of Katharine Armstrong's "beer" comments yesterday, and also to everyone who contacted MSNBC about it. I have no doubt that the only reason Dick admitted to drinking a beer before shooting an old man in the face came because of that particular dust-up; he's not one particularly given to candor."

Hamsher also linked to blogger digby, who linked to a CNN article which also referred to the Vice President's consumption of alcohol last Saturday: "Armstrong had previously told CNN that she never saw Cheney or Whittington "drink at all on the day of the shooting until after the accident occurred, when the vice president fixed himself a cocktail back at the house.""

"Small Number" - I find this comparison laughable. How many times do you hear on the news about drunk drivers. Also, how many years ago was it that Cheney left college? I used to be able to drink a sailor under the table in my younger partying days....does not mean that I still can or do. I grew up.

"Over the top efforts to blame Whittington" - Yeah...I have seen her on the news ranting and raving that it was the "old man's" fault. She simply stated that the man forgot hunting protocal and basically walked into the line of fire. I have seen no Over The Top efforts on her part. She just explained what she witnessed.

"Beer may have been available" - Because she did not see Cheney drinking then she has to be lying.

" he's not one particularly given to candor" - Are we talking about the same man here? He just doesn't play the media's game.

"admitted to drinking a beer" - A beer does not compare to being drunk or being impared. Also, a beer at lunch? And the accident happened late afternoon? I do believe the buzz would have worn off a lot sooner than that...especially if the references to Cheney being a drunk were fact.

"she never saw Cheney or Whittington "drink at all on the day of the shooting" - Once again...I guess this means she is lying and trying to cover up.

"the vice president fixed himself a cocktail back at the house" - Heck, if I had just accidently shot my friend I think I would probably be having several "cocktails"

And let's not forget!! Armstrong is the daughter of the owner of Haliburton....lmao

[mesue]

Jolie from the reports I read you posted when exactly will the VP get his medal for shooting someone who forgot to announce they were there? And will the fact that the VP was hunting without the required 7.00 stamp required by law in that state make it more difficult for him to receive such an award?

[excuseme]

He'll get another purple heart to go with the one he got in Vietnam.



Jolie from the reports I read you posted when exactly will the VP get his medal for shooting someone who forgot to announce they were there? And will the fact that the VP was hunting without the required 7.00 stamp required by law in that state make it more difficult for him to receive such an award?

[Jolie Rouge]

Sheriff: Dick Cheney Won't Face Charges
19 minutes ago

SARITA, Texas - The sheriff's department closed its investigation Thursday into Dick Cheney's accidental shooting of a hunting partner and said no charges will be filed.

The Kenedy County Sheriff's Department issued a report that supports Cheney's account of the weekend accident that wounded 78-year-old lawyer Harry Whittington. Whittington, interviewed in the hospital, also assured investigators no one was drinking at the time and everyone was wearing bright orange safety gear.

Sheriff's dispatcher Diana Mata, speaking for the department, said the case is closed and no charges will be filed. She said Sheriff Ramon Salinas III, a Democrat, would have no comment on the report.

Texas authorities have been saying all along that the shooting appeared to be an accident.

Whittington was hit with shotgun pellets in the face and chest Saturday while hunting quail with Cheney on a ranch in South Texas. He is in a Corpus Christi hospital in stable condition after suffering a mild heart attack caused by a pellet that traveled to his heart.

Gilberto San Miguel Jr., an investigator with the Sheriff's Department, interviewed Cheney at the ranch a day after the shooting. San Miguel reported that the vice president shook his hand and "told me he was there to cooperate in any way with the interview."

The vice president said the sun was setting when Whittington fired at some quail and went to find his downed birds, according to the report.

Cheney said he walked about 100 yards and met up with the hunting guide. He said a bird flew behind him, and he followed it in a counterclockwise direction, not realizing Whittington had walked up behind him to rejoin the group. He said Whittington was about 30 yards away, on lower ground, when Cheney fired his shotgun.

"Mr. Cheney told me if Mr. Whittington was on the same ground level, the injuries might have been lower on Mr. Whittington's body," the investigator reported.

The investigator, accompanied by another officer, briefly interviewed Whittington at his hospital room on Monday. "I asked Mr. Whittington if we could record our conversation and Mr. Whittington requested not to be recorded due to his voice being raspy," San Miguel wrote.

The investigator asked for an affidavit, and Whittington said he would provide one when he returned home to his office in Austin. Doctors have said Whittington will probably remain hospitalized until next week.

Before a nurse asked the officers to "hurry up so Mr. Whittington could rest," Whittington "explained foremost there was no alcohol during the hunt and everyone was wearing the proper hunting attire of blaze orange," San Miguel reported.

Whittington said the shooting "was just an accident," and he was concerned all the media attention would give hunting in Texas a bad image, the report said.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060216/ap_on_go_pr_wh/cheney_legal;_ylt=ApKrUr7UogWrGZ15rE7E3UGs0NUE;_yl u=X3oDMTA3OXIzMDMzBHNlYwM3MDM-




Bush Satisfied With Cheney's Account
By NEDRA PICKLER, Associated Press Writer
22 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - President Bush is satisfied with Vice President Dick Cheney's account of his Texas hunting accident, a White House spokesman said Thursday, and Texas authorities said they had closed their investigation into the accident without filing any charges.

The Kenedy County Sheriff's Department released its report from Chief Deputy Gilberto San Miguel Jr., which said he interviewed Cheney the morning after Saturday's accident. Cheney explained that he did not see hunting companion Harry Whittington come up behind him and accidentally sprayed him with birdshot in the face and upper body while aiming at a quail, the report said.

Cheney told the story publicly Wednesday in an interview with Fox News Channel — his only public statement on the accident that occurred Saturday on a private Texas ranch.

Cheney described it as "one of the worst days of my life" and rejected the notion that Whittington bears any responsibility. "I'm the guy who pulled the trigger and shot my friend," Cheney said.

Cheney also defended his decision to keep the shooting from the public until a day after it happened, allowing the ranch owner to tell a local newspaper about it instead of making an official announcement from the White House.

White House press secretary Scott McClellan declined to say Thursday whether the president felt the accident should have been revealed earlier.

"I think that the vice president clearly explained the rationale behind that," McClellan said, avoiding a direct response to questions about the timeliness of public disclosure.

"The president's satisfied with what the vice president said yesterday," McClellan said Thursday. "I think the American people are looking at this and saying, enough already," he added.

Cheney's decision to wait a day to announce the accident created a major public relations problem for the White House, with some Republicans even suggesting that it made the situation worse by suggesting the possibility of some sort of cover-up.

San Miguel wrote that his boss, Kenedy County Sheriff Ramon Salinas, called him about 6:30 p.m. CST Saturday, within an hour of the shooting, to say that he should report to the Armstrong Ranch Sunday morning at 8 a.m. to receive more information on a hunting accident there. It is not clear whether San Miguel knew he was going to interview the vice president.

San Miguel said he also got written affidavits from four other members of the hunting party, visited the scene of the accident and interviewed Whittington in the hospital. He said Whittington repeatedly said the shooting was just an accident, that there was no alcohol during the hunt and that he was concerned the case would bring a bad image to hunting in Texas.

San Miguel signed the report with a closed status on Wednesday at 4 p.m. The sheriff's department refused interview requests Thursday, and a dispatcher who answered the phone Thursday said no charges had been filed in the investigation.

Secret Service agents who were with Cheney did not file an incident report about the shooting because other law enforcement agencies were conducting the investigation, said Jim Mackin, the agency's deputy assistant director.

He also said it was the Kenedy County sheriff who decided not to interview Cheney on Saturday, but to wait until Sunday morning. "If they had said we're coming out now (Saturday evening), we would have facilitated it," Mackin said.

Mackin said a local officer had come to the ranch gate Saturday night to offer help after about the ambulance responding there, but left when officers at the gate said they were unaware of any emergency. The Secret Service says early reports that agents turned away deputies wanting to interview Cheney were wrong.

Cheney said he had had a beer at lunch that day but nobody was drinking when they went back out to hunt a couple hours later. Law enforcement officials have ruled out alcohol as a factor, but have not explained how they determined it was not involved.

Whittington remained in stable condition Thursday at a Texas hospital, two days after doctors said one of the shotgun pellets traveled to his heart and he had what they called "a mild heart attack."

___

Associated Press writers Kelley Shannon in Austin, Texas, and Lynn Brezosky in Corpus Christi contributed to this report.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060216/ap_on_go_pr_wh/cheney;_ylt=AvdxIu0stdOKkAiIMaLdWzQGw_IE;_ylu=X3oD MTA3OXIzMDMzBHNlYwM3MDM-


___

On the Net:

White House: http://www.whitehouse.gov

Fox News: http://www.foxnews.com



Sometimes an accident is just an accident and a cigar is just a cigar.

[Jolie Rouge]

Winner of the First-ever National Press Club Award for Humor
The Borowitz Report

Sunday, February 12, 2006

CHENEY SAYS SHOOTING OF FELLOW HUNTER WAS BASED ON FAULTY INTELLIGENCE
Believed Shooting Victim Was Zawahiri, Veep Says

Vice President Dick Cheney revealed today that he shot a fellow hunter while on a quail hunting trip over the weekend because he believed the man was the fugitive terror mastermind Ayman al-Zawahiri.

Mr. Cheney acknowledged that the man he sprayed with pellets on Saturday was not al-Zawahiri but rather Harry Whittington, a 78-year-old millionaire lawyer from Austin, blaming the mix-up on “faulty intelligence.”

“I believed I had credible intelligence that al-Zawahiri had infiltrated my hunting party in disguise with the intent of spraying me with pellets,” Mr. Cheney told reporters. “Only after I shot Harry in the face and he shouted ‘Cheney, you *******’ did I realize that this intelligence was faulty.”

Moments after Mr. Cheney’s assault on Mr. Whittington, Mr. al-Zawahiri appeared in a new videotape broadcast on al-Jazeera to announce that he was uninjured in the vice president’s attack because, in his words, “I was in Pakistan.”

An aide to the vice president said he believed that the American people would believe Mr. Cheney’s version of events, but added, “If he was going to shoot any of his cronies right now it’s a shame it wasn’t Jack Abramoff.”

At the White House, President George W. Bush defended his vice president’s shooting of a fellow hunter, saying that the attack sent “a strong message to terrorists everywhere.”

“The message is, if Dick Cheney is willing to shoot an innocent American citizen at point-blank range, imagine what he’ll do to you,” Mr. Bush said.

Elsewhere, aviator Steve Fossett completed his three-day journey around the globe, setting a world record for wasting both time and money.

http://www.borowitzreport.com/archive_rpt.asp?rec=1320&srch=




Monday, February 13, 2006

HOMELAND SECURITY DEPARTMENT UNVEILS CHENEY ALERT SYSTEM
Color-coded System Would Warn Nation of Future Attacks by Veep

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff announced today that his department would immediately implement a “Cheney Alert” system to warn Americans if an attack by Vice President Dick Cheney is imminent.

The Department of Homeland Security has been under pressure to respond to the widespread panic and anxiety that have gripped the nation since Mr. Cheney shot and wounded a fellow quail hunter while on a hunting trip in Texas over the weekend.

Across the country, people have holed up in their homes and hoarded food and water, fearing another senseless attack by the gun-toting vice president. “What we have learned, the hard way, is that Dick Cheney can attack without warning,” Mr. Chertoff said. “It is our hope that with this Cheney Alert system we will be able to give the American people some warning before he strikes again.”

The alert system, with five color-coded levels indicating the likelihood of another brutal pellet attack by the Vice President, was derided by some in Congress such as Sen. Joseph Biden (D-Del), who likened it to “closing the barn door after the horses have escaped.”

“The fact is, the White House already had ample warning that Dick Cheney was going to strike, and they sat on their hands and did nothing,” Mr. Biden said, referring to a Presidential Daily Brief dated February 4 with the title, “Dick Cheney Determined to Strike in US.”

Elsewhere, former Education Secretary William Bennett said that he was “outraged” that an NHL gambling ring has been in operation for five years and he was never invited to participate in it.

http://www.borowitzreport.com/archive_rpt.asp?rec=1321&srch=




Wednesday, February 15, 2006

BUSH PROPOSES ‘NO QUAILS LEFT BEHIND’
New Education Initiative for Hunters Attempts to Defuse Cheney Crisis

With Vice President Dick Cheney’s accidental shooting of a fellow bird hunter last Saturday threatening to become a full-blown crisis, President George W. Bush today attempted to defuse the controversy by proposing a new education program for hunters called “No Quails Left Behind.”

Speaking at the White House, President Bush said that Mr. Cheney had done the nation “a big favor” by demonstrating that a massive overhaul of the nation’s educational system for hunters was “long overdue.”

“We have been sitting idly by while other nations, such as China and Japan, have outpaced us in hunter education,” Mr. Bush said. “If it took Dick Cheney to shoot a guy in the face to serve as a wake-up call, we all owe him a debt of thanks.”

The vice president himself appeared ready to start repairing the P.R. damage caused by his hunting mishap, telling reporters this afternoon that after obtaining five deferments during the Vietnam War he was finally ready to take up military service for his country.

“I have a gun and I’ve demonstrated that I’m not afraid to use it,” Mr. Cheney said. “The President of Iran should watch what he does if he doesn’t want to be peppered with pellets.”

Asked about Mr. Cheney’s implied threat, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said he was “unworried,” adding, “If Cheney tried to shoot me he’d probably wind up hitting the President of Iraq.”

Elsewhere, actors Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes “have never been more in love and are definitely not splitting up,” according to the couple’s official spokesman, James Frey.

http://www.borowitzreport.com/archive_rpt.asp?rec=1323&srch=

[tngirl]

[Placeholder] Insert story blaming Clinton for all this here. [Placeholder]

You have it wrong...this will all turn around and bite W in the rear...it will all be his fault one way or the other. :eek:

[tngirl]

Ok....all the hoopla over this guy getting shot and all the news media talking about him being on deaths door in ICU....how come no one has posted about him being released from the hospital?

[stresseater]

Because he verified the VP's story and we can't let THAT thruth out. :rolleyes: :D ;)

[Chiizii]

What do you bet we get another week of the media slicing and dicing this story beyond recognition?

[Jolie Rouge]

CHENEY DERANGEMENT SYNDROME
By Michelle Malkin · February 19, 2006 12:04 PM

http://michellemalkin.com/


Insane.

http://drudgereport.com/flash2ch.htm

Unhinged.

http://cayankee.blogs.com/cayankee/2006/02/ballistics_vide.html

Scott Johnson: "Deranged sophomoric hysteria."

http://exposetheleft.com/2006/02/19/johnson-huffington/ (vid link )


Alec Baldwin thinks it’s relevant. He also thinks it proves Cheney ‘is a terrorist.’
http://publicfiguresbeware.blogspot.com/2006/02/cheney-hunting-accident-who-cares-alec.html

I'll let Alan Simpson, interviewed on Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace, have the last words: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,185345,00.html


SIMPSON...Dick Cheney has become the hate symbol from the beginning. He was the hate symbol when he was with Halliburton. He was the hate symbol when he came in and the votes with South Africa and this and that. And then he was the hate symbol of hiding an energy conference. He was the hate symbol of terrorists, hate symbol of torture.

Let me tell you, those who don't like him have put a big red tail on his bum, and cloven hooves, and horns on his head. And let me tell you, if anybody thinks -- if this had happened to anybody else in America, it would have been like a sparrow belch in a typhoon.

WALLACE: Could you be a little more colorful, Senator?

SIMPSON: Well, I don't think I could, because it really is absurd. It's absolutely absurd. I go around the country. I travel all the time. And the American people are just shaking their heads and saying it's a hunting accident, a tragic hunting accident -- a victim, a guy who's hurt, and a guy who's hurt because he shot, who's pained, who's anguished. What's new, for God's sakes?

...WALLACE: So summing up here, Senator -- and we love your tour of this whole event -- what does the last week tell us or should it tell us about Washington, about the politicians, about the press corps?

SIMPSON: Well, it tells you what -- you should listen to Lindsey Graham and Evan Bayh and know that, really, there is cooperation, but what it really tells you, what are we going to expect of the national press corps, and especially the Washington press corps, when something really happens.

How are we to trust, after a whole week of absolute dribble, and babble, and people, you know, interviewing themselves -- well, what do you think about Dick, oh, you know -- and Jay Leno and Letterman -- I asked them how would you feel if this happened to you.

Let me tell you, the American people are really waiting with sense of glee when something really, really happens in America, and I suppose they'll just have a catatonic stroke and pitch forward on their faces.

WALLACE: So I take it, Senator, do you really miss this place?

SIMPSON: No, I do. I loved it. I did. I loved it. And I loved it because it was fun. And I have a lot of pals on both sides of the aisle. I worked with President Clinton. I enjoyed him. President Bush, President Carter -- good people doing good things.

But let me tell you, you'll never find it if you just follow the Washington media. You'll never know the good. All you get is controversy, crap and confusion.


***

Okay, one more: Bonkers.
http://patterico.com/2006/02/17/4229/the-mentality-of-rosa-brooks/