DICK CHENEY: THE SHOT HEARD AROUND THE WORLD

On February 12, 2006, Vice President Dick Cheney was invited to hunt at the exclusive 50,000-acre ranch of Katharine Armstrong near Corpus Christi. While hunting quail, Cheney allegedly accidentally shot wealthy Austin lawyer 78-year old Harry Whittington with 28-gauge shotgun. Whittington suffered a minor heart attack after a piece of birdshot moved and lodged in his heart.

The shooting occurred on a Saturday afternoon. Finally on the Monday morning, White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan finally went public. He tried to cover for Cheney. McClellan said he himself did not learn that Cheney was the shooter until 6:00 a.m. on the day after the shooting. McClellan said he urged Cheney’s office to get the information out as quickly as possible. (New York Times, February 13, 2006)

The Secret Service protected the vice president, refusing to allow the county sheriff’s department to question Cheney. About 24 hours later, Cheney was interviewed and was cleared of any wrongdoing. The sheriff’s report also said Cheney was not under the influence of alcohol. (New York Times, February 13, 2006)

Was there a cover-up? That brought up a number of questions.

1. Did Cheney violate a cardinal rule of hunting when one needs to know the surroundings before you pull the trigger?

2. Was the shooting accidental?

3. Was Cheney intoxicated at the time?

4. Why did not Cheney have a valid hunter’s license?

The White House refused to publish the story for 22 hours. Bush refused to inquire about the incident, leading one to wonder who was in charge in the McClellan said White House Deputy Chief of Staff Rove told Bush around 8:00 p.m. on the evening of the shooting. But McClellan refused to comment on the fact that Whittington had suffered a heart attack.

McClellan blamed Whittington, saying that Whittington did not follow protocol “when it came to notifying others that he was there. And so, you know, unfortunately, these types of hunting accidents happen from time to time.” (Knight Ridder, February 14, 2006)

For four days, Cheney remained quiet, refusing to comment on the story. That secrecy reflected his demeanor in as vice president, which began in 2001 when he refused to divulge the names of the pro-Big Oil executives on his Energy Task Force. And it continued on to January 2006 when he refused to specify the nature of a foot injury for which he was given medication that caused water retention and shortness of breath and sent him to the hospital. (Washington Post, February 14, 2006)

Apparently after some prodding from Karl Rove, Cheney finally broke his silence and chose to appear on conservative Fox News. He said Armstrong was the best person to report the “accident,” since she was a witness. But she was one hundred yards away, and thought that Cheney had suffered another heart attack. (MSNBC, February 16, 2006)

Cheney accepted full responsibility for the accident, saying, “You can’t blame anybody else. I’m the guy who pulled the trigger and shot my friend.” He admitted that he had a beer during lunch prior to the shooting, but claimed that “no one was drinking” during the hunt.” (CBS News, February 16, 2006)

Cheney's admission contradicted Armstrong’s statement that “no one was drinking.” Her mother, Anne Armstrong, added that only “Dr. Pepper was being consumed.” Later, Katharine told MSNBC that “a beer or two may have been consumed, though not everyone in the party was shooting.” She said Cheney did not drink until after the accident occurred, “when the vice president fixed himself a cocktail back at the house.” (Los Angeles Times, February 16, 2006)