Cheney Accidentally Shoots Fellow Hunter

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http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060212/ap_on_go_pr_wh/%20cheney_hunting_accident_6;_ylt=AjhpwEysdOa9pYmB4ijrd4tqP0AC;_ylu=X3oDMTBiMW04NW9mBHNlYwMlJVRPUCUl

By NEDRA PICKLER, Associated Press Writer

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 in stable condition Sunday, said 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 met with Whittington and his wife at the hospital on Sunday. Cheney "was pleased to see that he's doing fine and in good spirits," she said.

The shooting was first reported by the Corpus Christi Caller-Times. The vice president's office did not disclose the accident until the day 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.

Whittington shot a bird and went to look for it in the tall grass, while Cheney and the third hunter walked to another spot and discovered a second covey.

Whittington "came up from behind the vice president and the other hunter and didn't signal them or indicate to them or announce himself," Armstrong said.

"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.

McBride did not comment about why the vice president's office did not tell reporters about the accident until the next day. She referred the question to Armstrong, who could not be reached again Sunday evening.

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

"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 Dakota to hunt pheasants. He also travels frequently to Arkansas to hunt ducks.

Armstrong said Cheney is a longtime friend who comes to the ranch to hunt about once a year and is "a very safe sportsman." She said Whittington is a regular, too, but she thought it was the first time the two men hunted together.

"This is something that happens from time to time. You now, I've been peppered pretty well myself," said Armstrong.

The 50,000-acre Armstrong ranch has been in the influential south Texas family since the turn of the last century. Katharine is the daughter of Tobin Armstrong, a politically connected rancher who has been a guest at the White House and spent 48 years as director of the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association. He died in October. Cheney was among the dignitaries who attended his funeral.

Seriuosly, how ridiculous is that?

Now that's a dick you don't go hunting with

Some how, some way, they will blame this on the democrats or liberal judges.

Why?

Maybe thats what he was doing - protecting honest americans from the tyranny of millionaire corporate scum

Seriously tho - this hints at the risky side of low gun control. not the sort of item youd usually expect to be posted by a pro-gun advocate?

Any bird hunter knows that the first rule of hunting is to know exactly where he is shooting and what he is shooting at. The second rule of hunting is to shoot the birds, not his friends or other bystanders. Was Dick Cheney under the influence of alcohol or something? It ticks me off the way some people are trying to shift the blame onto Harry Whittington, the man who was shot by Dick Cheney. It ticks me off that Dick Cheney tried to hide the incident until after someone else reported it. I don't think Dick Cheney should be allowed to hunt anymore. If he were a regular person and not the vice-president, he would have to surrender his firearms. He makes legitimate hunters who are careful to shoot the birds and not their friends look bad.

Did anyone else see Dave Letterman's Late Show last night? It was about Dick Cheney and it was hysterically funny.

He is back in intensive care of some bird shot has moved into his heart giving him a mild heart attack.

This is the funniest thing ever. Just try to say, 'Vice-President Dick Cheney shot a man in the face' without laughing or at least cracking a smile. It's impossible. The late night comedians had a blast with this one.

From the Daily Show with Jon Stewart (not direct quotes, this is from memory):

- 'Dick Cheney still stands by his decision to shoot Harry Whittington in the face. While our best intelligence showed that there were quail in the brush. We now know that there weren't any quail in the brush, and that instead it was a 78 year old man. Even knowing what we now know today, Cheney insists that he would still shoot Mr. Whittington in the face.'

- 'Parents, I can't emphasise this enough. Don't let your kids go hunting with the vice president. He'll shoot them in the face.'

From the Late Show with David Letterman:

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

- 'Top Ten Dick Cheney Excuses
10. "Heart palpitation caused trigger finger to spasm"
9. "Wanted to get the Iraq mess off the front page"
8. "Not enough Jim Beam"
7. "Trying to stop the spread of bird flu"
6. "I love to shoot people"
5. "Guy was making cracks about my lesbian daughter"
4. "I thought the guy was trying to go 'gay cowboy' on me"
3. "Excuse? I hit him, didn't I?"
2. "Until Democrats approve medicare reform, we have to make some tough choices for the elderly"
1. "Made a bet with Gretzky's wife" '

From the Tonight Show with Jay Leno:

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

Wasn't the guy wearing a flouresent orange jacket? Either Cheny's eyes are really going bad or we've got two dummies in the Whitehouse instead of one.

It's pretty annoying how hard they're trying to spin this. Cheney didn't shoot the guy, he "sprayed" him with "bird shot pellets". As if they were using BB guns or something. It's also apparently the other guy's fault for wandering into the kill zone.

Yeah, I heard "peppered" too. Apparently, the lawyer is now lightly seasoned!

When I heard the news, I knew the late-night comedians would have a field day with that story.

"A FATHER'S ADVICE"

If a sportsman true you’d be
Listen carefully to me. . .

Never, never let your gun
Pointed be at anyone.
That it may unloaded be
Matters not the least to me.

When a hedge or fence you cross
Though of time it cause a loss
From your gun the cartridge take
For the greater safety’s sake.

If twixt you and neighboring gun
Bird shall fly or beast may run
Let this maxim ere be thine
“Follow not across the line.”

Stops and beaters oft unseen
Lurk behind some leafy screen.
Calm and steady always be
“Never shoot where you can’t see.”

You may kill or you may miss
But at all times think this:
“All the pheasants ever bred
Won’t repay for one man dead.”

-Written by Mark Beaufoy of Coombe House, Shaftesbury, Dorset, England, in 1902, on presenting his eldest son, Henry Mark, with his first gun.

Well, unless the pheasant laid golden eggs!

Sean, as a fellow hunter, do you think there should be any repercussions for Cheney for any of this - the shooting itself, his delay in notifying anybody, his failure to make a personal statement thus far?