Of Buddies, Birdshot, and Beer

Of Buddies, Birdshot, and Beer

Well, after several days of silence Dick Cheney has decided to come forward and speak about his role in the shooting accident of Harry Whittington after allowing others, like the ranch owner Mrs. Armstrong and Scott McClelland to speak on his behalf. (I almost felt sorry for McClelland, he was left to look like the propagandist mouthpiece that he is.)

Apparently shooting Whittington was the worst day in Cheney's life, and he wasn't capable of talking with local law enforcement. This is an obvious perk of being the VP, shoot a buddy and you don't have to worry about being questioned by local authorities until you are ready. (Whereas John and Jane Q. Public would be subject to questioning and an breathalizer test.)

It should be noted that Cheney decided to talk about his role in the accident that he didn't choose just any news outlet for the interview. Oh no, Cheney went went to the most magical place in the world to a Republican, Fox News. (Of course, the notion of Cheney having a press conference is laughable. I can imagine watching him grow redder and redder as the press question him about the birdshot of agenda disruption, to claims of weapons of mass destruction, and the insurgency that was supposedly in its "last throes.")

And you know who interviewed him? It was Brit Hume who hasn't read a cue card with a tough question for a Republican in all his time at Fox News. By Humes own admission the only pressing he did was about "leaving McClelland out to dry." Such indepth questioning.

During the interview Cheney says, "[t]he image of [Whittington] falling is something I will never be able to get out my mind. It was one of the worst days of my life."

It is only after a handful of deferments from service in Vietnam that Cheney knows what it is like to shoot another person (albeit not in anger(?)). Imagine if he were to have an ephiphany on his decision and support for sending the husbands, sons, wives, and daughters to die in a war of choice.

Update:

Here is the transcript to Brit Humes passive interview with Dick (Watch your step I'm loaded) Cheney. I must commend Cheney for proving that he is even more inhumane than I could have imagined. I know that if I accidentally shot a "good friend," no wait, if I shot "an acquaintance," no wait, make that "my friend," no, more like "my friend, Harry," I sure as hell would be going to the hospital in one of those black SUV's that the Secret Service uses as fast as possible.

But that didn't happen. No Cheney had other things on his mind. Things like, "I thought, to get the story out as accurately as possible, and this is a complicated story that, frankly, most reporters would never have dealt with before." Yeah it isn't like reporters haven't ever covered a shooting before, accidental or otherwise. Just because the Vice President shoots a Bush Pioneer, it doesn't tear a couple hundred little holes in the time space continuum thereby preventing journalists/reporters from covering the story.

Of course, if Cheney was a wee bit inebriated (we won't know about it because the secret Service did their job in preventing Cheney from being questioned by local authorities til the following day) this would be a good reason to send his "physician's assistant" to ride along with the wounded Whittington. It is also good to have someone from your team "embedded" with the ambulance team to cover the on the ground medical attention being given and relay conditions of the victim/patient back to the ground commander.

Now should Cheney find himself being tried in the court of public opinion, (cause it isn't likely that he will face criminal or civil presecution) he has already laid out his media (legal) defense for the accident. Check out that last sentence. It was the sun I tell you, the sun made me pull the trigger.

"He was dressed in orange, he was dressed properly, but he was also -- there was a little bit of a gully there, so he was down a little ways before land level, although I could see the upper part of his body when -- I didn't see it at the time I shot, until after I'd fired. And the sun was directly behind him -- that affected the vision, too, I'm sure."

Of course, I am being extremely critical of a man who has the better part of 4 days to think about what he would say to the the softball questions of Brit Hume. I find that the following portion of the interview to be the most heartfelt response offered by Cheney,

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

I can image that it was the worst day of his life (Image how the day ranks on Whittington's list of worst days.) Cheney saw the remaining years of his political life flashing before his eyes. I have to admit, it is a good thing that Cheney has a bad heart, otherwise there would not have been an ambulance on the premises to take Mr. Whittington to the hospital. To say nothing of having to make a call to 911, which would have been picked up by police and the media.

It is pretty clear from reading the transcript that Cheney didn't have any ephiphany like I hoped for.