Concise summary:
1) Cheney takes full responsibility. “I’m the guy who pulled the trigger that fired the round that hit Harry,” he said. Hume’s gloss suggests that Cheney is being harder or himself than the actual logistics of the accident suggest, but on this point, Cheney says there is no other blame to go around.
2) Cheney is unapologetic about the way the information was disseminated, and this includes a tacit disagreement with many GOP political pundits and White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan. That the story took time making it to the national wires was something beyond Cheney’s control once he gave the go ahead to release the story (counting on someone who was both an eyewitness and has intimate knowledge of hunting and wilderness safety to “report” the story, which she did, to a local paper); and the VP, Hume took it, was absolutely concerned that the full and accurate story go out, and that Mr Whittington’s family not hear about his being shot on the news before first hearing it from friends.
3) Cheney was more shaken than Hume, who knows him well, has ever seen him. He is contrite about the shooting; he is not at all contrite about the media’s hissy fit that they weren’t immediately actively drawn into the loop.
4) Cheney admitted to a beer at lunch. The accident took place at dusk. No drinking in between for anyone in the hunting party, according to Cheney and the rest of the party.
****
The upshot of this will be more complaints and cries of cover-up, all based around the VP’s refusal to show obeissance to the Washington Press corps. And from partisans, one politician noted that the firestorm Dick Cheney is experienced is a kind of karmic payback for his years of aggressive eeeeevil (via Shep Smith; I missed the name—perhaps former TN Senator James Sasser? Or current Rep Sasser. Will update when I can confirm).
I shit you not.
****
More, from the NYT; and Brit Hume will be airing a good bit of the interview on today’s “Special Report w/ Brit Hume.”
update: Terry Mcauliffe on with John Gibson (paraphrasing): “When the Vice President of the US shoots somebody in the face [this phrase was repeated four or five times]—and for 22 hours doesn’t inform the world—this is a cover-up. Cheney did nothing according protocol. Law enforcement didn’t check to see if the fratboys with guns were hammered and shooting randomly. Why? And why didn’t the VP take full responsibility, even while taking full responsibility?”
For the record, Mcauliffe represents everything that is wrong with today’s political culture. Howard Dean, for as awful as he is, is still a poor man’s Mcauliffe—as Dean’s lies and obfuscations seem very mannered and strained compared to Mcauliffe’s bile, which drips from his fanged mouth like venom from a diamondback rattlesnake.
Just remember that all of the moonbats have been calling for this, and now that they have it, it will not be enough for them.
Cheney did not owe this to anyone. The only person he ever had any obligation to was his injured friend.
I cannot wait, and will be counting the minutes, until actass posits about how this interview leaves many questions left unanswered, and how they may still be facing potential criminal charges resulting from this, and whatever other tinfoil hat conspiracy theories the moonbats can cook up.
BECAUSE OF THE POTENTIALITY!
I’m an accounting manager in a company whose health-insurance plan is self-funded. When I ask, for purposes of monthly financial analysis, about health expenses, I’m frequently told that the names of the employees involved and the reasons behind the expenditures can’t be diclosed to me because of HIPAA. I’ve been present in emergency rooms when physicians took steps to ensure that their conversations about patients’ conditions weren’t overheard, again because of HIPAA.
As I said, I’m not a lawyer, nor do I play one on TV, but I couldn’t help but wonder over the last couple of days why Mr. Whittington’s condition was being discussed so freely by medical personnel. Is there a shot-by-the-VP exception to HIPAA disclosure rules?
I’m also wondering why the media are so quick to jump to defend my privacy rights when Uncle Osama calls me but so quick to abandon the notion of Mr. Whittington’s privacy rights.
Drunken Neocon Stalks and Near-Fatally Wounds Septuagenarian For Amusement. More to follow…
My turing word was ‘shot’. I feel like I won the lottery.
Lest we forget the
of the situation – the Secret Service was present.
Does the Left/MSM think the Secret Service is going to let a bunch of drunk/impaired people handle firearms around the Veep? Including the Veep?
Come on, guys, let’s think about this – shall we?
Also, not for nothing, the Veep was travelling with medical staff. So it’s not like Cheney shot a guy out in the field and was trying to decide whether to let him bleed to death and bury the corpse or get medical attention for him.
.
Diffus, as per HIPAA:
As long as the patient consents to have their name show up on the hospital’s registration system, info regarding their whereabouts and status are fair game. info beyond “Yes he’s here” or “He’s in stable condition” is proprietary, and you’ll notice that folks in the press are merely hypothesizing. If anyone does come forward with more info, it will undoubtedly be in a press conference given by his family, his physician, or someone authorized by them to do so.
It’s funny that Cheyney had the interview with Brit Hume, and once again left White House press out in the cold.
The White House press aren’t invited to participate in the conversation because they don’t act civily. Their reaction to not being the first to be told the story reminds me of watching 3 year olds stomp their feet. It’s pathethic and I now have even more contempt for them.
OR WAS HE?
But, but, but, he didn’t call the almighty Washington Press Corps!!!
I think that we’re seeing first hand the reason why. They would have been just as outraged had Cheney called that Gregory tool on Saturday night and told him personally. Assuming that Cheney could FIND him on Saturday night.
Wait a minute. I thought David Gregory was very mature with Scott McClellan. At LEAST as mature as my 2 year old daughter’s friends.
Good people = 1. Guy got shot accidentally. We pray for his speedy recovery. 2. Guy who accidentally shot him had the worst day of his life. We sympathize and even empathize with his even greater pain.
Evil people = We got the bastard now, lets make him sweat until he has another (hopefully this time fatal) heart attack.
Diffus – You are entirely correct. HIPPA (Health Insurance Privacy Protection Act) is armed with very strict and punitive provisions proscribing the unauthorized disclosure of personal medical information. Its passage has created all sorts of problems for doctors, health insurers, and litigants in personal injury lawsuits. It is also evident in sports such as college football, where coaches are prohibited from disclosing the nature of their under-aged player’s injuries without authorization from their parents.
As to the news conferences outside of Whittington’s hospital, my guess is that Mr. Whittington himself gave the physicians authorization to give details about his condition. Because of Mr. Whittington’s shock and initial treatment, he probably couldn’t give that authorization for some time after the accident.
HIPPA must not apply if there is a Republican for the press to pile on.
About the only thing that seems in dispute is the VP’s PR strategy. I tend to think that he handled it correctly.
He had to know that the news would raise an absolutely ridculous shit storm. He wanted to first ensure that the victim got proper medical attention and that law enforcement was properly notified. Both would have been complicated by a media circus, not to mention the stress and embarrasment caused to all involved, most especially the victim, his family, and his host.
There is every reason to believe that the press would have butchered the facts especially in the free for all that would have ensued if news had been immediately released. Katrina anyone?
And let’s be honest. This story would have been impossible to cover up, even if the White House had wanted to. We’ve got a victim who can testify. We’ve got eye witnesses.
My bottom line. The VP made a serious error resulting in a hunting accident. He’s taken responsibility for it.
Much of the media and the left are a pack of dumb asses.
Ok, fine. So HOW LONG do we have to put up with this stupid shit? Does anybody have the power to semi-magically make the DC Press Corpse act like freakin’ adults? For ONCE?
Sheesh. Get a real story, you twits. There’s plenty standing around, waving their arms to get your attention. It’s not like the REAL stories are hiding.
SB: met
ill
Hmmm.
Frankly I’d like to see White House press guy respond to some of these nonsense hyper-bullshit with a:
“So. You guys printed those cartoons right Mr. Defender of Free Speech?”
I’d laugh myself into an emergency ward I assure you.
Nah.
Oh, they actually adressed the HIPAA question in today’s presser at the hospital: they have Whittington’s permission within limits, and they several times answered questions by saying Mr Whittington wouldn’t let them talk about that.
It has always been about Cheney’s PR strategy. We’ve pretty much known from the first that he handled the substance right- medical attention, contacting the sheriff and park service, contacting the families. The idea that he had some moral obligation the press – that THEY represent the public and the police don’t is self serving bull. The only question is the public’s reaction to the PR strategy. My guess is that they don’t give a damn about whether Cheney talks to Gregory or Millbank – ever. We’ll see. If this all blows over, you can lock all the boys in a room with Helen Thomas and throw away the key.
“If this all blows over, you can lock all the boys in a room with Helen Thomas and throw away the key.”
Abu Gharaib! Abu Gharaib!
As most surely know, among the Washington press corps, there was never even a scintilla of concern for the man who was shot. It was all about a chance to get Cheyney and that’s all it ever was.
The same reason that the MSM is now releasing more heretofore unpublished photos from Abu Graib despite that fact that they are two years old and there has been a full investigation.
Another MSM moment of resonance with the public. But I don’t think what’s resonating with the public is what the MSM intended.
Now we have Torrey Clark opining that this isn’t enough. It’s enough to make one think she was a competent spokeswoman for the DOD.
There is no way anybody with a R after their name is going to satisfy those jackals. I’m glad to see Cheney isn’t even trying.
bravo! bravo! mr cheney, once he saw that his original story about the laywer being at fault didnt fly, decided to take full responsiblity for shooting another man. incidentally, when the dem-mouthpieces crow about “IN THE FACE” they are ommitting one important fact. he also shot the man in the heart.
and way to write a story about dick-fucking-cheney and say SOMEONE ELSE “represents everything that is wrong with today’s political culture” (even if it happens to be true w/r/t mr. macaullife).
Grow up, Rev.
Did anyone else notice Macauliffe’s “fratboys” comment? And did anyone see that term emerge from actus a couple of hours ago on the last thread concerned with this subject?
Could it be??
(I haven’t been over to Kos to check how pervasive this particular sneer is. But wouldn’t it be great if actus were Macauliffe? Wow!)
TW: Strange times we live in, when you can recognize, say, ed (hi, ed!) by his “Hmmm” and, maybe, Nutty Terry by his “fratboys.”
I miss McCauliffe. Pure entertainment, constant hilarity. Nobody can say as many absurd things and spout as many personal attacks with a smile the way he can. Dean comes off as a glowering tight ass in comparison.
– After McCauliffe went on FOX and in his inimitable way, managing to get everyone of the Dem attack points wrong, Mary Matlin got on the phone to the newscast and straightened it all out for him….
From end to end of press and internet, I keep reading “coverup.” Dumb question:
WHAT THE HELL DO THEY THINK THEY’RE TALKING ABOUT?
Cheney caps some gramps, takes care of the boring make-sure-he’s-not-dead stuff, sends the most-expert witness off to talk to the press, story’s in the news. End.
I know why the “coverup” spin exists, but it’s so obviously a pantload, and never made any sense, why accept it? You know it’s a lie. Why repeat it? Why obey? What does it get you?
That The Nation Formerly Known As Reason has joined the “coverup” chorus is…â€â€I just really hate those fucks lately. Why keep the mask of libertarianism when you’ve been wholly pod-peopled with too-smart-to-be(-but-still) Democrats? Why obey? What does it get you?
tw school: Thank you, random word generatorâ€â€that explains it. “Cool kids’ table.” And they really do like you guys. Really. …Suckers.
Who’s this MacAuliffe creature you’re discussing? Never heard of it.
Again Context
Does Terry think that the Secret Service would allow ‘fratboys with guns were hammered and shooting randomly’ around the Veep?
.
My uncle said it best:
“Regarding the Vice-President’s most recent screw-up – there’s good news and there’s bad news: the good news, none of the hunting dogs were hurt – the bad news, Cheney only bagged one Republican.”
That oughta rile you mofos up a bit…
Why couldn’t Dick have been hunting with Ted Kennedy?
Wholly cow, this firedoglady has, no shit, like 40 posts on Cheney and is friggin coming unglued that the accident report was fixed and that Cheney was off his rocker drunk, and oh yeah…she never misses an opportunity to retail from a good source that Cheney will resign, when do her readers start to clue in that Cheney never resigns when firedoglady says so?
Oooooh, comandante, I’m so riled! How is it that you know our every weak point, our every hot button? <eye roll>
BumperStickerist, I meant to thank you for your observation in my last comment. Even though I knew the Secret Service was there, it didn’t occur to me until you mentioned it that – just as you say – they’d never allow a drunk person around the VP with a gun, even if it were the VP himself.
Unless… they were in on it… and it really was a warning to Scooter…
Nah.
Well, we are talking bird shot here, not an elephant gun.
True, but just think, the ambulance could have gone off of a bridge and the occupants could have decided to use Ted as a raft, and the bird shot could have just let the air out – I mean it would actually be a story…
It isn’t fratboy behavior unless someone’s naked.
Or at the very least, in a toga.
That would more likely result from hunting on John Kerry’s level:
Rrrrrrrroooooad Trriiiiiiiipppp!
Slart – The ghost of lost elections past
Maybe if the hospital reports that the shot pattern is in the shape of Mohammed the press will drop the story.
If you were clip out the hunting section of the Monty Python “Upper Class Twit of the Year Competition” and slip it to CBS with a note saying it was footage of the hunt Cheney was on, they’d run it within an hour. It would so perfectly fit their preconceptions, they’d see no need to confirm it.
McAwful needs to be institutionalized.
Cheney missed the golden opportunity to make amends with the press by giving this interview to the proper reporter. Jeff Gannon.
This is kind of funny – both Actus (in another thread) and now the Commandante have posted things that are supposed to a) generate some sort of head-exploding hypocrisy overload, or b) get under my skin.
Oddly enough, in both cases, I thought that in a pretty irreverently tounge-in-cheek kind of way they were funny.
Ah, but remember: Terry’s idea of “Secret Service” are the goons who’d let some bimbo in to the Oval to whistle a tune on ye olde POTUS skin flute so….ya, know. CONTEXT
Very nice, monkeyboy, wish I had said that.
And it’s so like Terry Mcauliffe to make unsubstantiated comments about Cheney drinking when Terry clearly has a crack pipe sticking out of his pocket.
Even the relatively unflappable on the left have gone absolutely unhinged. The more flappable are in dire need of medication.
I was going to comment here but everything that I was going to say has already been said…heh…
Boy, you shoot one lawyer… and then don’t even kill him?
Yeah, that’s smart. NOT!
Of course, if you did kill him, you’d sorta be obligated to eat him, wouldn’t you? It’s a law, I think, I heard it on the radio… Well, maybe not a law as such, more of a guideline…
Damn. Golden retriever, good eatin’…
Oh jeez. I just wandered over to HuffPo and I saw they’d all whipped out the Jeff Gannon reference already. It makes me hate myself. I apologize to all of you.
I was thinking more just Benny Hill music.
Not to mention hospital IT techs. Someone fast talks me into resetting the wrong password (still waiting on my bosses to approve some form of verification process beyond checking the name given against their login ID) to cover this situation), I get hit with a $5,000 fine & a year in Federal-Pound-Me-Up-The-Ass prison.
Look, we know that pitchers and catchers report this weekend, but to slander Terry McAuliffe like that is…well, it’s admirable, and spot-on correct. With people like him at the helm of the Democratic Party, it’s easy to see why I ended up registering Republican…
…but dammit, enough of such unimportant issues. Let’s get to the real story…the start of another baseball season!
t/w: times. Times for Kansas City to take their annual dose of humility in the Cactus League. *sigh*
sometimes there are hints of intelligence around the protein ranch. this string of nonsense is not one of them. the notion that one of these two parties is somehow more respectable or admirable than the other is utter nonsense. the idea that dick cheney is not the same lying gasbag as terry mccaullife is just deluded. you ARE huffpost right now.
two sides. same coin.
me? i’m just a schmo.
Well, he was chairman of the DNC for several years. Doesn’t that count?
Monkeyboy: “Maybe if the hospital reports that the shot pattern is in the shape of Mohammed the press will drop the story.”
ROFLMAO!
Also, I’d like to point out that Corpus Christi, with about 300,000 people, is hardly a small town.
Wolfman,
My sources in the Orient say that Golden Retrievers do not taste good. English Pointers taste much better. Rule of thumb: If you are picking out a dog to eat, take one with a short coat, as long haired breeds have more fat, and dog fat is not particularly tasty.
mojo,
Yeah, Buddy! Good thing the lawyer lived. If you think Golden Retriever is bad, you ought to taste Lawyer, especially those old, tough ones!
Nobody wants to play your blame game.
I’d prefer it’d been David Hume interviewing Cheney: “Dick, how do you know the shooting actually took place, or that you actually went hunting, or that you even exist?”