WASHINGTON, Feb 13: Some US newspapers on Monday took potshots at US Vice President Dick Cheney over a weekend hunting accident in which he shot a 78-year-old Texas lawyer while stalking quail.
The incident made the front pages of The Washington Post, The New York Times, USA Today and The Wall Street Journal, most of which noted soberly that Cheney’s office had not gone public with the information when it happened.
The New York City tabloid press, on the other hand, went after the vice president with both barrels.
The New York Post headlined its story “Big Shot” and mocked the “Blunder-buss” that sent Harry Whittington to the hospital, while the New York Daily News warned “Duck, It’s Dick.”
Time Magazine opened a profile of Whittington with the tongue-in-cheek observation that “Accidentally shooting a lawyer is never a good idea, especially one who’s known for being something of a pistol himself.”
The local Corpus-Christi Caller-Times of Texas broke the story on Sunday, a day after Cheney sprayed Whittington with birdshot as they hunted quail on a large south Texas ranch owned by Katharine Armstrong.
The vice president’s office disclosed no information on Saturday, but on Sunday his office confirmed the Caller-Times account of the accident.
All-news networks like CNN television were running hunting safety features on Monday, interviewing hunting experts and passing along tips like “Know where your partners are.”
“Hunting can be a tremendously dangerous sport,” Tred Barta, of the Outdoor Life Network, told CNN. But he added that its percentage of accidents, fatal or otherwise, is small compared to other outdoor sports.
Late-night talk show hosts who typically mine such incident for laughs were not broadcasting over the weekend, making Monday night the first time they will be able to train their sights on the mishap.
On Sunday, Cheney spokeswoman Lea Anne McBride confirmed the Caller-Times’ account that Cheney had turned to shoot quail that had just been flushed but instead inadvertently peppered Whittington with shotgun pellets, striking one side of his body.
Armstrong said Whittington was taken to Christus Spohn Hospital Memorial by ambulance, the newspaper reported.
She said Cheney, 65, had not noticed that Whittington had approached him from behind. “Nobody wants this to happen, but it does,” she told the Caller-Times.
Armstrong said the vice president’s secret service security detail had tended to the wounded man, according to the newspaper.
“The vice president visited with Mister Whittington at the hospital and was pleased to see that he’s doing fine and in good spirits,” McBride said later.—AFP
