The vice president appears to have behaved like a teenager who thinks that if he keeps quiet about the wreck, no one will notice that the family car is missing its right door. The administration's communications department has proved that its skills at actually communicating are so rusty it can't get a minor police-blotter story straight. And the White House, in trying to cover up the cover-up, has once again demonstrated that it would rather look inept than open.So, slot it right in there with the lying liars material. Do Bush opponents really think that concentrating their attention on this story will help their cause? Joe Gandelman has some analysis:
Is the Cheney controversy going to help [Bush's approval ratings]? Some suggest YES — it's keeping the bad news about Katrina (that neither Michael Chertoff, the administration's Homeland and Security Chief, nor the President did a heck of a job on Katrina....according to House Republicans) off the front pages for a while. It also keeps a press seemingly unable to truly focus on several big issues off the warrantless domestic spying story. FALSE. The Cheney story provides of a GENERAL CONTEXT that shows an administration either in disarray or marked by incredible arrogance when it comes to obeying laws in a way that everyone else and even other politicians would be required to do. The Cheney story will NOT help Bush rise in the polls.Hmmm... so he's buying the NYT concept. Me, I think it's a distraction from more damaging stories. Whether it helps or hurts Bush is -- or should be -- less significant than whether we can concentrate on issues that matter as opposed to a freak accident.
IN THE COMMENTS: Icepick has perfect timing. Palladian wonders why no one at the NYT noticed that the car wreck analogy risked stirring up the wrong memories of a politician delaying to report an accident. John (classic) reveals the secret Cheney-Rove plot to distract America.
UPDATE: Victoria Spurs coins a word: Cheneyquiddick. Perfect. It even has the "dick."
Posts
36 comments:
It's just another brilliant Rovian strategy for distracting people. DON'T keep your eye on the ball, look over here at this shiny (and hysterically funny!) object that's got nothing to do with anything!
The best part (from a Republican perspective) is that a lot of anti-Republican and anti-Bush types are going to waste a lot of time trying to make the Cheney Shotgun Massacre of 2006 part of the overall narative. It will be a rhetorical drag on their other arguments, reducing their efficiency.
Wow, I couldn't have timed that better!
The jokes are hilarious! Actually I'm a bit more worried about Iran developing nuclear weapons than Cheney being a poor shot and the Whitehouse not rushing to tell the world the VP had just blasted a man with a shotgun. I think the Public looks to lampoon politicians any time they can - we have always enjoyed a good hanging and a good laugh.
From what I've read the only law that was broken was a failure to have a seven dollar permit. The accident was reported to the proper authorities, not covered up. The MSM is starting to make themselves look shrill, pompous, and hysterical (again).
"The CIA assured Cheney that Harry Whittington was actually a pheasant" ha ha ha - this is even better than the rabbit that was chasing Carter that time....
The anti-Bush crowd is, once again, trying to drum up mass hysteria over what is essentially nothing.
THe uproar speaks more to the prejudice of the people involved than to the actual incident.
Did Cheney screw up - yup. Does it matter in the least - nope.
Are people familiar with guns and hunting going to really have a laugh at him- yup.
Is this worth any ink in the major MSM - nope.
But the anti-Bush folks never miss a chance to overplay a hand or flog a dead horse.
The accident was reported to the proper authorities, not covered up.
Uh-huh. If someone working for you does something criminal, or even just stupid -- how soon do you want to know about it? I will argue that if you work for the POTUS, and you do something that reflects badly on the US -- shooting someone, even accidentally, qualifies -- you are obligated to tell as soon as possible. You don't sit down for dinner with other members of the shooting party, periodically getting updates, and act concerned.
It seems to me that the story simply underscores the inability of some in the White House to deal with bad news.
When something bad happens, the White House freezes and it seems like their instinct is to do nothing. Sometimes that's helpful, if the problem solves itself. More often than not, however, problems don't go away.
Eventually, the WH does find its footing.
KARL: Dick, we have a problem here. The press is chewing us up over Katrina.
DICK: How about arresting them all and holding them incommunicado for the NSA leak? We could say we are just holding them till we sort it out. If we get'em all there won't be much negative press -- no one left to report it.
KARL: Good idea! I'll get back to you.
***
KARL: Dick, Karl again. I checked that idea out. It won;t work. Too many damned terrorists in jail. No room for the press. Brown&Root says it will take three days to erect a temporary detention facility in New York, unless we use the empty FEMA trailers, That might not play too well.
DICK: Well how about a story about the Bush daughters. One is doing poverty work in South Africa and the other is voluneer teaching in a balck school. You know..draw a cointrast with partying Chelsea.
KARL: Dick, I don't think you quite understand how the press works. The Bush daughters are republicans.
DICK: How about the press plane crashes and hideously burns to death the press?
KARL: That would be pretty complex to set up.
DICK: Well, what do you suggest?
KARL: How about another heart attack?
DICK: Cheesus, Karl. Do you know how big those damn needles are? How about I accidentally sort of run over somebody from the press?
KARL: I checked bombing Iran, but the Air Force says not until the funding for the F22,F35, and secret F48 is nailed down.
DICK: How about I shoot someone from the press?
KARL: That might work. Hmm. I'll get that Dana Milbank fellow to put on an orange vest. I'll tell him it shows solidarity with the anti-cartoon Muslims and opposition to tax cuts..
DICK: And then I let him have it?
KARL: Yeah. Let me set it up.
***
KARL: Dick, its a go. He'll be the one with the orange vest. Good hunting!
DICK: Damn. I like this. Orange vest you say?
"The vice president appears to have behaved like a teenager who thinks that if he keeps quiet about the wreck, no one will notice that the family car is missing its right door."
Or he behaved like a senator from Massachusetts who thinks that if he keeps quiet about the wreck, no one will notice that one of Bobby Kennedy's secretaries is missing.
They really should have thought more carefully about that metaphor. The NY Times editorials have been really bad lately, not only in substance but in quality as well, more insular and irrational than the administration that they constantly accuse of embodying those traits. Everything the administration does is treated with the feverish hope that it will snowball into the next Watergate. Or maybe the strategy is that if they shoot enough peas, eventually Goliath will topple. Whatever it is, the important points get lost in the noise. Birdshotgate may be ironic and worth a few laughs (since no one died in the process) but it's utter folderol in the scheme of important things that the NY Times should be thinking about.
I do like the whole "it speaks to a greater truth about the administration, the consistency of the behaviors as symbolic of the WH state of mind" argument. Politics as Freudian dream interpretation! More of that, please! Why don't you write us a sestina about it, semanticleo?
Maybe the president will take a page from Althouse and change his totalled Little Greenie for a shiny new Silvio.
Cheney for Condi?
John, that was in fact classic!
MadisonMan, the Vice Presidency is an independent office. Once elected, s/he can do pretty much whatever they want and the President can't do sh*t unless.
Courdry: "Jon, tonight the Vice President is standing by his decision to shoot Harry Whittington. Now according to the best intelligence available, there were quail hidden in the brush. Everyone believed at the time-there-were-quail in the brush. And while the quail turned out to be the 78 year old man. Even knowing that today, Mr. Cheney insists-he still would have shot Mr. Whittington in the face.
While I think this story is hysterical (the shooting incident itself, not the news coverage afterward), this really sucks for the Democrats. It has completely taken the focus away from more important stories that would be far more useful in attacking the Bush White House. To wit:
1) The continuing crisis over the Iranian nuclear program. The Dems could be hammering away on this one, how the Administration failed to keep its eye on the ball because it was distracted by Iraq, how the Iraq invasion killed diplomatic goodwill that could have been wisely used for defusing the Iranian situation, how Iran is spelled almost exactly like Iraq, etc.
2) Or the Katrina report from a Republican Congress blasting the Admin. response to Katrina: how this exemplifies bad oversight and control by the White House, and additionally that this points out how lousy our response would be to a massive terrorist attack or flu pandemic, etc.
3) Bode Miller's complete failure at the Olympic Downhill competition, which demonstrates once again a drunken frat-boy mentality that is doomed to failure in all things.
Okay, so maybe that last one isn't too good, but the first two would be much more effective than the Great Shotgun Massacre of 2006 story. Plus, those first two stories are of actual importance to the Republic!
As for the press coverage, I wouldn't ascribe their reaction (outside of editorials and opinion pieces of course) to anything other than the fact that the press corps is childish, arrogant and stupid.
If the press were REALY trying to help the Democrats (rather than help themselves to cheap copy), they would have quickly moved past this story, leaving it to the comedians who will handle it with much greater skill.
Instead, we got yesterday's White House press conference, which had to be one of the more ridiculous moments of recent American political history.
Drudge has a great snippet up on his page about the NBC News White House correspondent throwing a tantrum because HE wasn't PROMPTLY informed of the VP's actions by the White House press secratary himself. Sample lines from the reporter include "I will yell!" and "I'll calm down when I feel like calming down!" That is EXACTLY the kind of stuff I would expect to hear from a small child throwing a temper tantrum. It perfectly exemplifies my point about the press's childishness and arrogance, and the stupidity comes from the fact that they are incapable of realizing how bad this sounds. With the advent of 24 hour news channels, the internet, and C-SPAN, the public can see just how badly THEY behave without filters. They no longer control the coverage,but they haven't realized it yet, despite being right there at the center of events. Complete idiots....
If nothing else, you can say Cheney's no-public-statement shows a real lack of interest in spinning the news.
The story's a monumental bore. It's apparent that the MSM does not have any hunters among their writers (much like it lacks people with military background). Ignorant of the topic at hand, they ask alot of pointless questions, and frame things like only the unlearned can.
And being among the guns are inherently scary and evil crowd makes them even less likely to get the facts straight.
As is common to most such accidents, it looks like the victim was unfortunately not following proper procedure, and came up to the VP and his partner without announcing he was doing so. Dumb mistake, but it happens alot. If you don't want to get shot, never do that.
What a non-story.
Birdshotgate
Pfff.
Cheneyquiddick
Cheers,
Victoria
It even has the "dick."
That's right.
Wait, what do you call those names like Anna and Otto -- palindromes.
What do you call a proper noun which begins and ends with the very name of the thing you are referring to, like CHENEYquidDICK?
I think I may have inadvertently discovered a whole new field of linguistics.
Take that Sodoku!
Cheers,
Victoria
When I was watching, briefly, the coniption fit that the White House press glee club was having at Scott McClellan, the first thing that came to my mind was, "what a bunch of whiners."
They were pissed because the VP didn't call them personally to say that he'd shot someone. Whaaaah!
Personally, based on the way the press generally treats him, I'm not at all surprised (and generally supportive) of the fact that, as one pundit put it this morning, Dick Cheney wouldn't talk to the press to tell them their shirt was on fire.
Whether it helps or hurts Bush is -- or should be -- less significant than whether we can concentrate on issues that matter as opposed to a freak accident.
There is a thoroughly non-partisan inability of Americans to weigh things that matter over freak accidents. We love a freak story. Sharks attack! Child snatchers on the loose!
God help me, come June, I won't be watching anything but the Weather Channel, because the entertainment news media will be out to scare me to death with every little wave coming out of Africa. Return of the Killer Hurricanes!
Having seen Kerry handle a shotgun in news photos and reading his description of deer hunting, I think it would be more likely he would have shot himself.
Just guessing.
Prof. Althouse, by not flying off the handle, thinking this incident represents a monumental attempt at a sleazy cover-up that should bring down the entire administration, and take the streets to call for the immediate incarceration of at least Vice President Cheney and Press Secretary Scott McClellan, then you can't call yourself a moderate.
It's clear you've become a Republican.
Welcome to the darkside of the force.
Use your powers well.
There have been several critiques of the MSM in these comments, and most of them have been deserved. However, I would point out that the MSM has less of an agenda and more of a case of institutional laziness. This story has a humorous side, features a generally unpopular character, and is easy-to-summarize. "Veep Shoots Laywer Accidentally."
It's very easy to write a article or commentary blasting the WH on Cheneyquiddick. By the same token, it's just as easy to write a defense of the WH's non-action, and take aim at the MSM.
What is difficult? Coming up with a story about the Iranian nuclear program that can captivate the media, wonks, pundits and bloggers like this.
The WH Press Corps should be ashamed at their gnashing of teeth and false offense. They should instead be tracking down real stories - from CNN to Reuters to Fox.
But that would require effort. It's easier to criticize than to investigate.
Cheney was just trying to buy a little time to go through the guy's briefcase and office, and wanted to wait until he had the guy laid out in the park next to the cannon before he told anybody. Damn guy kept getting up and going to the hospital, though...
I hadn't heard that the victim had had a heart attack.
His death would certainly put an entirely different spin on the matter. Although old people
do die, I'm sure some would have a field day linking the two.
What a horrid thing to go down in history for. Here's to hoping it will not come to that.
Reminds me of a story.
A guy calls 911 and tells the operator, "Help! I think I just killed my hunting partner!" The operator says, "Hold on, sir. Are you sure he's dead?" The phone goes silent for a moment, then the hunter comes back on the line, "He is now".
It's a good thing Cheney wasn't hunting with one of these:
WARNING: Do NOT follow this link if the site of a dead deer will upset you.
http://www.buckstix.com/howitzer.htm
Chris,
You mischaracterize what McClellen said. The briefings are posted at the white House site. But if you read the briefing transcripts and can say with a straight face that the press corps was anything but stupid, you need glasses.
Whether you realize it or not, every hunter MUST be responsible for their own behavior, including paying attention to where they are walking. That said, it is always the responsibility of the person pulling the trigger to be aware of exactly what he is targeting and what is BEYOND the target. However, it is not at all unusual to see rather a lot of these types of accidents in any given year.
Assuming Cheney was using #7-1/2 shot (probably most common for dove and quail), the count would be around 350 if he was using lead, about 1/3 higher than that if using steel. These pellets are around 0.100 inches in diameter.
It's simply a stupid story to focus on when so much more important stuff is happening.
Distracted?
The man has now had a heart attack; he will be in the hosital for a week. He could still die from this.
But hey, let's post lots of things about robots!!!
ANYTHING, I guess, to distract from the stupidity of the Vice President.
If Harry dies will you people think this is a story? I guess not. How pathetic.
The folks over at Kos are speculating on what happens if the guy dies.
There are a few rational ones wishing him well.
Oh, the above numbers were for a 12 guage shotgun. Dispersal at 30 yards would be around three feet with a full choke. Someone said he had been using a 28 guage gun (I have not verified). That would be a LOT less shot.
ChrisO, you show up hurrling insults (the first two sentences of your first post) and then act all righteous with indignation when someone throws a little back at you. Please.
And then you go on to speculate about the VP being drunk when it happened while simultaneously berating others for expressing opinions when they weren't there.
My question is this: Do you actually pay attention to what you post, or is it a mindless reflex?
And by the way, if you go to Slate there's an ineresting story about how the people in Whittington's law firm are starting to get pretty pissed off at the blame the victim strategy.
Don't be lazy. Include the link!
ChrisO, imputing bad motives to other people just because they disagree with you about the relative importance of a news story IS being insulting. If you lack sufficient mental suppleness to understand this point then you lack the mental wherewithall to have a useful opinion on this story.
And yes, you certainly DID insinuate that Cheney was impaired.
Try owning up to your own comments before insisting that everyone else own up to theirs.
And WildAboutHarie, you realize that everyone who is reflexively calling this A MAJOR STORY OF HUGE IMPORTANCE also sound like partisan tools, right? Or does it only work that way when it's convenient to the storyline you're pushing?
Anyway, I think my 8:57am and 9:57am comments from yesterday just look better and better. Fiftey-eight comments and counting about a relatively non-important story. Some of us mock Quxxo, but I have to give him/her this: At least he/she tends to focus on important stories, even if I disagree with him/her about the interpretation of many of them.
And Quxxo, throw us a bone here. Should we use male or female pronouns when referring to you? Please update you profile to include that one little nugget.
Having seen Kerry handle a shotgun in news photos and reading his description of deer hunting, I think it would be more likely he would have shot himself.
In which case the story would be – would he try to get another purple heart for his injuries? ;)
Only that Cheney agreed to let her be the spokesperson regarding the event. She said it was the old guy's fault. No one corrected her.
This is a lie of course. Katherine Armstrong made it quite clear that she didn’t coordinate with the Vice President’s office before she took it upon herself to call her local paper and let them know what happened.
He's no fool. If he wasn't drunk, he'd have stayed dry and made sure to get breatalized soonest. Since he was drunk, he downed a cocktail to cover it and got his SS squad to bar entry to the sheriff's deputy and his breathalizer andotherwise keep the law away from him until the next morning.
Post a Comment