The daughter of the businessman known for being shot by Dick Cheney expressed her strong feelings towards the former vice president following his recent passing.
Sally May Whittington, whose father Harry Whittington was accidentally shot by Cheney in 2006, shared with the Daily Mail that the incident significantly marked her family’s public identity. “It was an ‘unfortunate incident’ that defined us,” she remarked.
When asked for her perspective on the shooting in light of Cheney’s death, Sally quipped, “We’ve had thoughts on it since February 11, 2006.”
Reflecting on the event, she acknowledged, “It was just a very unfortunate incident, but as my dad said, accidents happen.” Yet, she couldn’t resist a touch of sarcasm, adding, “I don’t think Cheney was a great shot.”
There have long been whispers that Cheney never offered an apology to Whittington for the mishap, which resulted in a heart attack and collapsed lung for the businessman.
It had long been rumored that Cheney never apologized to Whittington over the shooting which left his victim with suffering a heart attack and collapsed lung.
Sally verified that version of events Tuesday, saying: ‘I think Cheney thought he apologized, but my family didn’t really.’
‘It was an accident, and my father handled it very respectfully, as he always did… It was just a funny kind of incident in our family’s life.’
The accidental shooting captured headlines around the world at the time, as Cheney came under scrutiny for recklessly firing a shotgun at Whittington, who was 78, and leaving him with over 100 pellets in his body.
The daughter of Harry Whittington (pictured), a political figure infamously shot by then-Vice President Dick Cheney in 2006,spoke out following the divisive Republican’s passing on Monday evening. Whittington is pictured injured shortly after the shooting
Cheney is pictured at an NRA event in 2004, two years before the shooting. He died on Monday aged 84
Sally Whittington, the daughter of the Texas businessman, told the Daily Mail that her father being shot by Cheney in 2006 was an ‘unfortunate incident’ that defined her family’s public life
Cheney shot Whittington on a quail hunting trip at a ranch in south Texas, accidentally firing a shotgun loaded with bird shot at Whittington.
The 78-year-old Texas businessman sustained damage to much of the right side of his body, suffering a collapsed lung and damage to his face, neck and torso.
Whittington would also suffer a minor heart attack when one of the shotgun pellets lodged near his heart around a week after the shooting. The businessman recovered and died in 2023 aged 95.
Cheney came under intense scrutiny following the shooting, as he neglected to offer Whittington a full apology while repeatedly downplaying the incident and injuries that his hunting partner suffered.
The vice president would later describe it as ‘one of the worst days of my life’, but at the time his office also delayed informing the press for almost a whole day after Whittington was hospitalized.
The shooting occurred at around 5:30pm on February 11, 2006, and President George W Bush was told about it around two hours later, reports at the time suggest.
However, after Press Secretary Scott McClellan was informed about the shooting at 6am the next day and pushed to release the information, Cheney overruled him.
The story only emerged around seven hours later in the local news outlet Corpus Christi Caller-Times, and Cheney was accused of trying to cover up the shooting.
A top Republican close to the White House told Time soon after: ‘This is either a cover-up story or an incompetence story.
‘Karl (Rove) was constrained, as was the entire communications operation, because the Vice President had arranged for how this was to come out.’
The shooting scene was remade in the 2018 blockbuster about Cheney’s life, Vice, starring Christian Bale (pictured) as the divisive Republican leader
Cheney, seen hunting on a separate trip in South Dakota in 2002, came under scrutiny following the incident with Whittington for recklessly firing his weapon
Although Cheney never publicly apologized to Whittington for the shooting, the Texas businessman held a press conference soon after being released from hospital, where he said: ‘My family and I are deeply sorry for all that Vice President Cheney and his family have had to go through this week’
Cheney also reportedly failed to get a Texas hunting license stamp to hunt migratory birds before the incident, and remained out of the limelight for some time after amid a media firestorm.
Although Cheney never publicly apologized to Whittington for the shooting, the victim did go on to apologize to the vice president for the backlash he received.
Whittington held a press conference soon after being released from hospital, where he said: ‘My family and I are deeply sorry for all that Vice President Cheney and his family have had to go through this week.’
The shooting scene was remade in the 2018 blockbuster about Cheney’s life, Vice, starring Christian Bale as the divisive Republican leader.
It comes after Cheney’s family announced he passed away on Monday evening at the age of 84 due to complications of pneumonia and cardiac and vascular disease.
Cheney’s family announced he passed away on Monday evening at the age of 84 due to complications of pneumonia and cardiac and vascular disease
In a statement at his passing, Cheney’s family described him as a ‘great and good man who taught his children and grandchildren to love our country.’
Cheney’s passing on Monday evening was met with a divisive response, with critics hitting out at his war record while proponents paid tribute to his life of service to the nation.
Former President George W Bush said in a statement that Cheney’s death ‘is a loss to the nation and a sorrow to his friends.
‘Laura and I will remember Dick Cheney for the decent, honorable man that he was,’ Bush continued.
‘Hustory will remember him as among the finest public servants of his generation – a patriot who brought integrity, high intelligence, and seriousness of purpose to every position he held.’
