WASHINGTON, Feb. 15 (UPI) -- U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney took the blame Wednesday for accidentally shooting a hunting partner in Texas last Saturday.
"I shot my friend," Cheney told Fox News. "I'm the guy who pulled the trigger. It's my fault."
Cheney had been publicly silent since the shooting, but agreed to be interviewed by Fox News. The broadcaster released excerpts of the interview Wednesday afternoon, and most of the interview hours later.
Cheney said the image of the shooting stays with him. "I fired. There's Harry (Whittington) falling. As I said, it was one of the worst days of my life."
The vice president said he had no media relations aide with him, and stands by his actions in not informing the public for a day. He said he knew that once the local newspaper was told of the story, it would go national.
Besides, Cheney said, he did not want the victim's family to hear about the incident on television, and he didn't know until the day after that "Harry was going to be OK."
The White House is publicly backing Cheney's handling of the incident although White House spokesman Scott McClellan Wednesday allowed in retrospect, situations always can be handled differently.
