President Donald Trump and other Cabinet officials were quickly evacuated after shots were fired at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday evening.
The alleged shooter was stopped by Secret Service and is in custody, according to the White House Press Pool.
Trump was not injured.
Trump shared a message on Truth Social after being evacuated from the dinner, held at the Washington Hilton Hotel in Washington, D.C. He said Secret Service and law enforcement did a “fantastic job.”
“They acted quickly and bravely. The shooter has been apprehended, and I have recommended that we ‘LET THE SHOW GO ON’ but, will entirely be guided by Law enforcement,” Trump said.
“They will make a decision shortly. Regardless of that decision, the evening will be much different than planned, and we’ll just, plain, have to do it again,” he said.
White House Correspondents Association President CBS News correspondent Weijia Jiang returned to the stage to let attendees know that they would resume the evening’s events and more information would be available soon.
She later announced that Trump insisted that the event be rescheduled some time within the next 30 days since they could not resume Saturday night due to security protocol.
Despite Trump saying he wanted to return to the event, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt shared that Trump would deliver a statement to the America from the White House’s briefing room.
Trump speaks after shooting
Trump delivered remarks from the White House Briefing Room about an hour and half after the shooting. He said it was an “unexpected” event and praised law enforcement.
“This was an event dedicated to freedom of speech that was supposed to bring together members of both parties with members of the press. And in a certain way, it did, because ... they just unified. I saw a room that was just totally unified,” he said.
He shared that one Secret Service officer was shot but was saved by a bulletproof vest at a very close range from a “very powerful gun.”
Trump said that the shooter charged a security check point “armed with multiple weapons” and that he was “taken down very quickly.”
The president critiqued the Washington Hilton for the lack of security and noted that the new ballroom set to be built in the East Wing of the White House would be more suitable for gatherings like this.
The apparent shooting attempt comes after Trump faced an assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania in 2024.
Notably, former President Ronald Reagan was shot in an assassination attempt in 1981 when he was leaving the Washington Hilton from a speaking engagement.
“So, as you know, this is not the first time in the past couple of years that our republic has been attacked by a would-be-assassin who sought to kill in Butler, Pennsylvania, less than two years ago. You all know that story, and in Palm Beach, Florida, a few months after that, we came close,” Trump said.
“But in light of this evening’s events, I ask that all Americans recommit with their hearts in resolving our differences peacefully. We have to, we have to resolve our differences.”
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche spoke in the briefing room and said that they expect charges to be filed against the shooter soon. The charges will be “self evident” but the investigation is just getting started. FBI Director Kash Patel also asked for individuals to come forward with any information about the shooter.
Trump noted that officials would be searching the assailant’s apartment, which he said was in California. The shooter’s identity was not revealed, but video has circulated online showing a man face-down on the ground of the hotel.
The president was asked during the briefing about why multiple shootings have occurred in his vicinity. He pointed to some of the country’s “most impactful people” like Abraham Lincoln.
“They don’t go after the ones that don’t do much,” he said. “And I hate to say I’m honored by that, but I’ve done a lot.”
He added that he thought Secret Service and other law enforcement officers did a great job in operating quickly in protecting him, the first lady and others in the hotel.
Trump said “very shortly” the public will learn more about the shooter, since the administration did not identify the individual.
Aftermath at the Hilton
Event attendees took cover in the ballroom and remained in the room as the situation unfolded.
Speaking live from the ballroom, CNN’s Jake Tapper said Secret Service took away other Cabinet officials including Vice President Vance, Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and members of Congress, including Rep. Steve Scalise.
Videos show Trump being safely escorted off the stage.
The tense scene comes as the event has had heightened attention and scrutiny for being the first Correspondents’ dinner that Trump has attended.
Just minutes before Trump was evacuated, Jiang delivered her opening remarks before dinner was served to attendees. In her remarks she thanked Trump and the first lady for being there. She also thanked Leavitt who works with the press every day “whether you like it or not.”
Addressing her fellow White House reporters, Jiang said the event would celebrate their work covering the presidency and the group of students.
“Of course, at the heart of both of those things is the importance of the First Amendment,” she said.
After the shooting and evacuation, Jiang dismissed attendees and notified them of the rescheduling of the event.
“I said earlier tonight that journalism is a public service because when there is an emergency, we run to the crisis, not away from it,” she said. “And on a night when we are thinking about the freedoms and the First Amendment, we must also think about how fragile they are. I saw all of you reporting, and that’s what we do. So, thank God everybody is safe and thank you for coming together tonight.”
Trump’s notable appearance
Trump’s attendance at the dinner was notable since he refused WHCA’s invitation in the past and left questions for how he’d interact with the press corps outside of his traditional White House gaggles, particularly because he frequently criticizes many of them for allegedly biased reporting and being the “fake news.”
Groups were protesting the WHCA’s invitation to Trump for his treatment toward the press and criticizing those who are going to attend anyways. A coalition, including the Society of Professional Journalists and other prominent journalists like Dan Rather and Ann Curry, have sent the WHCA board of directors a petition to use its annual platform at the dinner to send an explicit message about non-partisan protection of the First Amendment.
Protesters gathered across the street from the Washington Hilton before the dinner, chanting “shame” and holding anti-war in Iran signs, according to USA Today.
The association has stated that it was “happy” Trump accepted the invitation and they look “forward to hosting him.” It was revealed Thursday that first lady Melania Trump would also attend the dinner.
This is a developing story.