Shots fired as gunman charges toward ballroom at White House correspondents’ dinner. Trump unharmed
(Associated Press) – A man armed with guns and knives stormed the lobby outside the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner attended by President Donald Trump Saturday night, heading toward the ballroom in a chaotic encounter with Secret Service agents as guests dove under tables at the sound of gunfire.
The president was not injured and was evacuated from the scene. The gunman, who authorities say was a guest at the Washington Hilton where the dinner was held, was arrested and expected in court Monday. Police believe he opened fire and acted alone, but have not said who his target was or described his motive.
“When you have an impact, they come after you. When you don’t have an impact, they leave you alone,” Trump said, unharmed and still in a tuxedo, at the White House two hours later. “They seem to think he was a lone wolf.”
The shooting occurred just outside the sprawling underground ballroom hosting thousands of guests, disrupting minutes after the start of an annual event meant to honor journalism and the First Amendment that was under particular scrutiny this year because it was the first time since Trump became president that he had attended. Trump later told reporters he hoped the event would be postponed within 30 days, although the fact that a gunman may have rushed into the ballroom immediately raised questions about security precautions at an event attended every year by top government officials.
Video posted by Trump showed the suspect walking past security barricades as Secret Service agents ran toward him. A police officer was shot while wearing a bulletproof vest, but was recovering, officials said. The shooter was tackled to the ground and was not injured, but was being evaluated at a hospital, police said.
The suspect in the shooting was identified as Cole Tomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, California, according to two law enforcement officials who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation. He faces two gun-related charges, including a charge of assaulting a police officer with a deadly weapon.
Inside the ballroom, guests rushed for cover at the sound of gunfire as Secret Service agents, including the heavily armed Counterattack Team, swarmed the stage after the incident.
Vice President JD Vance was removed from the room first, while officers initially covered Trump on the spot before escorting him and first lady Melania Trump out of the room. Trump briefly stumbled while leaving the stage, before being assisted by his security guards.
He was held for a time in a secure presidential suite at the hotel as the president and organizers initially sought to resume the event — hotel staff folded napkins and filled glasses with water, and aides adjusted the teleprompter for the president — before Trump was sent back to the White House on the advice of the Secret Service.
It was the third time since 2024 that the president was threatened by an attacker in his immediate vicinity — including the assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, that left him injured and a local firefighter killed.
“Today we need levels of security that probably no one has ever seen before,” the president said. But he also said: “We will not let anyone take control of our society. »
FBI Director Kash Patel, standing alongside Trump, said the agency was examining a long gun and shell casings recovered at the scene, as well as interviewing witnesses from the dinner. He urged anyone with information to come forward.
Dinner turns into a mess
Guests were dining on spring pea and burrata salad when the noise started — a noise Trump said he initially thought was a tray falling, but some reporters thought it was five to eight gunshots.
The Secret Service and other authorities swarmed the room as guests snuck under the tables by the hundreds. Audible gasps echoed through the ballroom as the guests realized something was happening; hundreds of journalists immediately called for information.
“Step aside, sir!” » someone shouted. Others shouted to get down. In one corner, a chant of “God Bless America” began as the president was escorted off stage. Outside the hotel, members of the National Guard and other authorities swarmed the area as helicopters flew overhead.
After a first attempt to resume, the event was abandoned for the night and will be postponed.
“We will do it again,” said Weijia Jiang, president of the White House Correspondents Association. Shortly afterward, staff began dismantling the tables and presidential lectern.
House Speaker Mike Johnson said he and his wife, Kelly, who were both at the event, were “praying for our country tonight.” The Democratic leader in the House of Representatives, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York, wrote on social media: “The violence and chaos in America must end. »
The banquet hall — where hundreds of journalists, celebrities and national leaders awaited Trump’s remarks — was immediately evacuated. Members of the National Guard took up positions inside the building, with people allowed to leave but not immediately re-enter. Security outside was also extremely tight.
Republican Rep. Mike Lawler of New York, a dinner guest, said he heard a pop and “we didn’t know what it was. And then you heard all kinds of things pop.” Lawler said he “often receives death threats” and said, “I think we live in a climate where everyone recognizes that it’s a problem, but I don’t think people fully understand how big of a problem it actually is.”
The event initially appeared ready to resume after the unrest. Waiters folded napkins and filled water glasses in anticipation of Trump’s return. Another worker prepared the president’s teleprompter for the remarks he was scheduled to deliver.
Typically, the Hilton Hotel, where the dinner has been held for years, remains open to regular guests during the Correspondents’ Dinner, and security has generally focused on the ballroom rather than the hotel as a whole, with little control for people not entering the dinner itself. In recent years, this has created openings for disruptions in the lobby and other public spaces, including during protests in which security forces evicted guests who displayed banners or staged demonstrations.
In 1981, President Ronald Reagan was shot by John Hinckley Jr. outside the Hilton — an event that led to an overhaul of the property that beefed up security and added a special presidential suite near the entrance where executives could be taken. Trump was sent there briefly after Saturday night’s incident.
The event would have highlighted Trump’s relationship with the press
Trump’s presence at Saturday’s annual dinner in Washington for the first time as president was meant to highlight his administration’s often contentious relationship with the press.
Trump arrived at an event where the leaders of a nation at war mingled with celebrities, journalists and even a puppet — Triumph the Insult Comic Dog — at a dinner that usually sparks debate over whether the relationship between journalists and their sources should include socializing together and putting aside sometimes contentious relationships.
Trump was closely watched at the event hosted by the organization of journalists who cover him and his administration. Former presidents in attendance generally spoke about the importance of free speech and the First Amendment, adding some mild criticism of individual journalists.
The Republican president was not present there during his first term nor the first year of his second. He came in 2011 as a guest, sitting in the audience as President Barack Obama, a Democrat, made a few jokes about the New York real estate developer. Trump also attended as a private citizen in 2015.
Trump entered the Washington Hilton banquet hall to the sounds of “Hail to the Chief” and greeted prominent reporters on the dais, also stopping to congratulate White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt by pointing happily.
Previous dinners have also featured comedians making fun of presidents. This year, the group chose to hire mentalist Oz Pearlman as their featured entertainment.
Between scolding individual journalists, fighting organizations like the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal and the Associated Press in court, and restricting press access to the Pentagon, the administration’s animosity toward journalists has been a recurring feature of Trump’s second term.
A few dozen protesters gathered outside the hotel in the run-up to the event. One of them was dressed in a prison uniform, wearing a Pete Hegseth mask and red gloves. Another carried a sign saying: “Journalism is dead.”
AP journalists Eric Tucker, Michael Balsamo, Zeke Miller and Anna Johnson contributed to this report.
