Trump was unharmed after the ‘shooting incident’ at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner

A man armed with guns and knives stormed the lobby outside a high-profile press dinner attended by US President Donald Trump and several US leaders on Saturday night, rushing to the ballroom before the Secret Service attacked him and took him into custody. The president was unhurt and hustled.

Guests ducked under tables as the scene unfolded and some reported gunshots being heard outside the large underground ballroom at the Washington Hilton where the event was being held.

The Secret Service said in a statement that it was working with local police to investigate the “shooting incident,” adding that one person was in custody.

“If you have an impact, they come after you. If you’re not an impact, they leave you alone,” Trump, safe and sound and still sporting his tuxedo, at the White House two hours later. “Looks like he was a lone wolf.”

There was no indication of other involvement, and Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser said she had “no reason” to believe anyone else was involved. A video posted by Trump shows the suspect running through security barriers as Secret Service agents run toward him.

“There does not appear to be any danger to the public at this time,” Bowser said in a separate press conference.

All Secret Service-protected officials were fired. Attendees included Trump, Vice President JD Vance, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

It was the third time since 2024 that the president has been threatened by an attacker near him – including an assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, that injured and killed a local firefighter.

“Today we need levels of security that probably no one has seen before,” said the president. But he also said, “We will not allow anyone to take over our community.”

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said charges related to Saturday night’s attack will be filed soon, and that the nature of the charges will be clear based on what happened at the dinner. Blanche emphasized that “it is clear that the investigation is ongoing and has just begun.”

FBI Director Kash Patel, who is close to Trump, said the agency was examining the rifle and shell casings found at the scene, as well as interviewing witnesses at the dinner. He urged anyone with information to come forward.

Dinner turns into a distraction

The guests were eating when the noise started – a sound Trump said he initially thought was a tray falling, but some reporters believed five to eight gunshots had been fired.

The Secret Service and other authorities crowded the room as guests filed under the tables by the hundreds. Loud gasps echoed through the ballroom as the guests realized something was up; soon hundreds of journalists received calls to call for information.

“Get out, sir!” someone shouted. Others shouted du. Outside the hotel, members of the National Guard and other authorities poured into the area as helicopters circled overhead.

After the first attempt to resume, the event was canceled for the night and will be rescheduled.

“We will do this again,” said Weijia Jiang, president of the White House Correspondents’ Association. Soon after, workers began dismantling the table settings and the president’s lectern.

House Speaker Mike Johnson said he and his wife, Kelly, who both attended the event, “were praying for our country tonight.” House Democratic leader, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York, said “Violence and chaos in America must end.”

The banquet hall – where hundreds of prominent journalists, celebrities and world leaders were awaiting Trump’s remarks – was quickly evacuated. Members of the National Guard stood up inside the building as people were allowed to leave but not re-enter immediately. Security outside was also very tight.

Republican Rep. Mike Lawler of New York, a guest at the dinner, said he heard a pop and “we don’t know what the hell it was. Then you hear all kinds of commotion.” Lawler said he receives “death threats a lot” and said “I think we live in a climate where everybody recognizes it’s a problem, but I don’t think people fully appreciate how big a problem it really is.”

The event seemed set to resume after the interruption. Servers refolded napkins and refilled water glasses in preparation for Trump’s return. Another staff member prepared the president’s teleprompter with the words he was scheduled to say.

In general, the Hilton hotel, where the dinner has taken place for years, remains open to regular guests during the writers’ dinner, and security is usually focused on the ballroom and instead of the entire hotel, there is a small inspection of people who do not enter the dinner itself. Over the years, that has created a spate of disruptions in the lobby and other public spaces, including protests where security moved to remove guests who displayed banners or staged demonstrations.

A highly anticipated event

Trump’s attendance at Saturday’s dinner in Washington for the first time as president puts his often contentious relationship with the media in the public eye.

Trump arrived at an event where the leaders of the nation at war brought together celebrities, journalists and even a puppet – Triumph the Insult Comic Dog – at a dinner that often creates a debate about whether the relationship between journalists and their sources should include coming together and setting aside sometimes conflicting relationships.

Trump was closely watched at the event, which was held by a group of journalists who report on him and his administration. Past presidents have spoken generally about the importance of free speech and the First Amendment, adding some roasts about individual journalists.

A Republican president did not attend either his first term or his second term. He came as a guest in 2011, sitting in the audience as President Barack Obama, a Democrat, made jokes about the New York real estate developer. Trump also attended as a private citizen in 2015.

Trump entered the Washington Hilton banquet hall in a crisis of Hello Chief and greeted prominent reporters at the podium, pausing to praise White House press secretary Caroline Leavitt with a happy finger-pointing gesture.

Past dinners have also featured comedians poking fun at presidents. This year, the group chose to hire psychedelic artist Oz Pearlman as the featured entertainer.

Between criticizing individual journalists, fighting organizations such as the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal and the Associated Press in court and restricting media access to the Pentagon, the administration’s opposition to journalists has been part of Trump’s second term.

A few protesters stood across from the hotel as they prepared for the event. One was wearing a prison uniform, wearing a Hegseth mask and red gloves. One held a sign that read, “Journalism is dead.”