Possible Shooting at White House Correspondents' Dinner; Trump Safe
Secret Service evacuates president, vice president and cabinet officials; suspect in custody
Quick Look
- A possible shooting occurred at the White House Correspondents' Dinner at the Washington Hilton on Saturday evening.
- President Trump, Vice President Vance and other administration officials were evacuated safely.
- Secret Service agents took a suspect into custody.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
The White House Correspondents' Dinner is an annual event bringing together journalists, politicians, administration officials and celebrities. The incident occurred shortly after 8:30 p.m. ET while hundreds of guests including the president and vice president were gathered in the ballroom.
President Donald Trump was reported uninjured after a possible shooting at the White House Correspondents' Dinner on Saturday in Washington, D.C., the Associated Press says. Secret Service agents said a suspect is in custody. What sounded like gunshots were heard by gathered reporters shortly after 8:30 p.m. ET in the Washington Hilton. Several guests were seen fleeing the ballroom where hundreds of journalists, politicians and attendees were gathered — including Trump, Vice President Vance and other members of the administration. Video from inside the room showed security quickly clear the guests on the main stage — including the president and first lady. Someone can be heard shouting "stay down." President Trump took to social media shortly after being rushed out to praise the Secret Service. "Quite an evening in D.C. 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. 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," Trump wrote. Law enforcement was seen evacuating prominent cabinet officials to rooms within the hotel, including Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy and FBI Director Kash Patel. Several members of Congress were seen leaving the event by foot, including Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., and Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla. Weijia Jiang, the president of the correspondents' association, says the program will continue. This is a developing story. Some things that get reported by the media will later turn out to be wrong. We will focus on reports from police officials and other authorities, credible news outlets and reporters who are at the scene. We will update as the situation develops.
What to Watch
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
The White House Correspondents' Dinner will be rescheduled to a future date
Very likely · Within weeks
Congressional investigation into security at the event may be announced
Likely · Within weeks
Open Questions
- Was the sound actually gunshots or something else?
- What was the suspect's motive?
- Were there any injuries besides the evacuation?
- What security failures allowed this incident?





