President Donald Trump was rushed from the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday night amid gunshots at the Washington Hilton.
Chaos unfolded as attendees ducked behind tables and journalists scrambled for answers. Despite initial reports that a shooter was killed in the hotel lobby, Trump and the Secret Service later said an individual was in custody.
“Quite an evening in D.C. Secret Service and Law Enforcement did a fantastic job,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “They acted quickly and bravely. The shooter has been apprehended.”
Though Trump added “LET THE SHOW GO ON,” the dinner was later called off.
CBS News’ Weijia Jiang, who serves as president of the White House Correspondents’ Association, told attendees that “law enforcement has requested that we leave the premises and [Trump] wanted to emphasize that nobody was hurt.”
Jiang said “Trump the First Lady, the Cabinet everybody is safe,” and noted that the president would hold “a press briefing at the White House in 30 minutes,” which drew some laughter from the crowd.
“That is not a joke,” she continued. “He insists that we will reschedule the event in the next 30 days and that he wanted to do it. He wanted to continue, but has to follow security protocol.”
On CNN, Wolf Blitzer offered a harrowing first-hand account of the shooting. Blitzer recalled leaving the ballroom to use the bathroom when he heard gunshots, and said police threw him to the ground and covered him. “I was very close to him when the gunshots were fired,” he said.
