The NPR Politics Podcast - Trump, Vance evacuated after shots fired at White House Correspondents' Dinner

Episode Date: April 26, 2026

President Trump, Vice President Vance, and members of the administration were evacuated from the Washington Hilton Saturday night after shots were fired. The dinner, President Trump said, will be rescheduled, and law enforcement officials say the suspected gunman is in custody.This episode: All Things Considered host Scott Detrow, All Things Considered deputy executive producer Courtney Dorning, White House correspondents Franco Ordoñez and Deepa Shivaram, & immigration correspondent Ximena Bustillo. Listen to every episode of the NPR Politics Podcast sponsor-free, unlock access to bonus episodes with more from the NPR Politics team, and support public media when you sign up for The NPR Politics Podcast+ at plus.npr.org/politics.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy

Hey there, it's the NPR Politics Podcast. I'm Scott Detrow. President Trump was rushed from the ballroom of the Washington Hilton this evening after a gunman apparently opened fire outside the security perimeter of the ballroom. Trump, along with First Lady Melania Trump, was there for the White House Correspondence Dinner, an annual event in Washington that draws top officials from all branches of the government. It had been the first time he'd ever attended the dinner. The Secret Service says Trump is safe. He is back at the White House now. All of the secret service. Service protectees at the dinner are safe, according to the agency. That includes Vice President J.D. Vance, as well as many members of the cabinet. The dinner has since been called, canceled for the night, and Trump will apparently be speaking from the White House press briefing room shortly. The ballroom was packed to capacity with government officials, journalists and celebrities. Many people from NPR were there, including White House correspondent Franco Ordonez, who's here with me in studio. Hey, Franco. Hey, Scott. Tell me what you saw, what you heard in this moment.

Yeah, I mean, it wasn't really that long after the colors were presented and the Star Spangled Banner was saying people were just finishing up their first dished salads and plates were being cleared when we heard this bang, bang, bang. I heard at least three bangs. My guess, who is in the administration, kind of turns toward me kind of with a half glance towards the back as well, which is where we heard these bangs from, and then just crash. I mean, everything's crashing to the far. These are people crashing to the floors, plates crashing, people, trays going in. And it was just very chaotic. You heard a few screams. And then security was rushing in.

Dozens of dozens of security agents. You had Secret Service. You had officers in FBI jackets and DEA jackets. I'm talking full tactical gear, literally jumping over people, jumping over tables, jumping over chairs. Trump had been evacuated by this time. Obviously, everybody rushed to him right away. And this swarm of secret service agents and security, you know, started heading towards different cabinet members. Let me just pause you right there. So Trump has quickly whisked away. He's at the dais at the head of the ballroom on the stage along with other dignitaries. He's quickly taken out of the way. This is a room that is jam-packed on in the most common circumstances. Jam-packed. You're saying suddenly agents are kind of going to the different dignitaries. What happened next?

Yeah. As you know, the agents are going, you start to see the cabinet member is being pulled off. Secretary Rubio, the Secretary of State, Defense Secretary Pete Higstis, you know, obviously Scott Bessent, Treasury Secretary. There are reports that, that RFK Jr., that he was limping. So a lot of confusion. There was just so much confusion in the room at that moment. It was, I mean, it was very chaotic. It was very concerning. It was an eerie silence. And people stayed on the ground for minutes, just waiting and waiting until finally people started to creep up. But the confusion lasted for a long time.

We're at that period of time in an incident like this where there's a lot of facts that are not clear. What, if anything, do we know, if at all, about who the shooter was, what the status of the shooter was? Has there been any sort of official report that we know of right? I mean, we don't, we don't know much. We have heard from President Trump. who has given us some information. He's put out a couple of social media posts. You know, he confirmed that there was Secret Service. He thanked Secret Service for their bravery and said the shooter was apprehended. You know, for a while, actually, we thought the show or he said, we thought this would continue in that. This may go on.

He actually said, let the show go on. That has obviously since changed, and he's now heading back to the White House. And P.R. Jimenezumisio is with us as well. She's still at the Hilton. Heman, let me back up to where I started with Franco. Tell me what you saw from your perspective. Where were you in the ballroom? What did you see in here?

Hi, Scott. I was actually at the same table as Franco, but I had a different vantage point. I was facing the back of the ballroom. It's a spanning ballroom. I mean, we're talking about hundreds of tables, hundreds of people that are there, journalists, politicians,

people of notable influence, And as Franco just noted many members of the cabinet. And same thing as Franco, I heard about three shots. And immediately everyone ducked to the ground. And with that moment, you know, we saw Secret Service. We saw members of Homeland Security investigations kind of take over to get those principles out of the room. I mean, it really was a big lineup that we had at the annual White House Correspondence Dinner Association Dinner.

Department of Homeland Security, Secretary Mark Wayne Mullen was there, press secretary Caroline Levitt was also there, FBI director Cash Patel. And so the priority of, you know, those securing the events is to get them out first and foremost. And so not a lot of information has been released in that time. A lot of people also who normally might report on this, we were all kind of in the same room, kind of heard maybe some of the same commotion, and we're kind of left with the same questions. I want to say what we know right now, and as we do in situations like this, I will source it as best as I can. According to the Associated Press, the FBI says the shooter is in custody. The Associated Press is also reporting that a law enforcement officer was shot, but the officer was wearing a bullet-resistant vest and is expected to be okay. I haven't seen, if anybody else has seen in reports of anybody else potentially being shot or anything like that, please let me know. But this is the only, uh,

thing I have seen. I want to go back to Franco and Haman a moment, but first, Deepa Shriveran, another APR White House correspondent is with the president right now at the White House in the pool. Deepa, tell us what we're expecting to hear, see from President Trump shortly. Yeah, it looks like right now I'm sitting in the briefing room and reporters are filtering in, some still in their black tie attire from the dinner. Right now it seems like we're maybe 10 to 15 minutes away from a briefing from the president. It's not clear if other administration officials will be joining him for this briefing, but he posted on truth social, as did the press secretary, Caroline Levitt, basically saying that the president would be speaking. Big Night is his first time

attending this dinner as president, and obviously was cut short. He did also post on social media saying that he would maybe want to see the dinner rescheduled sometime in the next several weeks. So expecting to hear maybe some words from him about, you know, thinking law enforcement, which he already has done and maybe other remarks about his experience of the night. But so far, we haven't heard or seen much from him since he was escorted out of that ballroom. That was my next question. You are a member of the traveling press pool tonight. That means you travel with the president wherever he goes. Did you see at any point or did you get any clear information at any point of what happened to Trump from the moment he was whist off the stage to when the motorcade went back?

to the White House? No, Scott. And honestly, it's not for lack of asking. I've asked the White House officials who are with us, the people who are escorting the press, anyone I can try to ask, basically, where the president was being held, who was with him. And so there are a lot of unanswered questions right now, including, you know, there was a moment when the president was deciding to leave the event, the ballroom. And the pool, as you said, which is the group of reporters traveling with the president,

were led out to the motorcade to depart, but that was slightly delayed by several minutes. So it's not clear who the president was meeting with at that time, though I have put in and asked to try and get those answers. But right now, all we know is that he arrived back at the White House at around 9.49 p.m. with several other administration officials and is right now somewhere in the White House prepping for this briefing. Okay. So Deepa, here's what we're doing right now. I'm going to keep talking to Franco and Hameh about what they saw.

But your microphone is on. and if you see any signs that President Trump is going to be speaking, just tell us, and we will start listening. Sounds good. Hemanah, Bastillo, what are we hearing from law enforcement? The U.S. Secret Service issued a statement about a little less than an hour ago that did note that the conditions of those involved is not. So we just lost Hema's line. Whether or not there is someone that had been impacted. Hemanah, can I just get you to rewind first?

The condition of those involved is not yet known, according to Secret Service. Amanda, it seems like we've got a brief delay in your line, and it dropped out for a moment. So I'm just going to ask you to repeat what you're saying before about what we're hearing from law enforcement. Christian. Yeah, the U.S. Secret Service said that the condition of those involved is just not yet known, but they are working with the Metropolitan Police Department to investigate the shooting, as well as the FBI Washington Field Office, which responded to the incident in that moment. So there are multiple components of local and federal law enforcement that are investigating.

And so with that, like, let's keep in mind that it might be several days before we have a very clear picture of exactly what it is that happened. Another guest here, Courtney Darning, one of the top editors on All Things Considered, was at the dinner this evening as well. Courtney, tell me what you saw. Scott, it was some of what you've already heard from Franco and Jimena. One minute people were bringing out food. and then the next minute everyone was on the ground.

Our table just happened to be across from Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson. You could hear a Secret Service calling his name, trying to identify different officials in the room to evacuate them. The thing that will stay with me is the wait staff was bringing out, getting ready to bring out the entree at that moment, and there were several members of the wait staff who hit the ground next to our table with one woman in particular just crying that she didn't want to die. God is good.

just terrified in that moment in a way that I think I will always remember. Yeah. Was there any, I mean, this is a ballroom that's always so packed that it has taken me 20 minutes to walk 10 feet in it when I'm trying to go talk to somebody at a dinner like this. Was there any sort of danger of stampeding or rushing or anything like that that you saw or you Franco? I mean, I feel like people were so and somewhat so confused by what was going on. But I think the first reaction that everyone had was just get down. I mean, the crashing of the tables, of the chairs, the staff, everybody was on the ground, that there was, I think no one really actually wanted to move. I will say it was somewhat reassuring seeing all the secret service, the security agents coming in because, you know, it felt like if something like this were to happen to have them swarming in, that felt good. And thankfully, you know, we did not hear any more, any more bangs are going on.

But everybody was just on the ground, not moving. You know, a few people started just slowly people would start picking up their heads. And then, of course, you started seeing people filming in video. And everybody's a reporter. So everybody's going to start checking him. Courtney, you said that you saw the Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson. I saw a picture of him being rushed down a hallway. Did you see how quickly he was taken from the room?

You know, I honestly didn't, Scott. because I was on the floor, chairs overturned with Dana Farrington, one of our top Washington editors, just trying to figure out what was happening. It's a cliche, but, you know, so quickly the mood changed, everything changed right away that it was confusing. And what I, sorry. How long was it before people felt safe enough to get up from under the tables? Four minutes, five minutes. Yeah, I mean, it's really hard. It's hard to say in those kind of I think it was a few minutes. I mean, within a minute or two, we could see the cabinet members being pulled out one by one.

And everybody was just kind of clicking off. There's Scott Besson. There's Marco Rubio. There's the defense secretary. I think as they started to, as they were kind of evacuated from the room, I think people started as watching the security officers kind of their shoulders drop a little bit. I feel like our shoulders started to drop a little bit and our heads started to pop up more. It's a very large ballroom.

It's in the basement. Usually there's no cell service at all because there's so many people in it. It's just why it feels to me, I was like the length of several football fields. And then the security perimeter in the past is outside. You go out the doorways and then there's magnetometers in the hallway. Was that the case this year? Yes. The magnetometers were on the outside.

I mean, Scott, it was so packed. I was confused how so many security agents came in. When I was talking, I started going around and talking with different attendees. different reporters. Obviously, I know a lot of people. I found other White House correspondents who were closer to the doors, and they just kept telling me different things. Some people heard, I heard three shots, or three bangs that sounded like shots. Other people reported three to five. You know, some said that they could smell gunpowder, gun smoke. You know, but a lot of people, and I think myself as well, felt like we heard a bit of a muffled sound. There's been talk of, it's

unclear whether the shots were actually in the room or outside of the room by perhaps the magnetomer is outside by the area. There's a whole other area and there's security all over. I will say I was talking with Deepa, our colleague who was outside the room and she was telling me that she heard very crisp shots being fired. So that would speak to, that would speak to another angle. I want to go back to Hamanah Mastillo who's still at the Hilton. Hemanah, what is it, what is the hotel like now? What did you? see as you made your way through the hallways and moved from the ballroom to where you are now. It definitely took a while, much longer to clear out the ballroom. Some people, you know, immediately

started kind of exiting a little bit to stage right. But, you know, once it was announced that the dinner was not going to continue, that there were not going to be any speeches that the president had left, that they were going to clear out the premises. You know, again, it was a giant funnel out. And that is where you saw many of the other folks who were providing security for the event. Again, thinking like D-I, D-A-H-S-I, you know, people that normally do secure big events like this, especially when the president is present, were ushering people out. And, you know, I think that it is very worth emphasizing something Franco has talked about a lot, which is just how tight the space is, you know, even just going up the escalators, they are like one-person escalators.

and we're all in long dresses down to our feet and at least, you know, women are. And so it's not like there can be a very quick exit out, but there has been a shuffling out. We were able to go back to a room where we had a reception earlier, which is why you don't hear a lot of noise around me at the moment. You know, the main entry doors were just inaccessible. People who tried to leave that way were shouted. back by police at one point. So there was a lot of confusion at first about whether we should stay, whether we should go, what was happening. But by now they are clearing the premise.

Frank, I want to talk to you about an important factor here. Again, we do not know who the person with the gun was. We do not know their motives. We do not know who they were trying to attack. But we know now that during the presidential campaign in 2024, President Trump was shot at. We know that later on during that campaign and another assassination attempt was thwarted. And we now know that yet again the president of the United States was in the vicinity when somebody with a gun was apprehended by law enforcement. This is a clear trend. Yeah. I mean, it's a very concerning trend for sure. I mean, this is, I mean, it speaks to just like the times that we're in.

I mean, it's hard to come up with words to talk about kind of the violence in politics right now. We don't know what this person's motives were. We don't know if this was politically motivated. We don't know much at all. But it is absolutely extremely concerning. I mean, there's so much security at this hotel. I am surprised that a person could get even that close. So I think there's just so many questions to be asked that we're going to be asked.

And I expect when Trump speaks, some of that will come out. Yeah. And this is also happens to be the hotel where President Reagan was shot in 1981. He was shot at the Washington Hilton walking out after speaking at an event. He was seriously injured, but obviously not killed. And now we have another shooting at this hotel with high profile officials from all of Washington there for it happening. Courtney Doreen, you were telling us you saw the House Speaker near you. You saw a law enforcement. trying to protect him, you and the people at your table, duct under the table, as did people throughout the ballroom. Tell me what it was like for the rest of the evening. Where are you still there? What the conversations were, how people were feeling, how quickly or slowly people were moving. I mean, I don't think this will surprise anybody in this room that everyone pretty much went into reporting mode as soon as they were up from the floor. Chuck Todd, who used to be with NBC,

was at the table next to us. He was up probably sooner than everyone else filming. I might have suggested he'd get down, given that it was still unclear at that moment. But there was just mass confusion. I mean, people didn't even know how to exit the perimeter when we were trying to leave to come here to headquarters to do special coverage. The DEA was there. People didn't know where to turn. People were making multiple attempts to leave the building. It was unclear whether or not the event was going to continue. First, we heard that President Trump was going to return and speak, and the program was going to continue as scheduled. And then by the time we left the building, the event had been canceled. Yeah. And again, President Trump was rushed from the Washington

Hilton this evening when I think we can clearly say there was gunshots. Well, we're waiting for the official word from Homenna Bosteo has law enforcement said, declaratively this was someone with a gun who opened fire, or is that just kind of filling in the blanks at this point? What do we officially know from law enforcement at this point in time? I mean, officially, we know very few things. We know that the Secret Service is calling this a shooting incident, and so that does imply gunfire and the use of guns. They said that this was near the main mag entrance, where the security scanners are in the screening

area, which is, you know, a little bit outside of where the ballroom is. And so that in it of itself is all we know, but, you know, kind of speaks to how there's choosing to characterize this incident. So was outside the ballroom involved guns. The FBI says the shooter is in custody, according to the Associated Press. Trump was rushed from the stage. He is safe. All of the government officials, who's multiple cabinet officials, the vice president, the first lady, many others were there, the Secret Services there all safe. We are expecting to hear from President Trump shortly. NPR's DIPA Shivaram is in NPR's seat in the center of the White House briefing room. And DEPA, any sign of the president? It looks like the room's getting more and more filled. It sounds like literally within

minutes. Someone just came out and said about a two-minute warning that usually means two minutes. Sometimes it could be more than two minutes. But it does speak to some of the heightened tensions. The briefing room certainly filled up with reporters who are rushing from the dinner to now get their questions answered from the president himself and several cabinet officials, as you guys were talking about, the vantage point that the press pool had, like Franco mentioned, was outside of the ballroom. So it was not in the room with the president, but we were ushered into an area inside the hotel where several cabinet members were being held. So we saw HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy and FBI director Cash Patel being like basically sequestered into these rooms with several secret or secret service agents.

So you could kind of see some of the unfolding. I will say it was a very chaotic scene, even from the agents who were in charge of the press pool, from the agents who were in the hallway running up and down, you know, yelling that shots had been fired, yelling that a shooter had been in custody. And so it was a very chaotic scene, not entirely sure if everyone really, you know, had some kind of, you know, direct plan. It felt very chaotic, as you can imagine. I have one question for you, and I will stop talking if you tell me the president is walking in. When the motorcade did make its way from the Hilton back to the White House, was it rushed, sirens blaring, was it moving fast, or was it controlled drive like it normally is? Definitely sirens blaring. It was about only a five-minute drive from DuPont Circle in D.C. where the hotel is to the White House.

So we didn't move any faster. It was really just a four or five-minute drive. And the motorcade pulled up to the north lawn of the White House where the president entered back in. We didn't see the president. We sort of filtered in from the back. So it was a little bit delayed. But I wouldn't say it was any more rushed because it's simply a five-minute drive. And it went pretty quickly.

Has the White House said what Trump is expected to. say or speak about tonight? Right now we don't have any indication of that. And it seems like the president has said he will be taking questions. And based on past experience, that can go on for quite a while. We'll see what he has to share possibly about his experience today and what law enforcement was able to do in those very intense moments at the dinner. But other than that, there hasn't been any indication of what the president plans to speak about or if any other administration officials are joining the briefing. You know, Scott, as we were, you know, there at the room, and we were trying to leave to get here, you know, there were, you know, different staffers around that we work with all the time at the White House. And, you know, I approached several of them to see what they knew. I mean, there was confusion going on and on just to add to what Deepa's saying about the Secret Service and the security. Staffers were also extremely confused. I asked, is he in the building? Is he going to come back? Are we going to, is just going to continue? And they're very pretty clear, like, that they didn't know. They were on a wait,

moment to moment thing. And they're like, hey, just keep an eye on his truth social post, noting that he had recently truth, truth social. So I think it just speaks to what Deepa is talking about, about the confusion, the chaoticness, and just the uncertainty of what kind of surrounds a moment like this. Frank, I think it's fair to say that when President Trump is speaking in the immediate wake of a tragedy or an incident like this, it is a mixed record in terms of terms of the tone and tenor of his remarks. Yeah, I think that's absolutely true. I mean, I'm extremely curious to see what tenor we get from the president today.

Certainly, you know, you know, former president, Biden was, you know, so much known for his empathy and his empathetic character, you know, the empathy encheever, you know, something similar that he was called. President Trump has a, you know, an MO, a reputation of, you know, focusing on the drama that was involved. And I, you know, I'm very curious to hear what he has to say about this, about the Secret Service agents kind of rushing to him. But as Deepa says, I think we can be sure that he is going to be giving a lot of praise to the agents who rushed to help him, who rushed to help the cabinet, and who were there to try to protect all those who were in attendance. I thought it was interesting giving his background in show business that he,

in his first post, he said in all caps, let the show go on. Of course, the decision was made to cancel the dinner for tonight. Trump has also talked a lot. He's repeatedly returned to the theme of feeling, rightfully so, like his life has been put in danger

at many points over the last few years. He was shot at in Butler, Pennsylvania. One person in the crowd died. Something grazed Trump's ear during the shooting. There was a few months later, a month or two months later, somebody had a weapon at the perimeter of a golf course

when Trump was on the course. That person was quickly apprehended. And again, like I've said before, we don't know who the shooter was. We don't know their motives. But that I assume will be a theme that we'll hear from from the president tonight. My eye is on the monitor

waiting for President Trump to appear in the White House briefing room. We thought it was going to be momentarily. Like I said, two minutes doesn't always be two minutes, guys. Deepa, before you can't weigh in anymore because the president is three feet in front of you, is there anything else that you want to say from your experience tonight that you saw? You know, it's so interesting to be in the presidential pool.

It's really just 13 of us, you know, photographers, reporters who see the president, travel with the president, are able to take these minutes moment by moment. And I think, you know, not to zoom out too much here, but like this is supposed to be a night about celebrating the First Amendment and freedom of the press and, you know, the fact that there is a press pool that is able to travel with the president and know his movements, despite the fact there are a lot of lingering questions, and we don't really know the answers to many of them. It definitely speaks to the importance of, you know, having a pool and being able to track the president's movements. So in this situation, two minutes, maybe doesn't really mean two minutes,

but, you know, being able to know minute by minute where the president was in, you know, in the building, is the motorcane moving? are we moving back to the White House? All of that speaks to some of the work that the pool is able to do. And right now, we are just waiting in the briefing room for this to happen. Franco, do you have a computer in front of you? I do not. Okay. I will just tell you what I'm seeing. We have posts on President Trump's truth social posts where he is posting, I'm just looking at this before I describe it, because I think we have to be cautious sometimes. He is posting what looks like closed circuit video. of the incident. And I will describe what I'm seeing on this post with all of the caveats that you normally put in a moment like this. It's black and white, grainy video footage. You see the security perimeter of the officers standing there. And Vice President J.D. Vance is coming out. You see somebody run past the barrier in this video. Here's President Trump. But incredibly acted upon by Secret Service and law enforcement.

and 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 the fact that they just unified, I saw a room that was just totally unified. It was in one way, very beautiful, a very beautiful thing to see a man charged a security checkpoint armed with multiple weapons,

and he was taken down by some very brave members of Secret Service, and they acted very quickly, and have just released for purposes of transparency, clarity. I've ordered it to be put out. You probably have it by now. Put out on truth and put out on many of the platforms. A tape showing the violence of this thug that attacked our Constitution and also showing how quickly Secret Service and law enforcement acted on

our country's behalf, really did a great job. One officer was shot, but saved by the fact that he was wearing, obviously, a very good bulletproof vest. He was shot from very close distance with a very powerful gun, and the vest did the job. I just spoke to the officer, and he's doing great. He's great shape. He has very high spirits. and we told him we love him and respect him. And he's a very proud guy. He's very proud of what he does, Secret Service agent.

And we looked at all of the conditions that took place tonight, and I will say, you know, it's not a particularly secure building. And I didn't want to say this, but this is why we have to have all of the attributes of what we're planning at the White House. It's actually a larger room and it's much more secure. It's drone-proof, it's bulletproof glass. We need the ballroom. That's why Secret Service,

that's why the military are demanding it. They've wanted the ballroom for 150 years for lots of different reasons, but today's a little bit different because today we need levels of security that probably nobody's ever seen before. But everyone owes a tremendous debt of gratitude to the courage of law enforcement. The law enforcement and working with the D.C. police and just spoke with the mayor. And when we're finished, the police chief is going to take over

and discuss it also from their viewpoint. But they also performed exactly as they were supposed to, and you see the attacker in different positions, but you also see the attacker totally subdued and under control. 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. We really had, again, we had some, Great work done by law enforcement. But in light of this evening's events,

I ask that all Americans recommit with their hearts in resolving our difference peacefully. We have to resolve our differences. I will say you had Republicans, Democrats, independents, conservatives, liberals, and progressives. Those words are interchangeable, perhaps, but maybe they're not. But yet everybody in that room, big crowd,

record-setting crowd. setting a group of people, and there was a tremendous amount of love and coming together. I watched, and I was very, very impressed by that. But we were, First Lady and I were taken very well care, very quickly, very quickly rushed off the stage. Vice President J.D. Vance was here.

It was likewise beautifully done. He was just saying, how quickly everybody acted, law enforcement, Secret Service in particular in this case, but law enforcement, Marco had the same thing. Pete was there, Pete didn't want any help. He didn't want anybody to help him. He doesn't want anybody to help him, but he did get some, didn't you? And I think you also said that it was very impressive.

So with that, I'd like to ask Todd Blanche to come up, say a few words, and tell you it's already underway. the man has been captured. They're going to his apartment. I guess he lives in California, and he's a sick person, a very sick person, and we don't want things like this to happen. I think it's very important that I say, though,

and I told the representatives of the evening, they did such a beautiful job with such a beautiful evening. And again, they're talking about free speech in our Constitution. That's what it's all about, not just White House correspondence. It was really based on free speech at our Constitution. But I said very importantly that we'll do it again within the next 30 days.

It will make it bigger and better and even nicer. So I just want to thank everybody that was involved. I also want to thank the press, the media. You've been very responsible in your coverage. I will say, I've been seeing what's been out. You've been very responsible. So Todd Blinch, I'd like to say a few words. We're going to have cash, and then you're going to go on.

I guess we can take a couple of questions. I want to thank the First Lady for – that was a rather traumatic experience for her. There was a lot of action taking place up there very quickly. But again, the response time was really incredible. And we're going to reschedule. We're going to do it again. We're not going to let anybody take over our society. We're not going to cancel things out.

because we can't do that. We wanted to stay tonight. I will tell you, I fought like hell to stay. But they, it was protocol. They said, please, sir, because there was a lot of, there was a lot of action going on, and they didn't know, could there be probably a lone shooter, but we'll find out, we'll find out very quickly. They have it very well under control. So I want to thank everybody very much. And Todd Blanche, please. That's President Trump speaking from the White House, now acting Attorney General Todd Blanche is giving an update on the investigation as it stands. Tonight you saw the very worst and the very best of this country. You saw the very worst by the actions of that coward that the president just talked about. But you also saw the very best because you saw law enforcement do exactly what they're supposed to do. And you'll see the videos come out, I expect very shortly.

And you'll see law enforcement do exactly what we want them to do. And so I echo what President Trump just said that we are extraordinarily grateful and appreciative of the men and women of law enforcement that did their jobs tonight, including one who was injured. This investigation is ongoing. I expect you will see charges filed shortly. The charges should be self-evident given the conduct. But as you'll hear, there will be multiple charges around the shooting, around the possession of firearms and anything else that we can get on this guy. The investigation is obviously ongoing and just started. There is federal law enforcement already working on search warrants and doing their job, and I don't want to get ahead of them,

and don't want to get ahead of the work that they're doing even as we speak. Director Patel and I were just on the crime scene a short while ago, and everybody in this room should rest assured that the Metropolitan Police Department, the FBI, Secret Service, everybody's on the scene doing their job. I know that the police chief is going to give an update from the scene as soon as we're finished here, and I obviously will lead the details of what they have learned to him. But in the meantime, I just want to thank everybody in this room for the courage. And I want to thank President Trump for his words, and I promise you, justice will be served.

Thank you. Dr. Fidel. Thank you, General. Thank you, Mr. President. This is the FBI Director Kashtel. The president is absolutely right. You saw the best resolve of American law enforcement because you, Mr. President,

inspire them 24-7-365. You give them the resources that they need and you know, they know that you have their back. And that is a changing dynamic in this country and that's why you saw Brave Secret Service agents respond immediately, swiftly, subdue and take down the suspect and safeguard the lives of thousands of individuals at that hotel. Thanks to our interagency partnership

with the Department of Homeland Security and the Metropolitan Police Department, the FBI was rapidly deployed onto the scene, took over the evidence response unit, is examining all the ballistics that were found on scene to include the long gun and the shell casings. We are conducting witness interviews as we speak. You will hear from our team on the scene there with the mayor and the head of the FBI field division there. But please know what the Attorney General has just said reigns no truer. You saw the very best of America tonight.

The very best unite us at a time of uncertainty because we have leadership here with the president and the vice president that backs law enforcement, and the men and women that I shook their hands on the scene today could not have been prouder to show up on scene. And as the Attorney General said, make no mistake, we are conducting witness interviews. If you have any information, any information whatsoever related to this event, 1-800, call FBI. 1-800, call FBI. No piece of information is too small. No piece of information is inadequate. We will evaluate it all. We will also be conducting interviews of those that were there. And if any of those individuals have information, Please come forward to law enforcement of the FBI or the Metropolitan Police Department.

We will be examining this individual's background thoroughly. That process has already started. And we are going to ensure that he was either a lone wolf actor or anyone else that was responsible. We will analyze all evidence immediately to make sure that we safeguard this country. Mr. President, Mr. Vice President, thank you for your leadership, Attorney General and Homeland Secretary, Merlin. Thank you for your partnership in law enforcement. Thank you.

We just heard from the acting attorney general, the FBI director, now President Trump, taking question. This is the White House briefing room. What a beautiful evening, and we're going to reschedule. After that, it's very tough for her to ask a killer question. But you have done a fantastic job, please. Mr. President, I appreciate it. As you mentioned, it all happened so quickly, and I wonder, especially because unfortunately you have experience

with these sorts of threats. In that moment, when you realize there was a threat and service agents were telling us to get down. Can you describe what was going through your mind, how you were feeling in that moment? That's a very good question, actually. It's always shocking when something like this happens, happened to me a little bit, and that never changes. The fact, we were sitting right next to each other, the first lady on my right, and I heard a noise and sort of thought it was a tray. I thought it was a tray going down.

I've heard that many times, and it was pretty loud noise. And it was from quite far away. He hadn't breached the area at all. They really got him. So it was quite far away, but it was a gun. And some people really understood that pretty quickly. Other people didn't. I was watching to see what was happening.

Probably should have gone down even faster. Malania was very cognizant, I think, of what happened. I think she knew immediately what happened. She was saying, that's a bad noise. And we were whisked away along with other people, but we were really whisked away. And again, the performance of the Secret Service and the police, all of the law enforcement, but I thought it was really good.

So it was very quick. There wasn't a lot of time to be thinking because it was a matter of seconds before we were, out the door and gone into an area. We very much, and you wanted to, too. We very much wanted to continue it, because I don't like to let these sick people, these thugs, these horrible, horrible people,

change the fabric of our life, change the course of what we do. So we held out. You were there. We held out right till the end, but they didn't want to take a chance, and I understand it was protocol. But we're going to be doing one,

hopefully within the next 30 days or sooner, and I am ready. willing and able, and I was all set to really rip it. And I said to my people, this would be the most inappropriate speech ever made if I said, so I'll have to save it. I don't know if I could ever be as rough as I was going to be tonight. I think I'm going to be probably very nice. I'll be very boring the next time, but we're going to have a great event. And you did a fantastic job. Thank you very much. Peter. Thank you, President Trump. There's a report in the New York Post that this assailant assembled his weapon somewhere on site at the hotel.

What do you think about that? And I ask respectfully, why do you think this keeps happening to you? Well, you know, I've studied assassinations. And I must tell you, the most impactful people, the people that do the most, You take a look at the people, Abraham Lincoln, I mean, you go through the people that have gone through this where they got them. But the people that do the most, the people that make the biggest impact, they're the ones that they go after. They don't go after the ones that don't do much because they like it that way. And when you look at the people that have either, whether it was an attempt or a successful attempt,

and they're very impactful people. Just take a look at the names there. The big names. And I hate to say, I'm honored by that, but I've done a lot. We've done a lot. We've taken this country, and we were a laughingstock for years,

and now we're the hottest country anywhere in the world. We've changed this country. And there are a lot of people that are not happy about that. So I think that's the answer, Peter. And, for after Butler, your team for a while rethought outdoor events. Yeah. Do you think that you now need to rethink any door? Well, then you just don't do events. Now I can't do that.

I have to, you know, it is what it is. We have to do it. The room was very, very secure. You know, he charged from 50 yards away, so he was very far away from the room. And what did you think when you saw the video of how fast he was running? He was moving.

He was really moving. And the reaction time was great. Boy, those guys, they had their guns drawn literally by the time he was there. They were shooting. That's right. They were, I thought they were very impressive. I thought they were very impressive.

And if I didn't, I'd let you know, you know. I'm not going to be, I would not stand for that. No, I thought they were very impressive. Thank you, President Trump. Thank you for updating us on the suspect earlier. Were you aware of any threats, were your team aware of any threats beforehand? And do you believe you were the target of this tonight? I guess.

I mean, these people are, they're crazy. They're crazy. And, you know, you never know. It was very far away from me. I had to go through a lot. We had resources all over. We had resources sitting at tables, literally in disguise, sitting maybe at your table, who knows.

But we had people all over the room, so he had a long way to go. That was really a first line of defense, and they got him. And they really, you know, they acted incredibly. No, we've had no, it was no notification. We had no idea. Go ahead. Do you know any political motivations from this?

Well, you never know. Now, we'll be able to tell you that. maybe by tomorrow or the next day. He's in custody, and they're asking him a lot of questions. I guess they're going over Todd, and they're already at his apartment. He lives in California. And they'll be, they're over there. So they'll be able to tell you.

Thank you, Caitlin. President Trump, did the suspect say anything, or was he wearing anything that would allege some type of motive here? No. I mean, he was a guy who looked pretty evil. when he was down, you know, they had him down. He was fighting hard. He was a, in my opinion, a sick person.

Who would do that but a sick person? But I think you're going to find everything about him. No reason to talk about it now. But tomorrow at this time, long before this time, you're going to know a lot of things about him. They seemed to think he was a lone wolf, and I feel that too. Are you concerned about U.S. Secret Service protection ability?

We saw several of the detailies take minutes to be escorted out of the room. No, they acted very quickly. I was very impressed by Secret Service. I mean, I'm the one, and Mark Wayne, you would agree with that, I think. I'm the one that would complain. You don't have to complain for me. I would be complaining. I'd be up here right now saying they didn't do their job.

Believe me, because, you know, it's my life. And I want to live because I want to make this country great. That's why I want to live. But when you're impactful, they go after you. When you're not impactful, they leave you alone. Okay, a couple of more. A couple of more. Go ahead, please.

Is there any indication that this shooting could have been linked to the war in Iran? I don't think so, but you never know. We're going to know a lot. We have the best people in the world working on it, and we're going to know a lot, please. Mr. President, there's a lot. There's you, as well as some of us who have covered Butler, experienced another horrific day two years ago. Yeah. What felt similar?

you know, you had the First Lady with you today, what felt different? And you have another two plus years in office. Are you concerned about something like this happening again? Well, I can't be concerned. I can only get great people. They did the job, in my opinion, a much better job than Butler. Butler had one weak spot that we all know about. Somebody should have been up there.

But even Butler, we had a hour sniper, sniper on our side, within 4.2 seconds from a distance of a, about 400 yards, one shot, and he was gone. And if he didn't do it, now, you know, he's David. His name was David. I say, hello, David, every time I see him, David. I like you very much, David. But think of that.

Now, if he doesn't hit him, and he hit him right between the eyes from 400 yards, without any notice, nobody knew. He heard a sound. He looked over, and there was actually a tree that was somewhat in his way. You know the story very well. He aimed, fired, and if he didn't do that, beyond me, you would have had a lot more people killed who lost one great person and two people very badly hurt. They're okay now. But now that was, so in a sense, you know, that was pretty amazing the job they did.

But they did have that one week spot, as you know, they should have had that covered. Tonight they had everything covered very quickly. And he was fast. We've been listening to President Trump addressing reporters from the White House. This is live special coverage from NPR News. President Trump speaking to reporters wearing a tuxedo. He had been at the White House correspondence dinner tonight. When a gunman, according to a video that Trump posted on truth social just before he began speaking, a gunman rushed the security barrier holding a long rifle. Police officers instantly turned around, began shooting. The suspect shot one officer. The officer was protected by a bulletproof vest and is okay. The suspect has been apprehended. Trump posted a picture of him on the ground, shirtless in handcuffs.

Trump says he's man from California. Frank Ordonez, Trump was more conciliatory than usual talking about, you know, how a room of people with different political backgrounds, different agendas, came together in that frightening moment. Yeah, I was, I was listening to that as well, was taken by that as well. And he's right. You know, there were Democrats, Republicans, all sorts of members of all political persuasive. in the room. You know, he also, I was also struck by, you know, he said that they didn't know for sure what motivations this person had, but he did indicate or at least suggest that I would say that he thought it might be political. And he talked about some of the things that he touted some of the things that he has done or that his administration is done, but said we would know more in the next couple of days,

30, you know, the next, you know, the next day or two. I also was, you know, taken that he said that we were going to do this again or that this was going to happen again and he promised that it would happen and then the next 30 days because he can't, you said that you can't allow people like this to change. I think in his words, he said the fabric of our way of life. I think that would be great to happen. Obviously, we were all there and it'd be a lovely event to do it again. But it does take a lot of work to put that event together. Yeah, and Trump spoke, Hamanabustia, who's with us from the Washington Hilton where the incident took place. We also heard from the acting attorney general Todd Blanche and the director of the FBI, Cash Patel. What did you hear from them? And we got a few more bits of information. This was a man from California. He had a long gun with him, which refers to the shooting incident that Secret Service alluded to, but didn't give very specific details of earlier.

you know, that is already more information than we had an hour or two ago. So those details are going to continue to unfold. I think as a lot of these different components, we're talking federal law enforcement, different parts of federal enforcement, the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI are involved as well as Metropolitan Police Department. You know, there's going to be a lot more information that kind of comes out as these different agencies begin to unpack what happened in those quick moments. Yeah. Frank O'Donnes, what else stood out to you from what we heard from the president tonight?

You know, I mean, I was taken by his, you know, kind of the conciliatory nature. You know, he was talking about how, you know, he really spoke well of the press. He was very thankful. I was touched that he called on, on Ouija, who is the president of the White House Correspondents Association. She was up there with the president at that moment in these video replays. You can see her kind of rushing over to kind of try to. to help. So I was, I was very touched that the president kind of, you know, pointed her out and, you know, spoke, spoke, you also spoke well of, of the press. And, you know, I'm, you know, I will be, I'm encouraged by

his thoughts that he does want to do it again, even if it is, you know, in a hard event to do. But, you know, we'll see, you know, going forward, you know, there is still some of the, you know, the regular Trump that we come to do, talking about Butler, talking about. about this thing. He mentioned the ballroom. Tying this to the controversial ballroom. He's trying to build. You know, you've got to wonder, what he was referring to is he saying that now we should have the White House correspondent's event at a ballroom. We'll see. But yes.

One other thing I want to point out, and we're going to learn more about this from other law enforcement officials, but I just think the video that Trump posted is remarkable. And this is kind of a new dynamic when it comes to presidential security. This closed circuit security video, everybody had already been inside the ballroom. It didn't seem like the same. Secret Service and other law enforcement were actively screening people, but the officers are standing there and this alleged shooter comes sprinting through full speed right past them, and that's how he was able to make a run. They draw their guns right away. A lot of questions about that

that we will continue to cover in the days to come. In the meantime, though, that's going to wind down our coverage for this evening. I want to thank Frank O'Donio, Higna Bistillo, Dibas Chivaram, and Courtney Dorning. Thank you to this control room filled with colleagues who rushed directly from the dinner to the newsroom to bring this coverage. This is the best-dressed special coverage in the history of national public radio. We are going to have a lot more on this on weekend edition tomorrow morning online at npr.org. Again, President Trump rushed from the White House correspondence dinner tonight. A gunman tried to open fire. He shot one police officer. That officer is okay. This is live special coverage from NPR News.