WASHINGTON – The White House Correspondents’ Association dinner ended abruptly Saturday when loud bangs erupted outside the ballroom, causing panic among attendees and sending them diving under tables for cover.
President Donald Trump was quickly escorted out of the Washington Hilton by the Secret Service, along with First Lady Melania Trump and members of his cabinet.
Trump later posted on Truth Social, “The shooter has been apprehended, and I have recommended that we ‘LET THE SHOW GO ON.’”
But the dinner did not continue. Organizers and Trump said it would be rescheduled. Trump vowed to attend the rescheduled dinner.
“We’ll make it bigger and better and even nicer,” he said.
The annual dinner attracts hundreds of attendees, including journalists, members of Congress, celebrities and others. This is the first time Trump has attended as president.
Trump and the First Lady were seated at the head table at the front of the ballroom. The program had just started when the commotion broke out.
Timothy Gardner, a Washington Correspondent for Reuters, said he heard commotion inside the ballroom then saw secret service officers storm the dining room.
“I did not hear gunshots or anything either, but at the head table people were obviously frightened,” he said. “Armed men were rushing to the stage or head table quite quickly.”
Gardner said he heard a lot of shouting from the kitchen and knocking. He said he also heard a Secret Service agent in the kitchen shouting before he came out brandishing a gun.
Soon after Trump was rushed out, Weijia Jiang, president of the WHCA, announced to the crowd that the program would resume, but later said it would be rescheduled.
Trump said at a press conference at the White House that he would attend the dinner at another date.
View this post on Instagram
Rachel Knapp, a Washington Bureau correspondent for Lilly Broadcasting, was sitting near the back of the ballroom close to the entrance when she heard loud noises coming from outside.
Knapp said when Secret Service agents rushed through the doors she dropped to the floor.
“That was my immediate thought, ‘How do I hide so I can get back to my mom?’” she said. “My colleague and I were probably about five feet away from one of the exit doors.”
Knapp said it took a few seconds before she grasped what was happening. After she dropped to the floor she said she crawled towards the wall.
“I’m keeping low and I’m staying low, and we’re seeing everyone get rushed out,” she said of Trump and his top officials.
Knapp said it was her third time attending the dinner. She said she was shaking for a long time after the commotion.
“Truthfully, I don’t want to be here anymore,” she said. “ I’m here to celebrate the first amendment because journalism is needed now more than ever, and I don’t know, I want to celebrate, celebrate that, but this has, I think, made, at least made me very nervous to be in a large gathering right now.”
The dinner celebrates freedom of the press, salutes journalists and awards scholarships to journalism students.
The program features speakers often poking fun at journalists and the president. Thousands attend events, including receptions, leading up to the high-profile dinner.
Shortly after the start of dinner service at 8:33 p.m., what sounded like gunshots erupted outside the ballroom.
Attendees dove under the tables, leaving a trail of spilled wine and knocked over chairs. People started calling 9-1-1.
A few people chanted, “USA, USA” and “God bless America.”
Eli Stokols, a White House and foreign affairs correspondent for Politico, said he was talking to his editor when they heard commotion and everyone was ordered to get down. He had not heard the gunshots, but saw law enforcement officers storm the ballroom.
“There’s thousands of people in this room. I think a lot of people have complicated or complex feelings about the event, having the president here,” Stokols said. “It’s not without controversy, but I don’t think anyone wants the night to go like this.”
Later that evening, FBI officials were interviewing guests about what they heard and saw.
You must be logged in to post a comment.