The president promised to reschedule the dinner soon, projecting a sense of calm and telling reporters breezily that politics is a dangerous line of work.
“It comes with the territory,” Trump said.
At a separate briefing, Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, said the suspect would be charged with assaulting a federal officer using a dangerous weapon and using a firearm during a crime of violence. Pirro said the person would be arraigned Monday, and did not rule out possible terrorism charges as the investigation develops.
“This individual was intent on doing as much harm and as much damage as he could,” Pirro said.
President Donald Trump speaks alongside acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and FBI Director Kash Patel during a press briefing at the White House shortly after a shooting incident at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner at the Washington Hilton in Washington, on April 25, 2026. | Francis Chung/POLITICO
Members of law enforcement control a shooting suspect during the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington, on April 25, 2026. | Alex Brandon/AP
Details about the shooting and the alleged assailant came out in spurts over the course of the evening, as the president and an array of law enforcement officials briefed the public in turns.
Jeffery Carroll, the interim chief of the Washington police department, said the apprehended suspect had “a shotgun, a handgun and multiple knives” in his possession and had “charged the checkpoint with a firearm in his hand.”
Carroll described the suspect as a “lone gunman” with no apparent accomplices. He said the suspect was “not struck by gunfire” during the incident. Carroll declined to immediately release the suspect’s name, although Trump posted two pictures of the man on his social media account.
The incident unfolded rapidly at the annual dinner of the White House Correspondents’ Association, an event Trump was attending this year for the first time. The program had scarcely begun when there was an eruption of noise near one of the ballroom entrances.
Trump said he thought at first the sound might have been a tray falling. It quickly became clear that a more dangerous situation was underway.
Amalia Cepero, a bartender at the event, told POLITICO that the alleged shooter “walked calmly” up and then dropped his jacket, before firing shots.
Secret service agents respond during the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington, on April 25, 2026. | Tom Brenner/AP
Guests walk away from the Washington Hilton amid a heavy police presence during the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington, on April 25, 2026. | Ulysse Bellier/AFP via Getty Images
“After he shot, he looked like he just charged towards the metal detectors,” Cepero said.
Inside the ballroom, the sound of commotion sent guests to the ground. “Everyone started ducking,” said FDA Commissioner Marty Makary, who was in attendance.
Makary likened the Secret Service response to the effort in Butler, Pennsylvania, where Trump faced an assassination attempt in 2024. “They shielded him and escorted him out,” Makary said of Trump.
The startling disruption shattered the assumption of safety usually associated with presidential events, and particularly highly public gatherings where the time and location are widely advertised. Guests entered the ballroom through magnetometers and were meant to display printed invitations in order to reach the security checkpoint. One guest who was staying at the hotel and attended the dinner, however, said they were able to bypass security.
People take cover after an incident at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington, on April 25, 2026. | Nathan Howard/Getty Images
Agents stand guard after a shooting incident at the annual White House Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington, on April 25, 2026. | Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
Once the shooting began outside the main ballroom, agents crisscrossed the hall with firearms drawn, seeking to locate and secure Cabinet members during a long moment of uncertainty.
“Ambassador Greer! Are you okay?” one agent called, before the U.S. trade representative, Jamieson Greer, confirmed he was unharmed.
For several minutes, there was no general communication to the hundreds of people in the ballroom, leaving guests — including senior officials — uncertain as to the status of the president and the precise nature of the security threat.
Present at the dinner were not just the president and Vice President JD Vance, but a host of top government officials in the line of succession, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the secretary of health and human services.
At least several of those officials remained in the room well after the president’s evacuation, including Bessent, who was seated near the front of the hall and rose to exit, escorted by agents, after several minutes.
Security officers escort Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. out during the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington, on April 25, 2026. | Tom Brenner/AP
Attendees embrace inside the ballroom during the White House Correspondents’ dinner at the Washington Hilton in Washington, on April 25, 2026. | Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images
The White House Correspondents Association event draws hundreds of media figures, government officials, corporate executives and other VIPs to the Washington Hilton for a black-tie dinner featuring speeches and entertainment. Trump has shunned the event in the past and his planned attendance this year was widely covered in the run-up to the dinner.
There were a few groups of protesters outside the Washington Hilton ahead of the event, rallying against Trump’s Middle East policies and criticizing journalists for attending a gala dinner of this kind.
After the shooting, Trump initially indicated he wanted to resume the event. When it became clear that would be impossible, the president promised to reschedule the dinner soon.
“We very much wanted to continue it,” Trump said, “because I don’t like to let these sick people — these thugs, these horrible, horrible people — change the fabric of our life.”
Alex Burns, Scott Waldman, Megan Messerly and Meredith Lee Hill contributed to this report.