A shooting outside the White House Correspondents' Dinner on Saturday night sent lawmakers and dignitaries into panic, forcing the Secret Service to evacuate President Trump and scrambling the prestigious annual event that had to be postponed.
A suspect armed with multiple weapons attempted to breach security at the Washington Hilton hotel, where the dinner was underway. The gunman fired at Secret Service personnel before being shot and taken into custody by federal law enforcement, according to officials briefed on the incident.
The chaos forced immediate evacuations of top officials from the event. Rep. Nanette Barragan, a California Democrat seated near the rostrum, witnessed the scene firsthand. "It's insane that this is happening at the White House Correspondents' Dinner," she told Axios. "Security is supposed to be top notch."
Rep. Jared Moskowitz, a Florida Democrat, said House Majority Leader Steve Scalise pulled him into a secure room during the evacuation. Moskowitz noted his connection to gun violence, having lived in Parkland and attended Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, where a mass shooting killed 17 people in 2018. "I am glad everyone is okay," he said.
Members of Congress described confusion and shock in the immediate aftermath. Rep. Michael Rulli, an Ohio Republican, said he was still processing the incident as he left the hotel. Barragan recalled seeing RFK Jr. evacuated and recording video, initially unsure what was unfolding.
Trump praised law enforcement's response at a White House press briefing Saturday evening and directed that the dinner be rescheduled within 30 days. Rep. Brian Jack, a Georgia Republican, said he believes "somebody should look into the security protocols that were adopted here," adding that the rescheduled event should be "much more safe and much more secure."
Former New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, also in attendance, called the incident "shocking" as he departed.
Author James Rodriguez: "This shouldn't be a partisan moment, but it will be, and that's almost as troubling as the breach itself."
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