Cole Tomas Allen, the 31-year-old man accused of opening fire at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner Saturday night, is expected to be formally charged in federal court today. The Torrance, California resident faces charges including use of a firearm during a violent crime and assault on a federal officer with a dangerous weapon, though prosecutors signaled additional counts may follow as investigators piece together his motive and intentions.
Acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche told CBS News that preliminary evidence suggests Allen targeted President Trump and members of his administration. Writings recovered from the suspect's hotel room are being analyzed as part of the investigation, including an alleged manifesto in which Allen identified himself as a "Friendly Federal Assassin" and compiled a prioritized list of targets with Trump administration officials ranked highest.
No one was killed in the attack. One officer struck while wearing a bulletproof vest was hospitalized but survived. The shooting marked the third time since 2024 that Trump has faced an armed threat in his immediate vicinity, following the July assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, where a bullet grazed his ear. That incident prompted a Senate committee report in July 2025 describing a "cascade of preventable failures" by the Secret Service.
The shooting exposed significant vulnerabilities in how the Secret Service protects the president, according to law enforcement officials familiar with the agency's protocols. White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles will convene a meeting this week with Secret Service leadership and the Department of Homeland Security to reassess security procedures for major presidential events.
In an interview with CBS correspondent Norah O'Donnell that aired Sunday on 60 Minutes, Trump discussed his mindset during the shooting. "I wasn't worried," Trump said when asked about his concern for injuries. "I understand life. We live in a crazy world."
Trump told O'Donnell his own actions may have complicated the Secret Service's response. "I wanted to see what was happening," he explained. "I wasn't making it that easy for them. I wanted to see what was going on. And by that time we started to realize maybe it was a bad problem, different kind of problem, a bad one and different than what would be normal noise from a ballroom."
The interview took a confrontational turn when O'Donnell presented portions of Allen's manifesto that allegedly referred to Trump as a "rapist" and "pedophile." Trump called O'Donnell "a disgrace" and criticized the media as "horrible people."
Despite the security incident, royal plans moved forward. Buckingham Palace confirmed Monday that King Charles III and Queen Camilla will proceed with their scheduled US visit beginning today. The four-day trip, commemorating the 250th anniversary of American independence, includes stops in Virginia, New York, and Washington DC. While modest adjustments to one or two royal engagements have been made, the palace indicated the overall itinerary remains intact.
The king is scheduled to meet with Trump privately and will attend a state banquet held in honor of him and Queen Camilla during the visit.
Author James Rodriguez: "The speed with which federal prosecutors are moving on charges, combined with the manifesto evidence, suggests this case will move quickly through the courts, and that's appropriate given what happened."
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