Donald Trump has shared the tense moment when bullets rang out at the Washington Hilton Hotel during the White House Correspondents’ Dinner and how First Lady Melania Trump reacted.
Speaking at a press briefing in the West Wing shortly after the incident, the President remarked, “It’s always shocking when something like this happens.”
Trump recounted the moment, saying, “We were sitting next to each other, with the First Lady on my right, when I heard a noise.” He added that they initially couldn’t tell if it was “a tray or a bullet.”
“I heard a noise and initially thought it was a tray dropping,” he explained.
Trump noted that Melania quickly identified the sound as something serious, describing it as a “bad noise” and acknowledging that it was a “rather traumatic experience for her.”
“Melania was very aware of the situation,” Trump concluded.
The President also shared his wife’s fear for his safety given the multiple assassination attempts against him.
‘The first lady was doing a terrific job. She loves the country. She recognizes it better than any. But she told me numerous times, she said “you are in a dangerous job.”‘
Trump said at a Saturday night press conference that he wasn’t sure if he heard gunshots or a crashing dining tray when a gunman was taken down trying to breach the White House Correspondent’s Dinner within the two hours of his address
The President and First Lady were seated at the head of the table on stage when the incident occurred
Melania Trump stood in the briefing room as the President delivered an update to the nation on the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting
Inside the dining room just over an hour before, several shots rang out and attendees immediately ducked under their tables to protect themselves in a frantic scramble.
A few journalists stayed seated or kneeled filming the fallout. Secret Service agents and other security began rushing through the room securing the many top-ranking politicians.
Within seconds of the shots, the President, First Lady and Vice President ducked for cover under their table on stage at the front of the room.
Moments later agents began combing through the hundreds of tables in the massive banquet hall to secure top Cabinet officials.
The Secret Service’s Counter Assault Team (CAT) rushed the stage draped in black tactical gear with large rifles drawn.
‘It was a gun and some people understood that pretty quickly and other people didn’t. I was watching to see what was happening,’ the President remarked. ‘Melania was cognizant of what happened and I think she knew.’
‘Again the performance of the secret service and the police, all of law enforcement were very good. It was very quick. There was no lot of time to be thinking. It was a matter of seconds before we were out the door and got into an area.’
Video of the aftermath shows VP JD Vance being helped off stage by Secret Service agents as Trump and Melania duck for cover.
Many of Trump’s top Cabinet members were in attendance at his late night press briefing
Trump posted an image of the man who tried to breach security on his social media
Clips then show several agents reach for the President and quickly pull him to safety.
While extracting him, the President appears to slip and crawl for a second as agents help him regain his footing and rush him to a space behind the stage.
The DC Metropolitan Police Department released a statement indicating that the suspected shooter, Cole Tomas Allen, 31, from Torrance, California, was a guest at the Hilton hotel where the event was held.
The gunman shot one officer during the exchange, Trump said.
‘One officer was shot, but saved by the fact that he was wearing a obviously a very good bulletproof vest. He was shot from very close distance with a very powerful gun, and the vest did the job.’
He said that he had spoken to the officer, adding ‘he’s doing great’ and is in ‘very high spirits.’
The President also struck a defiant tone at the briefing, saying that he will not let the shooting derail the dinner and that it will be rescheduled within the next month.
‘We’re going to be doing one hopefully within the next 30 days,’ he said.
He noted he was excited to deliver his speech and that he was ‘all set to really rip’ som of the journalists in the room. ‘This would be the most inappropriate speech.’
