At the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, mentalist Oz Pearlman engaged in an intriguing challenge, attempting to predict the name of Karoline Leavitt’s soon-to-arrive baby girl, anticipated in May, before the event was disrupted by unexpected commotion.
“Karoline Leavitt, acting as the press secretary, approached me with the challenge,” Pearlman recounted to ABC News’ Jonathan Karl on Sunday. “She said, ‘I’m having a baby next week. Can you guess my daughter’s name?'”
This playful exchange was taking place behind the scenes when they had to pause as the President made his entrance. Pearlman suggested, “Let’s continue this when we’re on stage.”
He began to deduce the name by predicting each letter, determining the number of letters involved. Just as the anticipation peaked, he revealed his written guess, asking, “How did I do?” before turning around to show his prediction.
As the headline performer, Pearlman hinted that he believed the name contained six to seven letters.
“She confirmed, ‘yes,'” Pearlman shared, “and when I suggested a ‘V’ was in the name, even the First Lady was amazed, asking, ‘How does he know this?'”
“And then I write down the name, and I say, ‘what are you naming your daughter with V?’ And right, when I turn that around, you can see Weijia [Jiang, the White House Correspondents Association President] from CBS go ‘Gasp,’ and then you see the first lady go because she couldn’t believe it and [Leavitt] goes ‘That’s the name of my daughter.’”
Footage from the event showed the entertainer ripping off a piece of paper with the name “Viviane” wrote on it – just seconds before ducking for cover behind a table. Pearlman said Leavitt had given him permission to share the name.
Pearlman told Karl the first thought he had as chaos unfolded was “Are we about to die?”
“When I dropped down, and dropped down to all fours, and I’m waiting and bracing because I think a bomb’s going to go off,” he said.
“I watch the two Secret Service guys get behind the president, bring him down. And just by pure chance, he gets brought down. We’re facing up to directions right next to me.
“And I just look at him right here, and I think right that moment, I can piece it back when it happened. I go, in my head, I go, ‘Oh no, are we about to die?’ That was my first thought.”
Pearlman told USA Today he was just a “foot away” from President Trump’s face.
“It’s a photo in my mind forever,” he said, recalling the moment he’s on the ground before “army-crawling” to safety.
“I wish I had meta glasses on and I’d have that photo.”
Crazed gunman Cole Allen, 31, was armed with firearms and knives as he burst into the Washington Hilton Saturday night – and charged toward the ballroom before being apprehended.
He allegedly penned a sprawling anti-Trump manifesto, claiming “Administration officials (not including Mr. Patel): they are targets, prioritized from highest-ranking to lowest.
“Secret Service: they are targets only if necessary, and to be incapacitated non-lethally if possible (aka, I hope they’re wearing body armor because center mass with shotguns messes up people who *aren’t*
“Hotel Security: not targets if at all possible (aka unless they shoot at me).”
CalTech grad Allen – who was named “Teacher of the Month” by his employer C2 Education in December 2024 – apologized to his parents, colleagues, and students in the essay he sent to his family 10 minutes before the attack.
He is being charged with using a firearm during a crime of violence and assault on a federal official.
A Secret Service agent was shot but the bullet hit his protective vest.
Jeanine Pirro, the US Attorney for DC, said additional charges could follow.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said Allen – who called himself a “friendly federal assassin” – was not cooperating with the authorities.
