President Donald Trump has been taken to safety by his Secret Service agents after a gun attack took place in the vicinity of the ballroom at Washington Hilton Hotel, making the White House Correspondents Dinner a chaotic event full of terror.
The shooting occurred around 8:30 pm in Washington local time with five to eight shots heard by the guests.
Over hundreds of people, including famous journalists, politicians and personalities, ducked behind the table as the security staff members tried to get hold of the situation inside the venue.
President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump were immediately taken out from the venue by their bodyguards.
Vice President JD Vance, along with a few other cabinet members such as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, were also swiftly escorted to a safer location outside the ballroom.
The shooter was found in the corridor near the metal detector that existed outside the ballroom and did not enter the ballroom itself.
The shooter was not able to harm anyone as a secret service agent who had to confront him was wearing a bulletproof jacket.
In the hours after the attack, the suspect’s condition was unclear, with conflicting reports coming from the scene.
The Secret Service agent confirmed the shooter was dead, reported citing law enforcement sources that the gunman was alive but injured and had been taken to the hospital.
Trump later posted on Truth Social that law enforcement and the Secret Service “acted quickly and bravely” and the suspect had been taken into custody.
He said he would hold a news conference from the White House briefing room later in the evening and confirmed the first lady, vice president and all Cabinet members were safe.
A historic first, cut short
It had been an important night in Trump’s interactions with the Washington press corp.
He had chosen to be part of the annual gala after skipping it during his earlier term.
Also Read: Republicans divided over Ghislaine Maxwell pardon as lawmakers condemn proposal
As per tradition, there would usually be a comedian who makes fun of the president and the political system in general; however, this year it was the mentalist Oz Pearlman.
Steve Scalise, House Majority Leader, was one of the people evacuated from the ballroom.
Hakeem Jeffries, who is the House Democratic Leader, expressed his happiness at the speed of the response on social media as he was praying for the safety of the attendees. He also hoped that the violence in America would come to an end soon.
The National Guard members were deployed in the building and all attendees were allowed to leave but were not allowed to go back in again once they left.
This story is still unfolding and the motive is unknown.
