US President Donald Trump was evacuated from the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday, after witnesses heard multiple loud bangs in the ballroom of the Hilton Hotel in Washington, DC.
The US Secret Service said it was investigating a shooting incident and that one individual was in custody. “The president and first lady are safe along all protectees,” it said in statement.
Trump said he believed the shooter was a “lone wolf” and that he didn’t reach the ballroom doors, which were sealed.
There did not immediately appear to be any injuries, and one law-enforcement official said a shooter opened fire, according to the Associated Press. Videos of the event appeared to show attendees ducking under dining tables as law enforcement came on the main stage.
White House Correspondents Association Chair Weijia Jiang originally said the group would resume the program, but later took the stage to explain that law enforcement has requested attendees leave the premises.
The president “insists we reschedule the event in the next 30 days and that he wanted to do it tonight, continue despite the news,” she said. “On a night we are thinking about the freedoms in the First Amendment, we must also think about how fragile they are.”
This was the the first time Trump has attended the dinner since 2015.
“Quite an evening in D.C. Secret Service and Law Enforcement did a fantastic job. They acted quickly and bravely,” Trump said in a social media post on Saturday night. “The shooter has been apprehended, and I have recommended that we “LET THE SHOW GO ON” but, will entirely be guided by Law Enforcement. They will make a decision shortly. Regardless of that decision, the evening will be much different than planned, and we’ll just, plain, have to do it again.”
The alleged shooter has been identified as a 31-year-old man from Torrance, California, according to The Associated Press and New York Post.
In a press briefing following the incident, Trump said a man charged at a security checkpoint armed with multiple weapons and was taken down by Secret Service, which “acted quickly.” The man, who Trump said lives in California, has been captured. One officer was shot with a “very powerful gun” but he was wearing a bullet-proof vest and “is doing great,” Trump said.
“This isn’t the first time in the past couple of years that our Republic was attacked by an assassin who sought to kill,” he said. “I ask all Americans to recommit in their hearts to resolving our differences peacefully.”
During the briefing, Trump spoke about the presidency being a “dangerous job,” and said “I want to live because I want to make this country great.”