White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt made what turned out to be an ominously accurate prediction before gunfire erupted at the 2026 White House Correspondents’ Association dinner on Saturday night.
“It will be funny. It will be entertaining. There will be some shots fired tonight in the room,” Leavitt told Fox News on the red carpet just moments before the dinner at the Washington Hilton Hotel. “Everyone should tune in, it’s gonna be really great. I’m looking forward to hearing it.”
President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and other high-level cabinet officials were abruptly evacuated from the event by Secret Service after shots rang out. The president and his Cabinet members were unhurt in the incident.
Trump said at a press conference at the White House late last night that one officer was shot, but was saved by his bullet-proof vest.
An armed suspect Cole Allen, 31, from Torrance, California is the man accused of charging through a security checkpoint at the dinner and opening fire. Allen, who was not shot during the incident and was taken to a local hospital, is expected to be charged in federal court on Monday.
