US President Donald Trump and his officials were the “likely” targets of a suspected gunman who attempted to storm the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche has said.
The suspect, named by US media as 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen, was arrested after police said he opened fire near a security checkpoint during the event at a Washington DC hotel on Saturday.
Blanche, speaking to NBC News, said the alleged gunman’s motive is still under investigation, but that “preliminary” findings suggest he was targeting administration officials.
The FBI’s criminal division and terrorism task-force are investigating the incident.
After being rushed off the stage to safety, Trump later told reporters at a briefing on Saturday: “I can’t imagine that there’s any profession that’s more dangerous”.
In a statement on Sunday, the White House said Trump “stands fearless” after surviving, alongside cabinet members, “an assassination attempt when shots were fired”.
The White House Correspondents’ Association president, Weijia Jiang, called the attack “harrowing”.
On Sunday, Jiang, who was sat next to Trump at the dinner, thanked the Secret Service for actions which “protected thousands of guests”.
She added the board will meet and determine how to proceed, and will release updates when available.
On Sunday, Trump told Fox News that the suspect “had a lot of hatred in his heart for a while”, and said his family knew he had “difficulties”. He added that the suspect had a “manifesto”, and suggested he was “strongly anti-Christian”.
US media are reporting a history of anti-Trump social media posts from 31-year-old Allen, citing law enforcement sources.
At about 20:35 local time (00:35 GMT) on Saturday gunshots rang out in the foyer of the Washington Hilton hotel, where the White House Correspondents’ dinner was taking place in the ballroom on a floor below.
The president, First Lady Melania Trump, and Vice-President JD Vance were also rushed out of the room by security.
Video of Secret Service agents rushing Vice-President JD Vance from the event several moments before Trump was evacuated circulated across social media, with some viewers questioning the timing.
In an interview with the news programme 60 Minutes on Sunday, Trump said he “wasn’t making it easy” for agents to evacuate him from the room.
“I wanted to see what was happening… I wanted to see what was going on. And by that time we started to realise, maybe it was a bad problem.” Officials said law enforcement exchanged fire with the alleged attacker and intercepted him, and “believe” the suspect fired his weapon. He was not struck, but was taken to hospital for evaluation.
Police said he was carrying two guns, as well as knives.
The BBC’s partner CBS News has seen a written document believed to be linked to the suspect, Cole Allen. Other US media have reported on the same document.
It says the gunman wanted to target members of the Trump administration “from highest-ranking to lowest” and that while guests and hotel staff were not the intended targets, they would be attacked if necessary to get to the officials.
His brother reportedly contacted police in Connecticut after receiving it. The police department in New London, Connecticut said it was contacted only hours after the shooting and immediately notified federal law enforcement.-BBC
