Trump Returns to White House Correspondents’ Dinner Three Months After Deadly Attack

President Donald Trump attended the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner on Friday, three months after a gunman disrupted the event. “As I said three months ago, the show must go on,” he said at the start of his speech, following an awards ceremony where journalists such as CNN’s Wolf Blitzer spoke.

The dinner, originally scheduled for April, was postponed after an alleged assassin attempted to breach the gathering at the Washington Hilton. The rescheduled event was held at the Waldorf Astoria hotel with about 700 guests, far fewer than the original crowd. Trump described the incident as “an assault on our democracy” and praised aides who demonstrated “bravery” during the confrontation.

Alleged gunman Cole Tomas Allen entered through a security gate armed with firearms and knives, injuring a Secret Service officer before being apprehended. He faces federal charges of attempting to assassinate the president.

During his remarks, Trump made several jokes, including a reference to Nicki Minaj’s reaction to the gunfire, and mocked political opponents such as Governor Gavin Newsom, Representative Ilhan Omar, and others. He also invoked his long‑standing criticism of the press, calling the gathering “the largest collection of people with Trump derangement syndrome.”

White House Correspondents’ Association president Weijia Jiang thanked Trump for his support and said the organization would not be intimidated by the violence.

The attendance marked a notable shift from Trump’s earlier years in office, when he dismissed the dinner as “dead” and skipped it for four years. The event remains controversial among journalists, with some urging its cancellation after the April attack.

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