Trump turns the WHCD shooting into a pitch for the White House ballroom

Source: The Verge

President Donald Trump speaks during a press conference while flanked by FBI Director Kash Patel and Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin at the White House on April 25, 2026. | Nathan Howard/Getty Images.

Incident overview

Within hours of an armed gunman’s attempt to enter the White House Correspondents Dinner—attended by top administration officials and hundreds of journalists—President Donald Trump did what he does best: use the assassination attempt to defend his ballroom project.

Trump’s remarks

During a White House press conference just hours after he and several cabinet members were evacuated, Trump told reporters that the Washington Hilton, the hotel where the WHCD historically takes place, was “not a particularly secure building. And I didn’t want to say this, but this is why we have to have all of the attributes of what we’re planning at the White House. It’s act …”