Washington — Just outside the Washington Hilton Ballroom, as part of the annual White House Correspondents’ Association. The dinner was in progress, and a Times reporter had just entered the men’s room when he heard some loud noises.
“Shooter!” Someone shouted. “Get down! Gunshots fired!”
Inside the ballroom, thousands of journalists and politicians began hiding for cover as the event transformed from a celebration of free speech into a scene of fear.
At the dinner, six Times journalists were seated at a table to the right of the stage.
Times reporter Gavin Quinton, in the restroom, heard gunshots at about 8:30 p.m. He had left the Times table a few minutes earlier and walked past the TV cameras to the high terrace near the ballroom’s security entrance. He met CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer.
Outside the restroom, 31-year-old Cole Thomas Allen sprinted through metal detectors and came just steps away from the ballroom’s entrance, as security footage later showed.
Five or six bullets fired by Secret Service agents missed Allen before the agents brought him down near a staircase Leading to the main floor, where Trump sat in prominence.
A federal agent was shot in the chest during the shootout, but was wearing a bullet-proof vest and was not seriously injured.
Inside the restroom, Quinton sat behind a corner. Others ran into the room, including three hotel security guards, who rushed in so fast that their backs hit the tiled wall. Within moments, a Secret Service agent stood at the bathroom entrance with his pistol drawn.
“Total number?” he asked.
“A dozen – no, 15!” Someone shouted in response.
People remained locked in bathroom stalls. Some people tried to overcome poor cell service to call loved ones. Confused, a mix of tuxedo-clad attendees, uniformed hotel guards and waitstaff tried to piece together what had happened.
A hotel guard said, “He had a gun.”
Another witness told Quinton that he initially thought Blitzer was the shooter’s target.
The man said of the gunman, “I look around and as I’m opening the door I hear gunshots. And I turn and see him.” “I look again and I’m like, ‘Oh, they just shot someone.’ “
Blitzer, who was pinned to the ground by officers during the incident, later said that “the first thing that came through my mind was whether he was going to shoot me.”
As the group speculated whether the shooter had died in the volley, one man wondered aloud whether the incident would continue. Initially thinking the gunman might have been killed, Quinton replied, no.
“Why not?” The man asked. “It’s a bad guy who died. It was a good ending. Really.”
The Washington Hilton has been hosting the annual Correspondents’ Dinner for more than 60 years. The event, known locally as “Nerd Prom”, now comes with a series of pre-parties and after-parties.
This was the President’s first appearance at the dinner since 2015; He abandoned it during his entire first term.
Now questions are being raised on security protocols. Guests faced a bit of screening to enter the hotel on Saturday — a quick glance at a paper ticket — before going down an escalator to the only area with a magnetometer, where bags were also searched.
Trump entered the ballroom at 8:15 p.m. as the Marine Band played “Hail to the Chief.”
Twenty minutes later, the videos show, Secret Service officers with ballistic vests and long guns give instructions to clear the way while running across the ballroom and onto the stage.
An agent pulled over Vice President J.D. Vance. Trump was accompanied by another person who appeared to be traveling while leaving.
Other officials — Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, FBI Director Kash Patel, Homeland Security adviser Stephen Miller — were also immediately removed.
At The Times Table in the Ballroom, at first nothing seemed wrong.
The waiters had just begun clearing plates of spring pea and burrata salad. Journalists did not hear the gunfire, but watched as the room fell silent and others rose from their seats and hid under floor-length white tablecloths.
A journalist lost his shoe in the process and feared that a gunman would spot him. He pulled her under the table.
They stayed there for several minutes, texting loved ones and waiting for the all-clear, but no one came.
From under the tablecloth, reporters heard someone yelling, “God bless America! USA!” They feared that he was the shooter.
it turned out to be Dan ScavinoWhite House Deputy Chief of Staff. Couldn’t catch the mantra.
Eventually, others could be heard talking loudly and rattling pots and pans. The guests peered from under their tables and stood at attention. There was uneasy laughter echoing in the ballroom.
Cellphone service inside the ballroom was poor. At first there was confusion as to whether a shot had taken place or whether plates falling on the floor were mistaken for gunshots.
Trump later said, “I thought it was a tray going down.”
Just before 9 p.m., CBS News senior White House correspondent Weijia Jiang, who is president of the White House Correspondents’ Association, told guests that the program would “momentarily resume.”
Half an hour later, Jiang returned to the stage and announced that law enforcement had requested guests to leave the premises. He said Trump told him no one was hurt and that he, the first lady and Cabinet members were safe.
In concluding remarks, Jiang said journalism is a public service “because when there is an emergency, we run toward the crisis – not away from it.”
“And on a night when we’re thinking about First Amendment freedoms, we should also think about how fragile they are,” she said. “I’ve seen you all reporting, and that’s what we do.”
Law enforcement and media leaders offered conflicting guidance. Quinton was among the first to vacate the building, although most guests waited inside for a long time.
On their way out, they saw that the metal detector had already been partially destroyed when the shooters fled.
Quinton passed the shooter standing on his stomach, near the stairs, about 20 feet from the bathroom entrance. Before security escorted him out of the hotel and onto the street, he picked up his phone and recorded a brief, shaky video of the scene.
When security finally ordered everyone to leave the full spectrum of emotions were on display. Women wearing gowns ran away in fear. A man was sobbing into the sleeve of his evening jacket.
In pictures available on social media, other people are seen stopping to take selfies. Some drank alcohol straight from the bottle.
Quinton saw the presidential motorcade outside the hotel lobby at about 8:45 p.m. At about the same time, an ambulance arrived and about 100 event attendees were taken out to the secure event perimeter.
As guests exited the building, several more law enforcement officials were inside the hotel, including agents from the Secret Service, ATF, FBI, and Department of Homeland Security. National Guard troops replaced celebrities and politicians at the red carpet entrance.
Outside, Metropolitan Police moved people north on Columbia Road NW. Hungry guests dressed in tuxedos entered a nearby 7-Eleven. The main course of the dinner – prime beef and Maine lobster – was not served.
After this, Trump said in the White House that the program would be rescheduled.
“We will not let anyone take over our society,” he told reporters, who came to the press conference still dressed in gown and black tie. “We’re not going to cancel things because we can’t.”
Meanwhile, the after-night parties continued, although organizers attempted a more somber tone. For example, MS Now told those who RSVP that their “Democracy After Hours” party will be “a place for friends and colleagues to get together.”
Freelance journalist Tara Palmeri posted a photo on x Of a complete party with blue mood lighting.
“People were still partying, celebrating at the WHCD afterparties last night,” he wrote. “Epstein corruption, the escalating Iran conflict, and an active shooter—and Washington just… moved on. Cognitive dissonance is the system.”
On Sunday morning, the Washington Hilton appeared to be in normal condition, except for the presence of reporters who were using the hotel as a backdrop for their live shots.
