President Donald Trump was rushed out of the White House correspondents’ dinner Saturday night after reports of gunfire. A suspect was stopped at a security perimeter and taken into custody, according to people familiar with the investigation.
According to the White House press pool, a group of reporters who travel with the president, a member of the Secret Service shouted, “Shots fired.” Agents with guns drawn sprinted through the aisles to reach the president, who later wrote on social media, “LET THE SHOW GO ON.”
Guests were about five minutes into the dinner hour when a commotion could be heard toward the back of the ballroom. Security officials then sprinted through the aisles toward the stage where the president was seated. Gasps were heard and then hundreds of attendees dropped under their seats at their tables.
Security officials with weapons drawn emerged on the dais as the president and the first lady, Melania Trump, were quickly escorted out.
In addition to the president, Melania Trump and Vice President JD Vance, many members of the president’s Cabinet and senior staff were in attendance at the dinner. Among the attendees were Scott Bessent, the treasury secretary; Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence; Sean Duffy, the transportation secretary; Karoline Leavitt, the press secretary; Steven Cheung, the White House communications director; and Kash Patel, the director of the FBI.
This article originally appeared in The New York Times.