Trump rushed out of White House Correspondents' Dinner as gunfire erupts

By STEPHEN M. LEPORE, US SENIOR REPORTER Published: 01:50, 26 April 2026 | Updated: 02:20, 26 April 2026 President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump were both rushed off stage from the White House Correspondents' Dinner after gunshots were heard inside the Washington Hilton.  The President was attending the event for the first time since 2011 and was set to be honored and give a speech. There did not immediately appear to be any injuries, and one law-enforcement official said a shooter opened fire.   The Secret Service and other authorities swarmed the banquet hall at the Washington Hilton as guests ducked under tables by the hundreds. “Out of the way, sir!” someone yelled. Others yelled to duck.  About an hour later, the White House confirmed the President and First lady would return to the event.  Trump confirmed the gunman was in custody in a post to Truth Social. 'Quite an evening in D.C. Secret Service and Law Enforcement did a fantastic job. They acted quickly and bravely. The shooter has been apprehended, and I have recommended that we “LET THE SHOW GO ON” but, will entirely be guided by Law Enforcement. They will make a decision shortly. Regardless of that decision, the evening will be much different than planned, and we’ll just, plain, have to do it again.' Daily Mail reporters in attendance reported hearing three to four shots and hearing Secret Service agents yelling to get down.  President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump were both rushed off stage from the White House Correspondents' Dinner after gunshots were heard inside the Washington Hilton The President was attending the event for the first time since 2011 and was set to be honored and give a speech  Some in the crowd reported hearing what they believed to be five to eight shots fired.  The banquet hall — where hundreds of prominent journalists, celebrities and national leaders were awaiting Trump’s speech — was immediately evacuated.  Members of the National Guard took up position inside the building as people were allowed to leave but not re-enter. Security outside was also extremely tight. It was not immediately clear what happened. A law enforcement official confirmed there was a shooter but no further details were immediately available.  Those in attendance included Trump, Vice President JD Vance, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Anchor Wolf Blitzer later reported that the police said the gunman had a 'major weapon.'  Trump alongside WHCA President Weijia Jiang, did not appear to notice the gunshots before they were evacuated, as the President was speaking to the host, mentalist Oz Pearlman.   Shouts of 'God bless America' were heard throughout the ballroom as the entire dais was led out of the room, with many of the other guests still inside.  Protesters had been spotted both outside and inside the Washington Hilton related to the Iran War and Israel's war on Hamas ahead of the dinner.   Jiang announced about a half hour later that the program was set to resume in 'not much longer.'  Trump arrived Saturday night to an event where the leaders of a nation at war mingled with celebrities, journalists and even a puppet — Triumph the Insult Comic Dog — in a dinner that typically generates debate about whether the relationship between journalists and their sources should include socializing together and putting aside sometimes adversarial relationships. The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.