Update to original story, 04/27/26 – 2:00 pm: Cole Tomas Allen, a 31-year-old from Torrance, California, was charged in federal court on April 27, 2026, with three counts—including attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump—following a shooting incident outside the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner at the Washington Hilton on April 25.
Charges include the following:
- Using a firearm during a crime of violence;
- Transportation of a firearm in interstate commerce with the intent to commit a felony;
- Attempt to assassinate the President of the United States.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt cut short her maternity leave on Monday to address reporters following the third major assassination attempt against President Donald Trump in two years – this one taking place on Saturday night at the White House Correspondents’ dinner at the Hilton in Washington, D.C.
Leavitt, who said she had expected Friday to be her last briefing before her maternity leave, told reporters she felt it was “prudent” to return given the gravity of the weekend’s shooting. The suspected gunman, who was quickly arrested after shooting a Secret Service agent in his bulletproof vest, had written a manifesto targeting the President and top administration officials, as The Dallas Express reported at the time. The agent who was hit reportedly did not suffer any serious injuries.
“Saturday was supposed to be a joyful evening celebrating free speech and the First Amendment,” Leavitt said. “Instead, the night was hijacked by a crazed anti-Trump individual who traveled across the country to assassinate the President and as many administration officials as possible.”
Leavitt was seated beside President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump when the shots were fired. She described the President’s composure as “remarkable to witness,” adding that Trump “was pushing Secret Service and law enforcement to allow him to address the crowd” before being moved backstage.
Trump later returned to the White House and, according to Leavitt, personally called the Secret Service agent who had been hit by the bullet in the vest to check on his condition.
More Violent Political Rhetoric
Much of Leavitt’s speech on Monday centered on what she described as a growing climate of violent rhetoric directed at the President, which she tied to media figures and Democratic politicians alike. She argued that years of comparing Trump to Hitler and labeling him a “fascist” and a “threat to democracy” had helped inspire the recent attack.
“Those who constantly falsely label and slander the President as a fascist, as a threat to democracy, and compare him to Hitler to score political points, are fueling this kind of violence,” Leavitt said.
Leavitt specifically called out ABC late-night host Jimmy Kimmel, citing a comment he made two days before the shooting in which he referred to First Lady Melania Trump as an “expectant widow.”
“Who in their right mind says a wife would be glowing over the potential murder of her beloved husband?” Leavitt asked. “This kind of rhetoric about the President, the First Lady, and his supporters is completely deranged.”
This wasn’t the first time Kimmel has been criticized for his questionable sense of humor. The Dallas Express previously reported that Kimmel was removed from television after making insensitive comments about the assassination of Charlie Kirk, claiming that the man who shot Kirk was part of the “MAGA gang.” Kimmel would later return, seemingly refusing to apologize for his comments.
The First Lady took to social media on Monday, demanding Kimmel be held accountable for his violent rhetoric, stating, “Enough is enough. It is time for ABC to take a stand. How many times will ABC’s leadership enable Kimmel’s atrocious behavior at the expense of our community.”
Kimmel’s hateful and violent rhetoric is intended to divide our country. His monologue about my family isn’t comedy- his words are corrosive and deepens the political sickness within America.
People like Kimmel shouldn’t have the opportunity to enter our homes each evening to…
— First Lady Melania Trump (@FLOTUS) April 27, 2026
Leavitt also used the briefing to renew calls for Congress to fund the Department of Homeland Security, which she said has been without an appropriation for over 70 days – what she called “the longest shutdown of a federal agency in U.S. history.” The Secret Service operates under DHS.
“This defunding of DHS should be a national scandal,” she said, warning that with the FIFA World Cup, the nation’s 250th anniversary, the 2028 Olympics, and a Presidential election all on the horizon, the continued funding lapse places an “enormous and totally pointless burden on the Secret Service that can get more people killed.”
She added that White House Chief of Staff Suzy Wiles would convene a meeting early this week with DHS leadership, Secret Service officials, and White House operations staff to review future security procedures.
Leavitt confirmed the suspected attacker was quickly arrested inside the Washington Hilton before reaching the main event space, but did not offer additional details on the ongoing investigation into the shooter’s past.
“I’m honored to work and speak on behalf of President Trump, who has faced unprecedented adversity and challenges,” Leavitt said. “The President inspires all of us to just keep going and keep fighting every day.”
