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The White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, has addressed the incident at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, following her earlier remarks about potential “shots fired” at the function.
On Sunday, April 26, Leavitt, 28, shared her thoughts on Instagram regarding the previous night’s shooting incident. The event forced the evacuation of her, President Donald Trump, first lady Melania Trump, and various government officials from the Washington Hilton ballroom as gunfire erupted during the dinner.
“An evening intended for light-heartedness, with President Trump sharing jokes and honoring free speech, was disrupted by a deranged anti-Trump individual attempting an assassination and targeting key Trump administration figures,” Leavitt expressed in her post.
Shortly before the chaos unfolded at the event, Leavitt, who is expecting her second child with her husband, Nicholas Riccio, had commented on the red carpet to Fox News. She teased that Trump’s upcoming address would be “funny” and “entertaining,” hinting there “will be some shots fired tonight in the room.”
Meanwhile, public figures and athletes are voicing their concerns following a shooting incident at the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl parade. Confirmed by Kansas City police on Wednesday, February 14, one parade-goer lost their life while more than 10 others suffered serious injuries during the celebration of the Missouri football team’s recent victory.
Leavitt’s post, accompanied by a carousel of photos taken prior and during the dinner, and in the aftermath of the evacuation, continued, “I was with President Trump and the First Lady back stage after we were quickly ushered to safety by Secret Service. President Trump was truly fearless, but as he said last night, this political violence needs to end.”
The post, which captured Leavitt seated beside Vice President JD Vance in the White House Oval Office, concluded, “Thank you to law enforcement for keeping all of us safe, including the brave agent who took a bullet to the chest and immediately moved to neutralize the shooter. Pray for our country.”
Washington D.C. law enforcement officials confirmed that a 31-year-old man from California was apprehended as a result of the shooting incident on Saturday, April 25. He has been charged with two counts of using a firearm and one count of assault on a federal officer using a dangerous weapon. The suspect’s motives and condition remain unknown.
Whitney Leavitt is breaking her silence in the wake of fellow The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives cast member Taylor Frankie Paul’s most recent domestic dispute. “I have a lot of emotions about it and I’m still processing everything that’s happening, but the safety of human beings, especially children, comes first,” Whitney told Interview Magazine […]
A member of the Secret Service was shot during the incident, which took place near the venue’s “main magnetometer,” per information provided by the Secret Service. Trump later confirmed that the Secret Service agent was recovering in the hospital.
“The vest did its job. I just spoke to the officer and he’s doing great,” Trump told reporters in the event’s wake.
The White House Correspondents’ Dinner served as a temporary farewell for Leavitt as she prepares to welcome her second child in the coming days. (Leavitt and Riccio, 60, are also parents to son Nico, born in July 2024.)
In the hours that followed the shooting, Leavitt personally confirmed via an X post that Trump had scheduled a press conference in the late hours of Saturday night. In her Instagram post, Leavitt included a photo from the press conference that showed her standing beside the lectern that Trump spoke from.