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Suspected gunman likely targeting Trump administration officials at White House press dinner, acting attorney general says – live | White House correspondents’ dinner shooting
‘Preliminary findings’ suggest suspect was ‘likely’ targeting Trump administration officials, says acting US attorney general
The acting US attorney general, Todd Blanche, has said that “preliminary findings” suggest that the alleged White House correspondents’ dinner shooter was targeting Donald Trump and officials in his administration.
Blanche told NBC News’ Meet the Press:
We’re still investigating a motive, and that’s something that will necessarily take a couple of days at least. We believe he was targeting administration officials in this attack, attempted attack, but that’s again, quite preliminary.
Those officials “likely” include the US president, Blanche added, “but I want to wait and not get ahead of us on that.”
Blanche went on to say that he does not believe that the suspect is cooperating with the investigation.
He will be charged in federal court tomorrow with assault of a federal officer, discharging a firearm and attempting to kill a federal officer, Blanche said, adding he did not know if there was an Iran connection to the attack.
Investigators believe the suspect travelled by train from Los Angeles to Chicago and then Chicago to Washington DC by train, before checking into the hotel where the dinner was held, Blanche added.
He said investigators were looking into reports that the suspect had assembled the weapon somewhere in the hotel, but that he “didn’t get very far”.
He barely broke the perimeter. And by barely, I mean by a few feet.
Key events
Trump speaks to 60 Minutes about shooting
Donald Trump will make an appearance on the CBS News program 60 Minutes, according to Steven Cheung, the White House communications director.
“President Trump sits down with 60 Minutes to discuss what happened at the White House Correspondents Association dinner last night,” Cheung wrote in a post on X, accompanied by an image of the president being interviewed.
Ben Smee
Leaders from around the world have condemned the shooting at the White House correspondents’ dinner on Saturday night as an act of “political violence” and expressed relief that Donald Trump, officials and journalists were unharmed.
The president and his wife, Melania, as well as members of the US cabinet, were evacuated from the ballroom at the Washington Hilton on Saturday after gunshots were heard from the hotel lobby.
Britain’s prime minister, Keir Starmer, sent a message of solidarity to Trump after the incident, according to his chief secretary, Darren Jones. “These are remarkable scenes. The prime minister has, this morning, sent a message to the president of the United States in solidarity for the events that took place,” Jones told Sky News.
Buckingham Palace said King Charles was “greatly relieved” the Trumps and other guests were unharmed.
Read more:
King Charles’s US state visit to go ahead as planned, Buckingham Palace confirms
Buckingham Palace has confirmed that King Charles and Queen Camilla’s four-day state visit to the US will go ahead as planned.
Earlier, the palace said a “number of discussions” were taking place to discuss how last night’s shooting may or may not affect security planning, with the British monarch due to arrive in the US tomorrow.
“Following discussions on both sides of the Atlantic through the day, and acting on advice of government, we can confirm the state visit by their majesties will proceed as planned,” a palace spokesperson said.
“The king and queen are most grateful to all those who have worked at pace to ensure this remains the case and are looking forward to the visit getting underway tomorrow.”
The suspected shooter is being held at a Metropolitan police department station in north-west Washington DC, law enforcement sources have told CBS News. He will be transported later today to a detention facility in the southeast of the capital.
The alleged gunman will be transported by the US Marshals Service to federal court on Monday, where he is expected to be arraigned before a federal judge, the justice department has said.
‘We are proud of everyone in that room,’ White House Correspondents’ Association says
Here is a statement from Weijia Jiang, president of the White House Correspondents’ Association, who was seated next to Donald Trump at the dinner last night for what should have been a celebration of journalism.
Last night’s shooting at the Washington Hilton was a harrowing moment for everyone in attendance.
We express our deepest gratitude to the U.S. Secret Service and all law enforcement personnel who ensured the safety of everyone in the ballroom and beyond. Their actions protected thousands of guests, and we wish a full and speedy recovery to the officer who was injured in the line of duty. We are grateful everyone in attendance was unharmed, including the President, the First Lady, and the Vice President.
Our dinner exists to celebrate the First Amendment and the hard daily work of the journalists who defend it. Last night, those journalists showed exactly the kind of calm and courage that work demands, jumping into reporting immediately after the incident unfolded. We are proud of everyone in that room.
The WHCA board will be meeting to assess what happened and determine how to proceed. We will provide updates as soon as any are available.
In his alleged manifesto, Cole Allen, the man accused of targeting the White House correspondents’ dinner, called himself a “Friendly Federal Assassin” and created a list of targets for the shooting, formatted from highest to lowest priority, with Trump administration officials at the top, according to a report from the New York Post.
The manifesto, obtained by the Post, begins with apologies to those who knew the suspect and lists his motives for the shooting. It said the shooter targeted administration officials with the exception of FBI director Kash Patel.
“I am a citizen of the United States of America,” it said. “What my representatives do reflects on me. And I am no longer willing to permit a pedophile, rapist, and traitor to coat my hands with his crimes.”
“Turning the other cheek when *someone else* is oppressed is not Christian behavior; it is complicity in the oppressor’s crimes,” it later says.
The writer also describes security at the event as being weak. “Like, the one thing that I immediately noticed walking into the hotel is the sense of arrogance… The security at the event is all outside, focused on protestors and current arrivals, because apparently no one thought about what happens if someone checks in the day before,” it reads.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt described last night’s correspondents’ dinner as having been “hijacked by a depraved crazy person who sought to assassinate the President and kill as many top Trump administration officials as possible”.
“I was with President Trump and the First Lady back stage after we were quickly ushered to safety by Secret Service,” she wrote in an X post. “President Trump was truly fearless, but as he said last night, this political violence needs to end.”
“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,” she added.
Trump also said that he had wanted to continue with the White House correspondents’ dinner following the shooting but acknowledged that it was the “right thing” to postpone it and leave.
“I really wanted to do it that night, even if we stayed late into the night, but we did the right thing, and we came back to the White House, we did a news conference and explained what happened,” Trump said in his Sunday interview with Fox News.
“I really wanted to, but the protocol was no and, you know, once those doors were open, that room was sealed,” he added.
The president went on to say, “we can’t let these criminals and these really bad people change the course of events in our country” and added that he had planned to “really rip it last night”.
“But I didn’t get a chance to do that. Probably, I was better off if I didn’t,” he said.
King’s visit to Washington to continue as planned, Trump says
Trump also confirmed to Fox News that King Charles III’s visit to the US will continue as planned.
“He’s a great guy, and we look forward to it. He’s really a fantastic person and a tremendous representative, and he’s brave,” Trump said. “We’re gonna have a great time. And he represents his nation like nobody else can do it.”
Donald Trump said in an interview on Sunday on Fox News that the suspected shooter at the White House correspondents’ dinner was stopped by law enforcement and didn’t come close to entering the ballroom where the event was taking place.
He described the suspect as “a sick and very troubled guy”. He added that the suspect appeared to have had “hatred in his heart for a while” and described him as being “strongly anti-Christian”.
He also said the suspect’s family had raised concerns about him to police ahead of his targeting of the media gala.
“He’s got some big problems with the rest of his life,” Trump said.
The president also reiterated once again on the need for a secure ballroom at the White House, which he says is under construction ahead of schedule and on budget.
FBI director Kash Patel said “the best of American leadership” was on show last night and reiterated that the investigation is ongoing.
“Last night we saw the best of American leadership,” he wrote in a post on X. “I am proud to work for President Trump who so strongly backs law enforcement across this country – and proud to lead this agency that works 24/7 to keep Americans safe.”
“Thank you to our brave law enforcement and interagency partners who acted quickly and protected their fellow Americans. Investigation ongoing,” he added.
Suspect’s writings in hotel room reveal he wanted to target Trump officials – report
The suspect’s writings, reportedly found inside his hotel room, are being examined as part of the investigation into the attack, according to CBS News.
Sources told the network that the writings “clearly stated” he wanted to target administration officials.
Prime minister Keir Starmer spoke to Donald Trump on Sunday and expressed relief that the US president and the first lady were safe following the shooting at the White House correspondents’ dinner, a Downing Street spokesperson told Reuters.
“He [Starmer] extended his best wishes to the President and First Lady following the shocking scenes at last night’s White House Correspondents Dinner,” the spokesperson said.
They added that Starmer had “expressed his relief that the President and First Lady were safe and wished a speedy recovery to the officer injured”.
Today so far
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Preliminary findings suggest that the alleged White House correspondents’ dinner shooter was targeting Donald Trump and officials in his administration, according to acting US attorney general Todd Blanche. The suspect’s motive remains under investigation.
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The suspect – identified by the Associated Press as Cole Tomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, California – is set to be arraigned in federal court tomorrow. He faces charges of assault of a federal officer, discharging a firearm and attempting to kill a federal officer, but Blanche said depending on how the investigation goes, he can also be charged with the attempted assassination of Trump.
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The officer who sustained injuries in last night’s attack had been released from hospital, according to US Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi. “The ballistic vest helped us avoid a potential tragedy last night,” Guglielmi said.
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Trump on Sunday reiterated that the shooting is why the White House needs a ballroom. A US judge last month halted construction on Trump’s $400m ballroom, granting a request for a preliminary injunction by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
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Security for King Charles is under review ahead of his state visit to Washington, the Buckingham Palace has said. Buckingham Palace said on Sunday that Charles was being “kept fully informed of developments” of last night’s shooting and was “greatly relieved to hear that the president, first lady and all guests have been unharmed”.
The Bank last cut interest rates in December but upheaval in the Middle East has stalled any further reductions.
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US to review benefits of having troops in Europe with ‘era of free-riding’ over – Europe live | World news
US to conduct a review of forces in Europe
Hegseth says the US will be “doubling down” on its efforts to get allies to spend what they need to spend.
He says his department will conduct a six-month review of US forces in Europe.
He says it will look at actual benefits of having US military in Europe – and will be a real review.
“It will be designed to ensure that Nato is moving fast and irreversibly toward Europe leading, stepping up to take primary responsibility for the defence of Europe.”
He then goes further to say that the US dues to the Nato budget will be contingent on other countries meeting their defence spending targets.
“Where other allies do not spend with urgency, our dues, contributions will go down. Nato will be a two-way street.”
He adds:
“America cannot care for or pay more for Europe’s defence than our allies do.”
Key events
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US defence secretary urges UK to spend more on defence, ‘step up and do even more’
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US force review will ‘change how we look at continent,’ Hegseth says
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Russian oil refinery on fire after barrage of Ukrainian drones strike Moscow
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Trump was ‘pumped with’ harmful ideas during G7 summit, Kremlin says
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Nato agrees to modernise nuclear capabilities, strengthen planning
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Hegseth’s frustration is not new, but still striking – snap analysis
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‘Our direction of travel is and has been clear,’ Hegseth tells Nato
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Some Nato countries ‘will fail’ US posture review, Hegseth says
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US to conduct a review of forces in Europe
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Hegseth says ‘era of free riding’ is over
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Nato allies refusal to help on Iran ‘shameful,’ Hegseth says
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US ‘gave allies test to support America … and too many failed it,’ Hegseth says
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‘There have been real setbacks we cannot ignore,’ Hegseth tells Nato
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‘Europe was not supposed to be a dependency of the US,’ Hegseth tells Nato
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‘Nato has been a paper tiger and a one-way street,’ US Hegseth tells Nato ministers
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Morning opening: Ukraine hits Moscow oil refinery, disrupts flights in retaliation attack as Nato, EU leaders meet for talks
US defence secretary urges UK to spend more on defence, ‘step up and do even more’
US defence secretary Pete Hegseth has also offered his view on the relationship with the UK, after meeting Britain’s new defence minister Dan Jarvis.
His predecessor resigned in protest against low government spending on defence.
Hegseth said it was “a good meeting,” stressing that “the US-British defence alliance is an important one.”
He praised Jarvis for having first-hand experience of serving in a combat zone.
But he said “the message was the same: hey, we need you guys to step up and do even more, spend even more.”
He added:
“If we need access and basing, whether it’s in the UK or say at Diego Garcia, we can’t live in a world where other countries are standing at the end of a runway with a clipboard trying to decide what flies and what doesn’t. It’s not gonna, it’s not gonna work for us. It’s not good in contingencies, and I don’t think it’s what he wants either.”
He continued saying that “the more the UK spends on defence, the stronger Nato is going to be, the stronger western civilization is, and that’s a good thing.”
“I think [it was] a good start to a relationship that we need to renew even more,” Hegseth said.
US force review will ‘change how we look at continent,’ Hegseth says
We are now again hearing from US defence secretary Pete Hegseth again, as he’s speaking with reporters after his explosive speech at the Nato ministerial in Brussels this morning.
Just as I argued (10:15), he tells them that the message is not new, with many countries already stepping up – but not all of them.
“We will be clear with them, and as we do this review, we’ll change how we look at the continent as a result,” he says.
Separately, speaking on Iran, he also notes that a number of European countries are “prepared to step up” to help with the strait of Hormuz.
“It’s an international water bill, and frankly, European countries and Asian countries use it a lot more than we do,” he says.
Russian oil refinery on fire after barrage of Ukrainian drones strike Moscow
Peter Beaumont in Pavlograd and Warren Murray
Ukrainian drones have hit several locations across Moscow, including setting an oil refinery on fire, sending out flames and towering plumes of smoke over the city and forcing the capital’s airports to suspend flights.
The scale of the long-range attack, apparently designed to shut down operations at the key oil refinery in the Kapotno area, caught most Muscovites by surprise in a city that does not typically warn residents with air raid alarms, and prompted panicked messages on social media.
Footage posted online showed three plumes of smoke rising from the refinery.
The strike was the second in two days on the facility, in what the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, then called “a just response to Russian strikes”.
“Air defence forces are continuing to repel a large-scale attack. Several drones managed to reach the [Moscow oil refinery],” said Sergei Sobyanin, Moscow’s mayor, adding that a shopping centre was also damaged. He claimed about 180 drones heading for the capital had been downed.
Sobyanin said emergency crews were working at the site and also reported “damage” to Sadovod shopping centre in the south-eastern part of the city. At least seven drones appear to have beaten Russia’s air defences to strike targets in the city.
Traffic was halted on Moscow’s ring road near the refinery, the broadcaster RIA cited the interior ministry as saying, while air traffic was disrupted at Vnukovo, Sheremetyevo, and Zhukovsky airports.
Jakub Krupa
Let’s get a bit more on these Ukrainian drone strikes on Moscow.
Trump was ‘pumped with’ harmful ideas during G7 summit, Kremlin says
Meanwhile, the Kremlin has offered its take on yesterday’s G7 summit – including a supportive statement on Ukraine (Europe Live, Wednesday) – saying that the US president, Donald Trump, was “pumped with” harmful ideas by the EU.
The US had no contacts with Moscow after the meeting, Kremlin adviser Yuri Ushakov was quoted by Interfax and Reuters as saying.
Ushakov also disputed the EU’s assumption that the battlefield situation was changing in Ukraine’s favour.
Nato agrees to modernise nuclear capabilities, strengthen planning
Separately, Nato has agreed to modernise its nuclear capabilities and strengthen its nuclear planning capacity, the alliance’s senior body for nuclear deterrence said in a statement quoted by Reuters.
All Nato allies except France are members of the Nuclear Planning Group, which serves as a forum for consultation and decision-making on nuclear deterrence.
Defence ministers taking part in the meeting “recalled that the strategic nuclear forces of the Alliance remain the supreme guarantee of Allied security and underpin Nato’s extended deterrence architecture,” the statement said.
Hegseth’s frustration is not new, but still striking – snap analysis
Jakub Krupa
None of this is really new new – Hegseth largely repeats the US’s main frustrations and grievances with the alliance, repeatedly expressed by Trump – but the tone of the delivery is still very, very striking.
Hegseth has laid into Nato allies for not helping enough with bases and overflights during its early Iran operations – and once he did not name any countries, it’s likely targeted at the likes of Spain, Italy, Portugal.
In other parts, it is just a broader criticism of what the US sees as “free riding” from the allies, as they do not move quickly enough on spending.
Coming just weeks before the Nato summit in Ankara, it is clearly intented to serve as a warning to several of the allies that still don’t spend enough and don’t seem to act with the urgency the US is expecting them to increase that spending – or even offer a credible path towards it.
The proposed posture review – and explicit threat that some of them will fail it – and the suggestion the US could reduce its contributions if others do not pay enough, will make some think twice about their plans in the next few weeks.
As Hegseth ends his remarks, Rutte says “there’s much to discuss and decide today.”
You bet it’s going to be lively.
‘Our direction of travel is and has been clear,’ Hegseth tells Nato
Hegseth says “our direction of travel is and has been clear.”
“This is the right thing to do by the American people. It’s the right thing to do by this alliance.
Europe can and must take primary responsibility for its conventional defence as it pledged at The Hague Summit, and in the process safeguarding Europe’s defence for generations to come, we know our allies can do it, and it’s time.”
Some Nato countries ‘will fail’ US posture review, Hegseth says
Hegseth makes it clear that the review will not be just a box-ticking exercise.
“It’s a review that some countries will fail and others will pass with flying colours. In the end, the review is intended to both improve US force posture and basing and strengthen Nato 3.0.”
US to conduct a review of forces in Europe
Hegseth says the US will be “doubling down” on its efforts to get allies to spend what they need to spend.
He says his department will conduct a six-month review of US forces in Europe.
He says it will look at actual benefits of having US military in Europe – and will be a real review.
“It will be designed to ensure that Nato is moving fast and irreversibly toward Europe leading, stepping up to take primary responsibility for the defence of Europe.”
He then goes further to say that the US dues to the Nato budget will be contingent on other countries meeting their defence spending targets.
“Where other allies do not spend with urgency, our dues, contributions will go down. Nato will be a two-way street.”
He adds:
“America cannot care for or pay more for Europe’s defence than our allies do.”
Hegseth says ‘era of free riding’ is over
Hegseth says that “some of Nato’s largest economies, some of our richest countries, allies that are happiest to go on about the rules-based international order and middle powers banding together still think the era of free riding is here.”
He says Trump disagrees.
“This is not what any reasonable person would expect, and it’s not going to cut it any more.”
(He may be thinking of, among others, Spain, which has long been the target of US criticism, and has clashed with it in recent months.)
Nato allies refusal to help on Iran ‘shameful,’ Hegseth says
Hegseth makes it very clear how the US is annoyed about the perceived lack of support on Iran.
“The United States has defended Europe for generations, and the President said all he said was that our jets would need to take off from bases in Europe or our ships from ports to strike targets in the Middle East, Iranian targets that threaten European interests even more directly than they threaten us.
But too many of our allies said no, or tried to drown us in arcane legal debates, or criticised us publicly for doing what they aren’t prepared or able to do themselves. It was shameful.
These allies, they put America’s sons and daughters, our sons and daughters, at risk by denying them the predictable access facing an overflight that never should have been in question at all.”
US ‘gave allies test to support America … and too many failed it,’ Hegseth says
Hegseth now goes hard on some Nato countries that are still paying below the expected levels.
He says “for all of our clarity, too many allied capitals seem to still miss something in translation” and “too many allies still do not recognise the historic need … to forge a relevant, powerful military alliance.”
He says the US “gave our allies a test to support America when we asked for their help and too many failed it.”
‘There have been real setbacks we cannot ignore,’ Hegseth tells Nato
Hegseth says that Trump is clear about his intention to increase defence spending so the US leads and shows others “it’s not do as I say, it’s do as we do.”
He says he believes the US approach has been validated on Ukraine, with allies taking more responsibility for Ukraine’s defence – and this approach actually yielding positive results.
“It is happening, and it’s a validation of President Trump’s approach, an approach that will set the table for peace.”
But he says that “for all these early steps in the right direction, there have also been real setbacks that we cannot ignore.”
Hegseth continues by saying that Nato 2.0 was “an era of distraction, de-industrialisation and demilitarisation,” with “an era of free riding.”
“Those were lost years that we are not going back to.”
He says that’s why his department is “so clear and so candid” about the need to “restore Nato’s core military role and character” and why it’s returned US troop levels to pre-2022.
He says the alliance needs to return to its roots to be as strong as required and “if need be, make good on Article Five.”
He says some countries “got the message and stepped up,” but others are still failing.
‘Europe was not supposed to be a dependency of the US,’ Hegseth tells Nato
Hegseth seems to praise spending commitments adopted at last year’s Nato summit in The Hague, saying they were “all about transforming Nato back into a real military alliance that is focused on hard power and real deterrence.”
But in another eye-catching quote, he goes on to say:
“Europe was not supposed to be a dependency of the United States. That’s not what Winston Churchill or Charles de Gaulle or Konrad Adenauer wanted or expected. No, Europe was supposed to be a military power, allied with a strong America.”
He goes back in Nato history to 1951, quoting Eisehower comments that “if in 10 years all American troops stationed in Europe for national defence purposes have not been returned to the US, then this whole process will have failed.”
But he says that Nato 2.0 in the following decades increasingly focused on “gender equality and climate change” instead of “tanks and fighters and air defences.”
“Europe’s borders flew wide open, welfare states expanded, defence budgets cratered, along with Europe’s belief in itself and its civilization. Nato lost its way.”
Ouch, again.
‘Nato has been a paper tiger and a one-way street,’ US Hegseth tells Nato ministers
US secretary of defence Pete Hegseth has asked to speak at the beginning of the Nato ministerial in Brussels, and it very much looks like his comments will set the tone for the day.
He begins by saying that Trump “has said again and again … our allies must step up.”
“Nato has been a paper tiger and a one-way street. No more.”
Ouch.
Morning opening: Ukraine hits Moscow oil refinery, disrupts flights in retaliation attack as Nato, EU leaders meet for talks
Jakub Krupa
Ukraine hit an oil refinery near Moscow and other targets in Russia overnight in what president Volodymyr Zelenskyy called “a justified response” to recent strikes on Ukraine.
Russian officials were quoted as saying that the attack forced commercial flights and airports to be suspended for safety reasons and caused a temporary halt on Moscow’s ring road, after some 180 drones were shot down over the Russian capital.
“This is a fully justified response to Russian attacks on our cities and communities, and another important result of our warriors’ work against facilities that sustain Russia’s war machine,” Zelenskyy said.
The strikes come on the day of a Nato ministerial meeting in Brussels, the last before next month’s summit in Ankara.
Nato allies are expected to discuss the latest on their defence spending plans, with the US pressing Europe to take more responsibility for the defence of the continent.
Later on, the ministers will also take part in the Ukraine Defence Contact Group meeting, a key forum to coordinate on support for Ukraine, which is expected to be attended by Zelenskyy.
The main event comes fairly late in the day, as EU leaders are expected to gather for the European Council meeting on Ukraine and the Middle East. It’s a two-day summit, likely to go late into the night.
Lots for us to cover.
It’s Thursday, 18 June 2026, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.
Good morning.
The Major Oak is thought to have stood for more than 1,000 years in the heart of Nottinghamshire’s Sherwood Forest.
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