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Good morning,

How was everyone's weekend? Relaxing? Uneventful?

I am back on NYC soil after attending the White House Correspondents' Dinner at America's most cursed hotel, the Washington Hilton. I haven't had a chance to write about the experience yet and, frankly, I am not entirely read-in on the latest news about the shooter, his motive, or any other details so I thought I'd walk everyone through what it was like in the moment, and we can go from there.

The first thing I want to push back on is this idea that the security at the event "worked as intended," which I have heard several attendees say. That is not true. The security was lax enough that I had remarked upon it to several people in our party before the evening even got underway. On the way into the Hilton, all I had to do was flash my ticket — or a piece of paper that resembled a ticket — to one person, presumably a hotel employee, before being allowed into the venue. The DC Hilton is this huge monstrosity, with the ballroom deep in the bowels of the complex. We weren't wanded, or "magged", until just outside the event space. Think about that. If you go to a professional sporting event, you can't get into the stadium or arena without going through a mag at the outer perimeter. I walked unimpeded almost all the way to the doors of a room that would, in a few minutes, hold the president of the United States, the first lady, the vice president, virtually the entire Cabinet, half of Congressional leadership, and Nicki Minaj. If this would-be assassin was armed with a bomb, we could very well be in the middle of a line-of-succession crisis this morning, and one that I wouldn't be around to cover. I don't even want to speak that into the world, but just put me on record as saying this was a security failure that should have heads rolling at the top of the Secret Service, which has now failed in their mission three times in two years. I feel for those agents given the extreme complexities and risks of protecting this administration in this time of elevated political violence, but that is simply not an acceptable record.

Once inside the ballroom, I went into Producer Mode, trying to convince as many VIPs as I could find to come on the podcast: John Fetterman ("absolutely"), Stephen A. Smith ("who are you?"), Bill O'Reilly ("please go through the proper channels, young man"). Then we sat for the program, and within a few minutes it became clear something was wrong. I heard a commotion that sounded like plates crashing, or maybe glass breaking, which was loud enough to create a hush over the din of the room. Then "pop, pop, pop" — obviously the sound of gunshots — and we hit the deck. Huddled under Table 9, I could see plainclothes agents whisking out Cabinet officials like RFK Jr., and cops with their guns out through the outer doors, which made it clear if it hadn't been already that this was almost certainly an active shooter situation unfolding just beyond where we were gathered. SS agents with long guns had materialized on the dais and standing atop tables, where they were calling out the code names of various protectees. Surreal doesn't even begin to explain it.

The first thing that went through my head at that point was that we were probably safe, given the level of defensive firepower in the room. My second thought was, honestly, imagine how scary this must be when you don't have the entire Secret Service between you and a crazed gunman, which of course is how most mass shootings unfold in America. My third thought was: I really gotta pee. Having had a glass of prosecco, or five, at this point, the bathroom situation was becoming a bigger priority with every passing moment. After about 10 minutes under or kneeling by the table, it seemed people had started to get up and mill around, asking each other what they knew. This is where I'll note there is zero cell service in that room, and no announcements had been made, so we were flying blind in there. I got up and made a break for the restroom, figuring any information I could gather would be on the outside of those doors. Coming out of the toilet, I saw Erika Kirk was being escorted down the hall in tears, poor woman. I linked up with the great Sarah Sidner of CNN and we left through the kitchen, where I saw our fearless FBI leader Kash Patel looking confused while trying to raise someone on the phone.

Then once it became clear this dinner was not going to resume, I walked the mile or so back to our hotel, where I hooked up with Jesus just in time to catch President Trump's comments from the briefing room, with the assembled press and admin officials all still in their evening wear. The POTUS hit all the right notes, I thought. He was calm, collected and — dare I say — presidential.

One of the many peculiarities of Donald Trump is he's very bad in most moments of crisis... except if the crisis in question put him in physical danger. Remember after Butler? The fist pumping, the measured response without immediately giving credence to the conspiracy theories floating around. The refusal to change his rallies, or routine. He thanked the SS publicly, even though they almost let him get killed. Same deal after the incident at his golf course in Florida, and then again here. He was measured, he praised the media, the Service, called for the "show to go on," while mentioning that the Hilton was an insecure venue by nature and tying it to his pitch for the White House ballroom. By the standards of this era, he met the moment on Saturday.

We've got lots more special coverage of the Dinner From Hell today. Leo, Jesus and I recounted more of our experience in detail for a quick-and-dirty special report that's up on the pod feed this a.m. Also be sure to read both of their accounts below, too, plus before-and-after photos of The 1600's inaugural (and final?) delegation to the WHCD. Happy to be back in the saddle, and thanks to everyone who reached out with their concerns for our safety this weekend. Never a dull moment these days, eh?

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Carlo Versano is Newsweek's Director of Politics and Culture. He has in-depth knowledge and experience covering a range of topics and stories over a 20-year career in the news business. Carlo joined Newsweek in 2024 after a stint at The Messenger. Before that, he was an Emmy-winning producer at NBC News. He is a graduate of the University of Richmond and the New School. You can get in touch with Carlo by emailing [email protected].

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Carlo and the 1600 boys, Leo and Jesus, share what it was like inside the ballroom when a gunman breached security and sent guests, dignitaries and the president ducking for cover at the annual White House Correspondents Dinner in Washington, D.C., Saturday night. They discuss the obvious security lapses they saw, and the rare moment of unity between Trump and the media he loves to hate.

Watch the latest episode here. ⬅

Cole Tomas Allen, the suspect arrested in the shooting at the White House Correspondents' Association (WHCA) dinner, has been linked to a political group called The Wide Awakes, the New York Post first reported and is believed to have attended a "No Kings" protest in California, where he attended college and worked as a teacher.

What struck me the most about the chaos that ensued on Saturday night at the WHCA Dinner was the security. 

From the moment we got to the Hilton, I immediately noticed that the guards weren’t screening people with magnetometers at the entrance. Carlo and I remarked upon this immediately, having covered past events with VVIPs like POTUS in attendance. The screening machines were only located right near the ballroom, but most of the structure was unsecured in terms of screening. 

This was totally different than any other event I’ve covered with the president. There’s usually magnetometers either outside the structure where the event is taking place or right at the entrance. The fact that most of the structure was unsecured due to the location of the screening devices bewildered me from the moment I stepped into the venue.

I posted this video after being evacuated from the building to give you a sense of where the screening areas were. This will be one of the big questions for the Service going forward: why weren’t guests magged outside the hotel? Although, the shooter was reportedly staying at the hotel, so it’s possible he identified another security loophole. It's hard to imagine the SS letting the POTUS attend an event at a hotel again, unless all those rooms and guests are screened ahead of time.

After we got out of the Hilton Saturday night, we had to walk for blocks through streets blocked by police and emergency vehicles. We made it back to our hotel after the dinner was canceled and went for a drink to figure out what the hell had just happened.

The bartender was already turning on the news. Trump was about to speak.

As soon as he started, a guy next to us began yelling at the remarks. He asked the bartender to switch to a hockey game he wasn’t even watching. He just wanted it off.

That exhausted guy reminded me of so many people I know, people who feel like politics have completely left them behind. They don’t feel connected to it anymore. But what struck me most wasn’t the anger. The guy looked tired. Completely fed up.

Washington is supposed to breathe politics, some people say. But there we were, a bunch of journos listening to the president, a man who had just survived another assassination attempt, delivering an update on one of the stories of the year, and the room was shouting to change the channel, looking away from the screen.

Back in New York, I had a few hours to think about what happened on Saturday, and I kept coming back to that guy and the people at the bar. What it means when we stop reacting. When we stop being shocked. When violence becomes just another thing that happens. That’s when you realize something fundamental is broken. And honestly, I don’t blame them.

“Was at the WH Correspondents dinner last night, a rare DC trip for me without a subpoena. On the positive side—was exciting, no one was killed, and ended early. I noted a new litmus for status among the gov’t elite—whether you were whisked away by secret service, or left to fend.”

—Lloyd Blankfein, former Goldman Sachs CEO, on his experience at the WHCD.

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