WA politicians react to shooting at White House Correspondents' Dinner
Gov. Bob Ferguson and other Washington political leaders denounced a shooting at the White House Correspondents' Dinner, the latest security scare following other assassination attempts on President Donald Trump.
A man opened fire Saturday night at the annual gala, hosted by the White House Correspondents Association at the Washington Hilton in Washington Investigators believe the shooter was 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen, of California. He was set to appear in court on Monday.
Trump and Vice President JD Vance were swiftly ushered from the gala after shots rang out. Trump said a Secret Service agent was struck, but that a vest stopped the bullet.
Both Ferguson and Sen. Maria Cantwell thanked law enforcement while castigating the violence in separate statements.
Violence has no place in our democracy," Ferguson wrote in his post.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Seattle, said in a post that she was "grateful to law enforcement for quickly acting to secure the room and save lives at the WHCD. Violence is never the answer." Jayapal is considered one of Trump's biggest opponents.
Like Cantwell, Jayapal and Ferguson, most Washington state politicians decried the violence while praising law enforcement.
Former Gov. Jay Inslee took a different approach Sunday morning.
"We cannot forget that while Trump praises law enforcement for protecting him, he totally disrespected law enforcement officers who protected democracy against his coup attempt on Jan. 6. Never forget," Inslee posted to X.
Inslee came under fire for the post, with many criticizing him in the comments and reposts.
"Idiot posts an idiotic comment," WA Republican Party Chair Jim Walsh, a state representative from Aberdeen, said in response to Inslee. "Gets the most brutal ratio I've ever seen on social media. Idiot doesn't delete the idiotic post. THAT speaks more to his lack of character than his original idiotic post did. Please don't join the ratio. It's like stealing from a simpleton."
Rep. Michael Baumgartner, R-Spokane, one of only two federally elected Republicans from the Evergreen State, said all Americans should rebuke the shooting.
"Tonight's attempted assassination attempt at the White House Correspondents' Dinner is another stark reminder of the danger of radicalism and extreme rhetoric in our politics," he posted to X.
Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, D-Vancouver, simply wrote: "Please stop trying to murder the president."
Investigators believe the shooter was intending to assassinate Trump and found writings where he referred to himself as a "Friendly Federal Assassin" minutes before he opened fire.
Saturday's shooting marks the latest of several known assassination attempts over the past three years. Trump was grazed by a bullet at a campaign event in summer 2024 in Pennsylvania, and a would-be shooter was arrested at the Trump International Golf Club in September 2024.
In February, the Secret Service killed a 21-year-old man who brought a shotgun and a gas canister to Mar-a-Lago.
In a statement Sunday morning, press secretary Karoline Leavitt called Trump "fearless" and called for an end to political violence.
"What was supposed to be a fun night at the @WHCA dinner with President Donald Trump delivering jokes and celebrating free speech was hijacked by a depraved crazy person who sought to assassinate the President and kill as many top Trump administration officials as possible, Leavitt said in a post.
Trump has historically boycotted the annual gala, and Saturday's appearance was his first since 2011, when he appeared as a private citizen.
Anumita Kaur contributed to this article.
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