President Donald Trump’s apparent calm in the face of another assassination attempt has sparked speculation online, with the president himself now having revealed why he chose to remain seated as gun shots rang out.
Shortly after 8:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 25, a suspect fired shots at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner inside the ballroom of the Washington Hilton hotel. The commotion understandably prompted panic among the reported 2,000 or so guests in attendance.
President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania, as well as other senior figures in Trump’s administration, were quickly whisked away by Secret Service agents, while journalists and other guests dove under tables seeking cover.
Secret Service agents exchanged fire with the suspect, later identified as 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen, before ultimately apprehending him. One agent was struck in the body after Allen, armed with a shotgun, handgun, and knives, discharged his weapon, but the round struck a bullet proof vest, preventing serious injury.
Reports today have claimed that investigators are assessing a manifesto Allen reportedly wrote before carrying out the attempted assassination. Said manifesto is alleged to include a list of targets for the shooting, ranked from highest to lowest. Trump administration officials feature at the top of the list.
President Trump has now explained why he opted to remain seated when gunfire initially broke loose on Saturday, claiming to CBS correspondent Norah O’Donnell on 60 Minutes that he was curious.
“I wanted to see what was happening,” he explained. “I wasn’t making it that easy for them. I wanted to see what was going on. And by that time we started to realize maybe it was a bad problem, different kind of problem, a bad one, and different than what would be normal noise from a ballroom.”
Trump said that he was surrounded by great people, adding: “And I probably made them act a little more slowly. I said, ‘Wait a minute, wait a minute.'”
Revealing that he was not concerned for his safety, the 79-year-old POTUS said: “I understand life. We live in a crazy world.”
According to acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, investigators now believe that suspect Allen traveled to Washington by train from California, with a stop in Chicago in between.
“It does appear that he did in fact set out to target folks who work in the administration, likely including the president,” Blanche told NBC’s Meet the Press.
“He failed. Law enforcement did their jobs.”
What did you make of the alleged assassination attempt? Let us know in the comments.
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