The White House on Monday blamed what it described as a “left-wing cult of hatred” for a shooting incident at a gala correspondents’ dinner in Washington attended by President Donald Trump, escalating political tensions following the security scare.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the attack, for which a suspect is expected in court later on Monday, represented the third assassination attempt targeting President Trump in the past two years.
“The left-wing cult of hatred against the president and all of those who support him and work for him has gotten multiple people hurt and killed, and it almost did so again this weekend,” Leavitt said during a briefing at the White House.
The incident occurred during the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, a high-profile annual event attended by journalists, government officials and political figures. Panic erupted when shots were reported near the security screening area of the venue, forcing Secret Service agents to evacuate President Trump and secure the building.
Security officials later confirmed that a suspect had been detained at the scene. The White House said the President, First Lady, Vice President and Cabinet members were all safely evacuated and were unharmed.
Leavitt, who had been on stage with Trump at the time of the incident, said the administration viewed the attack as part of a broader pattern of political hostility directed at the president.
“Nobody in recent years has faced more bullets and more violence than President Trump,” she said, adding that rhetoric portraying Trump as a “fascist” or a “threat to democracy” had contributed to a dangerous environment.
She accused critics of “systemic demonization” of the president, arguing that repeated comparisons of Trump to authoritarian figures were encouraging violent behaviour.
The comments come amid ongoing political polarisation in the United States, where tensions between supporters and opponents of the administration remain high ahead of upcoming political cycles.
President Trump, however, struck a more conciliatory tone shortly after the incident, thanking security agencies for their swift response and confirming that the event would be rescheduled within a month.
Law enforcement agencies are continuing investigations into the motive behind the shooting, while security has been tightened around federal buildings and major public events in Washington.
