Lawmakers who were at White House Correspondents' Dinner shaken, disturbed by shooting
· Axios
Members of Congress and other political figures who were present at the White House Correspondents' Dinner on Saturday night were left deeply unsettled by a shooting that took place outside the event.
The big picture: "It's a horrible, horrible moment for our country to see somebody want to attack or disrupt the event," Rep. Brian Jack (R-Ga.) told Axios while exiting the dinner, which was postponed due to the incident.
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- Rep. Nanette Barragan (D-Calif.), who was seated near the rostrum when President Trump and other top officials were evacuated, told Axios "it's insane … that this is happening at the White House Correspondents' Dinner. Security is supposed to be top notch."
- Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) told Axios in a text message that he was pulled into a secure room by House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.), adding: "As a member who lives in Parkland and went to Marjory Stoneman Douglas HS I am glad everyone is okay."
- "It's shocking," former New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu (R) told Axios as he was leaving the event.
Driving the news: Trump was hastily evacuated from the White House Correspondents' Dinner on Saturday night after a gunman armed with multiple weapons tried to breach security and was shot by Secret Service, federal law enforcement officials tell Axios.
- A suspect fired at Secret Service personnel at the event at the Washington Hilton hotel and is now in custody, a law enforcement source tells Axios.
- Trump praised law enforcement's swift response at a press briefing at the White House Saturday evening and insisted that the event be rescheduled within the next 30 days.
Members described confusion in the initial aftermath of the incident.
- "I saw them immediately evacuate Secretary [Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.] and I took video of that when it was happening because I thought maybe something was happening to him," Barragan told Axios.
- "I'm just letting it all soak in," said Rep. Michael Rulli (R-Ohio) as he was leaving the hotel.
- Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.), in a text to Axios, blamed Democrats for the incident.
The bottom line: Jack said he thinks "somebody should look into the security protocols that were adopted here."
- "Hopefully when we do come back within 30 days, it's a much more safe and much more secure event that enables all of us to celebrate this night," he added.