Trump’s Early Morning Call Following Assassination Attempt

On Sunday, ABC News reporter Jonathan Karl shared an unexpected phone call he received from President Donald Trump shortly after a shooting incident at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner. During the event at the Washington Hilton, Secret Service agents evacuated Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, Vice President J.D. Vance, and other senior officials after alleged gunman Cole Allen exchanged fire with security personnel.

In an interview on “This Week,” Karl recounted how Trump reached out to him early in the morning, a call that felt particularly noteworthy. “A little after 7 a.m., my phone rang. It was President Trump on my landline, George, a number that doesn’t really get a lot of calls,” he said. Trump checked on Karl’s well-being, reflecting on the unity present at the event before the shooting and the support he received afterwards.

Karl noted that Trump was particularly insistent about the need to reschedule the dinner, emphasizing its importance. “He knows that I’m the former president of the White House Correspondents’ Association and that I helped with the dinner, which didn’t really happen during the pandemic, and he said we have to get this dinner back. It has to happen.”

Following the attack, Trump, who previously survived two assassination attempts during the 2024 campaign, expressed his wish to return to the venue to deliver a speech as originally planned. However, he returned to the White House after the Secret Service activated their protocols and held a press briefing.

Meanwhile, Cole Allen, a 31-year-old teacher from Torrance, California, is set to appear in court on Monday facing charges related to the incident. He had described himself in a manifesto as a “friendly federal assassin,” claiming he was targeting officials from the Trump administration.