President Donald Trump alternated between combative and conciliatory during a “60 Minutes” interview with correspondent Norah O’Donnell at the White House on Sunday in the wake of Saturday night’s shooting near the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.
The president seemed eager to discuss the incident, which took place Saturday night and stunned the nation and major news organizations by sending dozens of top journalists that night. Cole Thomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, California, allegedly tried to break into the annual event at the Washington Hilton with a gun. Although he was shot and taken into custody by law enforcement, the noise and chaos surrounding his arrest became fully evident as federal agents and police removed President Trump, Vice President Vance, and many senior officials who were attending the event.
“We live in a crazy world,” Trump told O’Donnell, noting that political violence has existed for decades.
Trump told O’Donnell that he was “not making it easy” that the Secret Service was trying to remove him from the scene and that he “wanted to know what was going on.” “Just to see what was going on. And by that time I started to realize that maybe it was a bad problem, a different kind of problem, a bad problem, different than the normal noise from the banquet hall that you hear all the time. And I was surrounded by great people, so I probably would have let them move a little slower. I said, ‘Wait a minute, wait a minute. Let’s take a look, wait a minute.'”
President Trump became visibly displeased after O’Donnell read portions of the “manifesto” allegedly written by Cole. “I will no longer allow pedophiles, rapists, and traitors to paint my hands with their crimes,” he said in the document, referring to various accusations leveled against Trump over the years, all of which he denies. “You’re terrible people, you’re terrible people,” Trump told O’Donnell, criticizing journalists who tried to hold powerful officials accountable. “Yeah, he wrote that. I’m not a rapist. I haven’t raped anyone,” he told O’Donnell, “You shouldn’t read that on 60 Minutes.” You are a disgrace. But let’s end the interview already. ”
Despite challenging O’Donnell’s journalism and suggesting that most journalistic outlets express a liberal or progressive worldview, he called for the WHCA dinner to be held within 30 days.
On Saturday, President Trump, first lady Melania Trump and numerous members of the Cabinet were evacuated from the event after law enforcement captured a gunman on a separate floor from the event. Officials said the suspect stormed the security checkpoint.
Shortly after, the president held a press conference and promised to reschedule the dinner. He said he “fought desperately” to keep the event from being cancelled. He added: “We’re going to do it all over again. We’re not going to let someone take over our society. We’re not going to cancel things out, because we can’t do that.” He also used the opportunity to advance his desire to build a new ballroom at the White House, something the administration continued to press on Sunday.
Later, Weijia Jiang, WHCA president and senior White House correspondent for CBS News, said in a social media post: “I know many of you are still processing what happened last night. Thank you to the USSS and all law enforcement for keeping us safe. Book We are truly grateful. To the members of the WHCA, we will get through this together… We are deeply grateful to all the U.S. Secret Service and law enforcement personnel who ensured the safety of everyone inside and outside the ballroom. Their actions protected thousands of people.” I am grateful that everyone in attendance, including the president, first lady, and vice president, was safe.”
Trump’s interview led Sunday’s “60 Minutes,” and the “disaster tourist” report was carried over to a future episode. A segment featuring former Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Nebraska), who has been diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer and is currently battling the disease, is still being aired. CBS’ Scott Pelley spoke with Sass during an interview and town hall scheduled as part of special editions of “60 Minutes” and “Sing That Matter.” An expanded version of this interview will be available on “60 Minutes Overtime,” the “60 Minutes” podcast, and “Things That Matter,” and distributed on Paramount+ and CBS News digital platforms. Maria Gavrilovic is the producer of that package.
