Trump attends rescheduled White House Correspondents Dinner after April shooting

Donald Trump arrived at the Waldorf Astoria for the rescheduled gala, which organizers say will feel smaller and closer than the one that had been evacuated after shots were fired in the hotel in a suspected targeting of the president and his administration.

The usually celebratory dinner is dedicated in part to Victor Gonzales, a Secret Service officer who was shot and wounded that night in April while helping stop the gunman, and hotel staff who helped guests during the attack. The man charged for the shooting, Cole Allen, has pleaded not guilty to attempting to assassinate the president.

Media additions

An advance team spent weeks putting together a security plan for the new venue, and Sean Curran, the US Secret Service director, told reporters this week that agents were braced for trouble even at the black-tie dinner. “We do expect bad people to show up,” he said.

Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, promised earlier that Trump’s speech would be “a combination of unifying yet vicious, and serious yet hilarious, all at the same time if you can imagine that”. While it is customary for presidents to address the annual White House correspondents’ dinner, Friday’s speech will be the first Trump has made at the event in either of his two terms – he boycotted it throughout his first – and will be watched closely, given his long-running conflict with the press corps in the room. He has sued multiple news organizations over their coverage of him, and routinely dismisses unfavorable stories as “fake news”. Trump’s administration has gone further still, barring the Associated Press from the White House press pool and limiting other journalists’ access to the Pentagon.

Missing from the guest list this time: Melania Trump, JD Vance and Marco Rubio, who were all there in April. Instead of the usual comedian performance, the White House Correspondents’ Association selected mentalist Oz Pearlman to headline the 2026 dinner entertainment. Typically, a comedian is selected to bring some levity to the night where government officials and those who keep them accountable gather in the same room. Some previous performers include Colin Jost in 2024, Trevor Noah in 2022, Stephen Colbert in 2006, Conan O'Brien in 1995 and Jay Leno in 1987.

Known as Oz the Mentalist, Pearlman is renowned for his ability to seemingly read people’s minds, and is expected to take his shot at reading those of President Donald Trump and journalist at the WHCA dinner this year. Pearlman told ABC News he believes his selection played a part in Trump’s decision to attend the dinner this year — claiming he was asked to “unite” rather than take potentially divisive stabs like what often happens with comedy.  The mentalist first gained national attention as a finalist on NBC's America’s Got Talent, where he read the minds of audience members for his performance. He then went on to headline his own NBC television special called Oz Knows.

"My job is not to come in and roast,” Pearlman told ABC. “I don't think that's what I was brought in for. I think I was brought in to unite — unite in a sense of wonder and amazemen."

"I do things that blow you away, that you get to laugh, wow, gasp, and feel like you're a kid again."

Pearlman was part of a viral moment during the first go at the dinner earlier this year when gun shots rung out as he was huddled around First Lady Melania Trump and then-pregnant White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt attempting to predict the name of her unborn daughter.

Event Context and Timeline

• April: The original White House correspondents’ dinner is halted after a man fires a shotgun at a security checkpoint outside the ballroom, prompting a hasty evacuation and leading to charges against Cole Allen for attempting to assassinate the president.
• July 24, 2026: The Guardian reports on advanced security preparations and previews the rescheduled gala at the Waldorf Astoria, detailing the dedicated honors for wounded Secret Service officer Victor Gonzales and hotel staff.
• Friday Evening: Donald Trump makes his first-ever appearance at the correspondents' dinner across his two terms, accompanied by a mentalist performance by Oz Pearlman rather than a traditional comedic roast, while prominent figures such as Melania Trump, JD Vance, and Marco Rubio are absent from the guest list (Fox News, The Guardian).