\u201cAs I said three months ago, the show must go on,\u201d the president said to begin his remarks, hailing the decision to reschedule the dinner. He referred to \u201cthe attempted mass murder\u201d that could have happened that night in April, but then moved largely to humor \u2014 and, increasingly, insults.<\/p>\n
Trump’s return to the correspondents’ dinner \u2014 and his promise to come back next year as well \u2014 represented a notable moment in his relationship with the news media, which he has attacked, sued and taken administrative action against since he began his second term early last year. Among the audience members were reporters he had denounced and barred from events. <\/p>\n
Trump\u2019s sometimes off-color speech, which lasted just over an hour, was full of potshots directed at various individuals \u2014 from Bruce Springsteen to \u201cBarack Hussein Obama\u201d to familiar targets like journalist Kaitlan Collins of CNN, one of the evening’s key award winners, whom he again accused of not smiling enough. The audience reacted at first with friendly laughs, but slowly quieted to scattered titters as the insults piled up. <\/p>\n
Among other targets of Trump\u2019s humor: Late-night hosts Jimmy Fallon and Jimmy Kimmel; Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn.; California Gov. Gavin Newsom; former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie; and even Trump’s own speechwriters. \u201cThat was actually the only thing I thought was good in this whole fricking stupid speech they wrote,\u201d he said when one joke fell flat.<\/p>\n
At one point, Trump wondered aloud what his role was. \u201cIs this supposed to be fun?\u201d he asked. \u201cAm I supposed to be a comedian?\u201d He was on more comfortable ground expressing pride in the ballroom at the Waldorf Astoria, formerly the Trump International Hotel, and its chandeliers. \u201cIt\u2019s great to be back at a place that I know very well, because I built it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
He also made a pained reference to the evening’s journalism awards, many for stories challenging him and his administration \u2014 including one for the Wall Street Journal’s coverage of his ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. \u201cDo I have a say in those awards?\u201d he asked. <\/p>\n
He made brief mention of the Iran war, and referred to the ballroom he’s building at the White House. He also used the occasion to joke about the possibility of a third term \u2014 something barred by the U.S. Constitution’s 22nd Amendment. <\/p>\n
\u201cJust like my presidency, the second time is always better,\u201d the president quipped. \u201cAnd the third time will be better yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
He added: \u201cI\u2019m only kidding.\u201d Then, at the end, he donned a red cap that said \u201cTrump 2028\u201d and delivered the \u201cscoop\u201d that he was running again.<\/p>\n
It was a very different dinner than the previous one<\/p>\n
Trump had entered the ballroom to polite applause, and was thanked for his support by outgoing White House Correspondents\u2019 Association president Weijia Jiang of CBS News. After dinner, he sat through more than an hour of awards presentations, shaking hands with each winner.<\/p>\n
One of the those winners, Tyler Pager of the New York Times, was in fact one of the reporters subpoenaed by Trump\u2019s Justice Department over his reporting about Trump\u2019s Qatari-gifted Air Force One jet. Those subpoenas were withdrawn Thursday in a New York courtroom \u2014 just one of the arenas where the president has been seeking to control media coverage he dislikes.<\/p>\n
The rescheduled dinner took place at a smaller venue this time that held only about 700 people. Security was markedly tighter. Guests entered via a single entrance, through two ID checks. There was no red carpet and no separate cocktail receptions preceding the dinner.<\/p>\n
\u201cLet\u2019s try this again,\u201d Jiang quipped, welcoming the crowd. The White House press corps, she noted, \u201calways have a follow-up.\u201d Turning serious, she referred back to the trauma and confusion of the original dinner in April.<\/p>\n
\u201cTonight our message is this: We are back,\u201d she said. \u201cWe will not be intimidated. We refuse to let an act of violence have the final word.\u201d<\/p>\n
Secret Service agent, hotel staff received awards for bravery during shooting<\/p>\n
Also receiving an award Friday evening was Victor Gonzales, the Secret Service agent who was staffing a security checkpoint in April and was struck in his protective vest<\/a>.<\/p>\n Gonzales \u201cplaced himself directly in harm\u2019s way and engaged the armed suspect,\u201d Jiang said. \u201cHe stayed in the fight and the attacker was stopped.\u201d<\/p>\n A second award was presented to the staff of the Washington Hilton, site of the first dinner, for their professionalism under pressure.<\/p>\n The dress code this time was a looser \u201cblack tie optional,\u201d and dinner included grilled peach and burrata salad, lobster and roasted beet Wellington. As in April, the featured entertainment was mentalist Oz Pearlman \u2014 who now got the chance to perform his act.<\/p>\n
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