{"id":2595641,"date":"2026-04-27T11:59:01","date_gmt":"2026-04-27T15:59:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dc-emerges-from-under-tables-to-keep-partying-despite-whcd-assassination-attempt\/"},"modified":"2026-04-27T12:00:41","modified_gmt":"2026-04-27T16:00:41","slug":"dc-emerges-from-under-tables-to-keep-partying-despite-whcd-assassination-attempt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dc-emerges-from-under-tables-to-keep-partying-despite-whcd-assassination-attempt\/","title":{"rendered":"DC emerges from under tables to keep partying despite WHCD assassination attempt"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">24<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fdc-emerges-from-under-tables-to-keep-partying-despite-whcd-assassination-attempt%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2595641&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Monday\u2019s *Washington Secrets* recaps the weekend around the White House Correspondents\u2019 Dinner and the chaotic night that followed an <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >apparent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wapo-wins-pulitzer-after-minimizing-trump-assassination-attempt\/\" title=\"WaPo Wins Pulitzer After Minimizing Trump Assassination Attempt\">attempted presidential assassination<\/a>-gunshots<\/a>, confusion, and Secret Service scrambling to move top officials to safety. As she later gathered at brunch, Sir Christian Turner credited the Secret Service and reporters for quickly shifting from party mode to coverage, urging a \u201ckeep calm and carry on\u201d mindset despite limited sleep and heightened security, including for King Charles III and Queen Camilla.<\/p>\n<p>The piece also describes how parts of the event still went on after additional security checks-though some critics argued it was wrong for Washington to \u201ckeep going\u201d amid an active-shooter incident and broader looming crises. In the Hilton ballroom, journalists sheltered under tables, monitored the unfolding scene from phones and tablecloths, and briefly turned an upstairs bar into an improvised newsroom when the formal dinner ended. Norm Eisen-an outspoken Trump critic-was among those whose plans were upended; he had intended to walk out in protest but didn\u2019t know what he\u2019d do instead after the ballroom emptied.<\/p>\n<p>A section highlights Kash Patel\u2019s composure during the gunfire, portraying him as staying alert to others\u2019 safety, apologizing he couldn\u2019t do more, then quickly moving into a press-facing role to help drive investigation and lessons learned. the article explains how Charles III\u2019s invitation to visit Donald Trump at the White House was delivered after a private moment during Trump\u2019s UK trip last year, as part of longer-running planning tied to America\u2019s 250th anniversary.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<article class=\"fn-body\">\n<p><strong><em>Welcome to Monday\u2019s edition of Washington Secrets. We spent the weekend at the parties, receptions and after-parties that come with the White House correspondents\u2019 dinner, in between an interlude under a table. Today we bring you details of how it all went down, including one official who won praise for his calmness in a crisis, plus the Donald Trump critic who will have to save his walkout protest for another year\u2026<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The sound of five gunshots. An attempted presidential assassination. A <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/white-house-correspondents-dinner\/\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/white-house-correspondents-dinner\/\"><strong>gala dinner<\/strong><\/a>  thrown into chaos. Tears and jangled nerves.<\/p>\n<section class=\"explore-more-section\" id=\"wex-recommended-widget\">\n<div class=\"magazine-container single\">\n<h1 class=\"magazine-title mt-2\">Recommended Stories<\/h1>\n<p>             <i class=\"fa-solid fa-play icon\"><\/i>         <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-grid\">\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/washington-secrets\/4541721\/white-house-report-card-trump-role-model\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>White House report card: Poll says Trump is the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/white-house-report-card-poll-says-trump-is-the-worst-recent-presidential-role-model-for-children-with-one-exception\/\" title=\"... report card: Poll says Trump is the worst recent presidential role model for children \u2026 with one exception\">worst recent presidential role model<\/a> for children \u2026 with one exception<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/washington-secrets\/4540179\/michael-whatley-silence-sex-offender\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>The Whatley files: North Carolina Democrats highlight Republican\u2019s silence on sex offender<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/washington-secrets\/4538726\/republicans-declare-economic-win-midterm-elections\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Poll reveals how Republicans could declare an economic win ahead of midterms<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p>Washington did what it always does. It moved on to the after-parties and the brunches.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>On Sunday morning, diplomats, journalists and assorted members of the sports-coated classes gathered at the British ambassador\u2019s residence.<\/p>\n<p>Sir Christian Turner had not planned to speak at the CNN-sponsored brunch. There wasn\u2019t even a stage.<\/p>\n<p>So he addressed the crowd from the top of a stepladder.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s a bit more of a somber context this morning than many of us expected, after a difficult night last night, and I\u2019m absolutely thrilled to see so many of you here enjoying being together and coming together,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>The audience included Mike Waltz, Donald Trump\u2019s ambassador to the United Nations, Dr Oz, and Linda Carter, the original Wonder Woman.<\/p>\n<p>Sir Christian praised the professionalism of the Secret Service in keeping everyone safe and that of the journalists at the Washington Hilton who had immediately switched from party mode to reporting mode at the sound of violence.<\/p>\n<p>He admitted he had had little sleep. The Brits have the small matter of the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/4543862\/king-charles-trip-to-us-proceed-as-planned\/\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/4543862\/king-charles-trip-to-us-proceed-as-planned\/\"><strong>King and Queen arriving later today<\/strong><\/a>  for their State Visit, and Buckingham Palace officials had been in constant touch with the White House and the embassy.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf there\u2019s any operational planning we need to change, we will. But I\u2019m very confident that security will be absolutely assured. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo in sum, ladies and gentlemen, it\u2019s very British: Keep calm and carry on,\u201d he said, raising a mug of tea.<\/p>\n<p>Privately, officials know the biggest danger to the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/king-charles-iii\/\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/king-charles-iii\/\"><strong>King<\/strong> <\/a>comes when he is in proximity to Trump. Those meetings are at the White House, which is as close to a fortress as you can possibly get.<\/p>\n<p>The King and Queen Camilla will also be guests of honor at a garden party at the British residence on Monday.<\/p>\n<p>Sunday\u2019s brunch was one of the traditional closing events of correspondents\u2019 dinner weekend. Most of the parties went ahead as planned, albeit after additional security reviews.<\/p>\n<p>Not everyone thought it was the right response.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPeople were still partying, still hitting WHCD afterparties last night. Epstein corruption, an escalating Iran conflict, and an active shooter \u2014 and Washington just\u2026 kept going,\u201d posted journalist Tara Palmieri, who didn\u2019t have a ticket to the dinner. \u201cThe cognitive dissonance is the system.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Yet the parties, after-parties and brunches were a place to check in on each other. A time for hugs and emotional debriefs.<\/p>\n<p>Hours earlier, hundreds of journalists had sprung into action in the Hilton ballroom, trying to pierce the fog of confusion in the aftermath of the shooting.<\/p>\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/4543512\/terror-at-white-house-correspondents-dinner\/\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/4543512\/terror-at-white-house-correspondents-dinner\/\"><strong>INSIDE THE ROOM: TERROR AT THE WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENTS DINNER<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>As Secret Service agents raced up and down the tables, plucking Cabinet Secretaries and senior White House officials to safety, journalists poked heads and smartphones from beneath tablecloths to survey the scene.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think we want to ask if there is a tug of war behind the scenes between the White House Correspondents Association and Secret Service,\u201d one editor could be heard saying as he rallied his troops, asking them to find out whether the evening would resume (it did not), \u201cAnd whether Trump has inserted himself into the middle of it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Someone should have also asked the night\u2019s entertainer, mentalist Oz Pearlman, why he didn\u2019t see this coming.<\/p>\n<p>Reporters collected undrunk bottles of wine from empty tables as they left (one editor dropped two bottles as tried to conceal them under his tuxedo), reassembling in a bar upstairs. It quickly became a temporary newsroom. A well lubricated newsroom.<\/p>\n<p>Terror returned briefly. The pop of a Champagne bottle being uncorked clumsily sent dozens of hearts racing and more than one person scrambling for cover.<\/p>\n<p>A Daily Beast editor tried to return to his room, only to find the floor cordoned off. He had spent the previous night sleeping in the room next to that of the would-be assassin.<\/p>\n<p>Among the guests who recorded video in the ballroom during the chaos and confusion was Norm Eisen, lawyer, former ambassador and high-profile Trump critic.<\/p>\n<p>His plans for the night had been upended just like everyone else\u2019s.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was going to walk out in protest,\u201d he told <em>Secrets<\/em> as the ballroom emptied. \u201cI don\u2019t know what I\u2019m going to do now.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-calm-under-fire\">Calm under fire<\/h2>\n<p>Kash Patel, the FBI director, is under intense pressure. He is tipped to be the next senior official to be fired by Trump amid claims about his alcohol intake, which he denies, and a blockbuster lawsuit against The Atlantic <\/p>\n<p>On Saturday night he was a guest of the Daily Mail. And <em>Secrets <\/em>learns everyone around him was impressed by his reaction to the gunshots. <\/p>\n<p>He checked that the tables around him were ducking and covering as the chaos unfolded. <\/p>\n<p>He stayed in his seat assessing the danger, said one witness, making sure guests were safe.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThen he apologized, saying he was sorry that he couldn\u2019t do more,\u201d said a source, \u201cbut he had to leave so he could lead the investigation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Minutes later, he was in the White House briefing room at a hurried press conference, standing beside the president. A quick investigation and prosecution, a report on lessons learned, could be his way back into good graces.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-a-very-personal-invitation\">A very personal invitation<\/h2>\n<p>King Charles III and Queen Camilla land in Washington today for their state visit. Secrets will be at their garden party later in the day.<\/p>\n<p>Secrets can also reveal how the invitation was delivered to the King. <\/p>\n<p>It came during Trump\u2019s own state visit to Britain last year, during his time at Windsor Castle. <\/p>\n<p>The King invited the president to join him in his private quarters for a bit of one-to-one time when all their officials, security agents, and hangers-on were gathered for the banquet in the grandeur of the castle\u2019s St George\u2019s Hall.<\/p>\n<p>The moment wasn\u2019t scheduled, but the King\u2019s personal touch wowed the president who asked Charles to visit him at the White House in the year of America\u2019s 250th anniversary.<\/p>\n<p>His aides had not been informed of the plan. But an official let the cat out of the bag as Air Force One took off from London.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was a really fantastic trip. The British know how to do this perfectly,\u201d the official texted. \u201cThey set the bar high for their trip to see us.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/opinion\/columnists\/4541652\/when-charles-iii-meets-king-donald-trump\/\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/opinion\/columnists\/4541652\/when-charles-iii-meets-king-donald-trump\/\"><strong>WHEN CHARLES III MEETS DONALD TRUMP<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>A formal invitation still had to be set up, with diaries synchronized and so on. But the wheels were already turning.<\/p>\n<p>And it marked the quiet culmination of a plan hatched years earlier by Dame Karen Pierce, the then British ambassador in Washington. <\/p>\n<p>Although she left last year, she had impressed on her own officials and the government in London that the 250th anniversary of American Independence was the perfect time for the King to visit the White House, carrying with it echoes Queen Elizabeth II\u2019s hugely successful visit for the 200th in 1976.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-lunchtime-reading\">Lunchtime reading<\/h2>\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/substack.com\/@historyneverended\/note\/c-249651483\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/substack.com\/@historyneverended\/note\/c-249651483\"><strong>A curmudgeon writes<\/strong><\/a>: Veteran foreign correspondent Nick Bryant describes the White House correspondents\u2019 dinners he attended as a young reporter, and why his view on them soured. Do the even have a future?<\/p>\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/apr\/27\/king-charles-visit-baseball\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/apr\/27\/king-charles-visit-baseball\"><strong>\u201cHe didn\u2019t enjoy it that much\u201d: what happened when Prince Charles went to a baseball game in 1970<\/strong><\/a>: \u201cThey left after eight hits, next to no excitement, two unearned Senators runs, and the thermometer registered 91 degrees\u201d. There\u2019s no trip to Nats Park on the itinerary this time around. Just as well.<\/p>\n<p><strong><strong><em>You are reading <\/em>Washington Secrets<em>, a guide to power and politics in D.C. and beyond. It is written by Rob Crilly, who you can reach at <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/l\/email-protection#6b180e08190e1f182b1c0a180302050c1f04050e130a0602050e1945080406\"><span class=\"__cf_email__\" data-cfemail=\"e89b8d8b9a8d9c9ba89f899b8081868f9c87868d90898581868d9ac68b8785\">[email\u00a0protected]<\/span><\/a> with your comments, story tips, and suggestion<\/em><\/strong><em><strong>s. If a friend sent you this and you\u2019d like to sign up, <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"http:\/\/click1.trk-washingtonexaminer.com\/xprvgynrhhctscghtpnrptnqlrtypjmjlkrlcnpvhgpdcr_jtjrvfbrrsmwbqmnsbmvsv.html?a=Washington+Secrets+Lara+Trump&#038;b=01%2F21%2F2026&#038;c=WEX_Washington+Secrets&#038;d=25812206&#038;e=da31c45955c9411a6c40ecd0e967fa8def1f0fc08362faaa0dee09386ff5c41b\">click here<\/a>.<\/strong><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Welcome to Monday\u2019s Washington Secrets: WHCD chaos, calm under fire, and what followed<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4136,"featured_media":2595644,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/AP26116074162114.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[34943,78671,58520,33224,25571],"class_list":["post-2595641","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner","tag-assassination-attempt","tag-partying-despite-risk","tag-security-response","tag-washington-dc","tag-whcd"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/AP26116074162114.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2595641","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4136"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2595641"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2595641\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2595646,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2595641\/revisions\/2595646"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2595644"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2595641"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2595641"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2595641"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}