Vice President JD Vance has recalled the moment that ‘freaked him out’ after a gunman stormed the Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday evening (April 25).
The gala, which is hosted by the White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) and held to celebrate journalism, ended in disaster after a gunman breached security at the Washington Hilton hotel in an apparent assassination attempt of Donald Trump and his administration.
Cole Tomas Allen, 31 has since been charged with attempt to assassinate the President of the United States, using a firearm during a crime of violence, and the transportation of firearm in interstate commerce with intent to commit a felony.
Footage from the event showed Trump and Vance being rushed off stage by the Secret Service after gun shots were heard, with Vance since sitting down on Fox News’ The Will Cain Show to recall the horrible incident and the thing that ‘freaked him out’.
“The first thing that happened that freaked me out a little bit was we heard an agent had been shot, and in the fog of war, I thought ‘Oh, my god, this guy is actually seriously injured or maybe worse,” the vice president recalled.
“We found out later, of course, he was not injured, not seriously injured.”
The agent was hit in the chest, but thanks to a protective ballistic vest, is recovering and is in ‘great shape’, according to Trump.
Heaping praise on the Secret Service, Vance added: “I gained appreciation for what an amazing job the agents of the Secret Service do. They went right to me, way to the president of the United States, put their lives in harm’s way.
“I’ve had a Secret Service detail for all of two years. I wouldn’t say I’m used to it, but it’s interesting; you kind of get used to it.”
Vance continued: “They’re driving you to the White House. They’re the people that hang out with your kids when your kids are running around outside, they kind of stay in the background of your life a little bit, and it’s easy to forget the reason they are there is for nights like what happened Saturday night.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Vance stated he was more worried for his wife, Usha Vance, who was not at the event, so wasn’t aware of all the facts from home.
The vice president also said he wasn’t fully aware of what was going on in the room.
“There were some loud noises, I had no idea what it was,” he added. “Before I had any idea of what was going on I started seeing people duck under the tables, and respond to what was going on far in the back of the ballroom.”
