After assassination attempt, White House blames Democrats, media for political violence

After shots were fired at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner Saturday night, the White House is attempting to pin the blame for repeated assassination plots against President Donald Trump on elected Democrats, members of the media and political commentators. 

In a press briefing Monday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt claimed Trump’s detractors were responsible for all political violence in the U.S.

“Those who constantly, falsely label and slander the president as a fascist and a threat to democracy and compare him to Hitler to score political points are fueling this kind of violence,” Leavitt said. “The left-wing cult of hatred against POTUS and all of those who support him has gotten multiple people killed.”

“Unfortunately, it’s not just the media. The entire Democrat party has made their pitch to voters across the country that Donald Trump poses an existential threat to democracy,” Leavitt added.

Since a gunman shot a federal officer while attempting to breach security at a hotel in D.C. where Trump was hosting the dinner, prominent figures on the right — including sitting members of Congress and people with close ties to the White House — have called for a crackdown on the political left.

Leavitt’s remarks built on those calls, but conveniently ignored the fact that Trump regularly uses violent rhetoric against his political opponents.

In a social media post last month, the president compared the Democratic Party to Iran, calling it “the greatest enemy America has.” Last year, he also boosted calls for imprisoning and executing a group of Democratic lawmakers who urged U.S. military service members to defend the U.S. Constitution and reject illegal orders.

During Monday’s press conference, Leavitt blamed several specific people for political violence. First on her list was late-night comedian Jimmy Kimmel, who has long been a target of the Trump administration because of jokes critical of the president.

On Monday, Trump called for Kimmel to be fired over a mock White House Correspondents’ Dinner skit last week in which he said that first lady Melania Trump had “a glow like an expectant widow.”

Kimmel made the joke days before the gunman attempted to enter the event.

“Jimmy Kimmel should be immediately fired by Disney and ABC,” Trump said.

In addition to Kimmel, Leavitt claimed that several elected Democrats’ recent criticisms of the Trump administration amounted to calls for violence. Those she named included House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (N.Y.), Sen. Adam Schiff (Calif.) and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker — all of whom have long been targeted by Trump.

Jeffries, Schiff, Pritzker and several of the other Democrats Leavitt listed denounced political violence after the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting.

Leavitt’s comments echoed claims made by the president, members of the Trump administration and prominent figures on the right after the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk in September.

After Kirk’s death, Trump said he “couldn’t care less” about extremism originating from the right while heaping blame on the left.

The shooting Saturday marked the third major assassination attempt against Trump, following an attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July 2024 and another in Florida in September 2024.

On Monday, the suspect in the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting, identified as Cole Tomas Allen, was charged with attempting to assassinate the president, transporting a firearm and ammunition with the intent to commit a felony and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence.