Gunman believed to be targeting Trump: Officials

The shooting suspect arrested at a Washington hotel appeared to have been targeting US President Donald Trump, according to US officials and a manifesto believed to have been written by the suspect.

"We have preliminary work into some of his electronic devices," said Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, "and talking to some of the individuals who knew him … it does appear that he did in fact have set out to target folks that work in the administration, likely including the president".

The suspect, Cole Tomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, California, was scheduled to appear in federal court in Washington on Monday, facing charges of using a firearm during a crime of violence and assault on a federal officer using a dangerous weapon.

Allen was apprehended inside the Washington Hilton hotel, just outside the room where Trump was meeting the national media during the White House Correspondents' Dinner.

Trump said on Sunday that the suspect had an anti-Christian manifesto and "a lot of hatred in his heart".

A thousand-word manifesto retrieved by authorities allegedly laid out plans for a mass shooting, mainly targeting the president, according to The Wall Street Journal, which reviewed the document.

It said that Allen wanted to target administration officials "prioritized from highest-ranking to lowest". It also said: "I would still go through most everyone here to get to the targets if it were absolutely necessary," adding, "I really hope it doesn't come to that".

The suspect had railed against Trump administration policies and referred to himself as a "Friendly Federal Assassin" in writings sent to family members minutes before the attack that authorities increasingly believe was politically motivated, according to a message reviewed by The Associated Press.

Trump survived a previous assassination attempt during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania in July 2024, and a few months later a man was arrested while pointing a rifle toward Trump as he was golfing in Florida.

Saturday's incident was a reminder of the rising political violence in the United States. Conservative political activist Charlie Kirk was shot dead at a rally in September, just months after the slaying of Democratic Minnesota state Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband and the wounding of a Minnesota state senator.

A Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted in the days following Kirk's murder found that US respondents believe increasingly harsh rhetoric surrounding politics is encouraging violence in the US.

Saturday's shooting appeared to prop up Trump's argument for a new ballroom at the White House.

"It's not particularly a secure building," Trump said of the Washington Hilton, about a 10-minute drive from the White House.

It was also the site of the 1981 assassination attempt against then-president Ronald Reagan.

Hundreds of agents were tasked with protecting the annual event, yet a suspect armed with a shotgun and other weapons managed to get to a floor above the ballroom where an extraordinary concentration of cabinet members, high-ranking lawmakers and celebrities were dining.