White House Correspondent's Dinner

Reporters have organized an annual White House Correspondent's Dinner since 1921.^[1] Calvin Coolidge was the first President to attend the dinner.

All Presidents have attended the dinner, since then, with the exception of Donald Trump.^[1] By tradition, a comedian mocks the President, who accepts that mockery, to show they have a sense of humor.

Trump declined to attend the dinner every year of his first term, and declined to attend the dinner in 2025, the first year of his second term.^[1] Trump did show up for the 2026 dinner, but the dinner was disrupted by a shooting.

References

↑ ^1.0 ^1.1 ^1.2 David Smith; Rachel Leingang; Kira Lerner (2026-04-26). "Person in custody after Trump evacuated in shooting incident at White House correspondents' dinner". The Guardian. Retrieved 2026-04-25. Trump agreed to attend this year’s dinner after refusing to attend last year and during his first term. The correspondents’ dinner tradition began in 1921, though the tradition of a presidential guest started in 1924, when Calvin Coolidge attended.

[theguardian2026-04-26-1] 1.0 ^1.1 ^1.2 David Smith; Rachel Leingang; Kira Lerner (2026-04-26). "Person in custody after Trump evacuated in shooting incident at White House correspondents' dinner". The Guardian. Retrieved 2026-04-25. Trump agreed to attend this year’s dinner after refusing to attend last year and during his first term. The correspondents’ dinner tradition began in 1921, though the tradition of a presidential guest started in 1924, when Calvin Coolidge attended.

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