Dana White says the shooting of White House correspondents was ‘amazing’
UFC President and CEO Dana White recently said this USA today that he thought experiencing the shooting in person at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday night was “damn amazing.”
“All of a sudden it started getting loud. Tables were being turned over, guys were running in with guns and they were yelling, ‘Get down!'” recalled White, who was present at the dinner. “I didn’t come down. It was fucking amazing, and I literally loved every minute of it. It was a pretty crazy, unique experience.”
White said he was “sitting right across from the president” when the Secret Service burst in. He added: “No one was tackled, but guys came in looking for the shooter. And they came up to our table. I thought the shooter was with us or something.”
The 2026 White House Correspondents’ Dinner, which took place in the ballroom of the Washington Hilton Hotel, had to end early after gunshots were heard from outside the event. President Donald Trump, First Lady Melania Trump and government officials were quickly evacuated from the event as the shooter was tackled by law enforcement officers on another floor of the venue.
Trump held a press conference on Saturday in the wake of the shooting, vowing to reschedule the WHCD within 30 days.
“We’re going to do it again,” Trump said. “We’re not going to let anyone take over our society. We’re not going to cancel things because we can’t do that.”
On Sunday morning, Weijia Jiang, president of the White House Correspondents Association and senior correspondent for CBS News, issued a statement on social media. She wrote: “I know many of you are still processing what happened last night. Thank you to the USSS and all law enforcement agencies who kept us safe. We are so grateful. To the members of the WHCA, we will get through this together…. We express our deepest gratitude to the United States Secret Service and all law enforcement personnel who ensured the safety of everyone in the ballroom and beyond. Their actions protected thousands of guests, and we wish a full and speedy recovery to the officer who during was injured during his service. We are grateful to everyone present, including the President, First Lady and Vice President.
Trump will appear on “60 Minutes” Sunday night for an interview with CBS News’ Norah O’Donnell about the shooting.
