President Donald Trump on Sunday morning said that First Lady Melania Trump is doing "doing great" and that he is "fine" after a shooting at the White House Correspondents' Dinner in Washington on Saturday evening.
During an interview with Fox News, the president was asked about his wife, who was seen sitting next to him during the event when shots rang out.
"She's doing great. I'm fine. And it was a very sad evening in many ways," Trump said.
Trump then noted that following the incident "it was also an evening where a lot of people got together."
"I saw some Democrats as we were leaving, and they were [previously] generally hostile. And last night they were waving to me and politicians, congressmen, senators, they were waving" and greeting him, he added.
"So there was something very nice" that "the place was just coming together," the president said. "Was very nice to see, actually."
Law enforcement officials said that the suspected shooter attempted to storm the ballroom of the event before he was tackled to the ground by security personnel. One officer was shot, but survived because of his bulletproof vest, Trump said on Saturday evening.
A White House official confirmed to The Epoch Times that the suspect was identified as Cole Allen from Torrance, California.
Allen is believed to have traveled from Los Angeles to Chicago and then to Washington by train, Blanche said.
In the Fox News interview Trump again suggested that there is a need for a secure ballroom at the White House, as courts have partially held up construction of the facility.
"As you know, we're building a big, beautiful, very, very secure ballroom in every way, with massive bulletproof glass. It's almost four inches thick. It's pretty amazing stuff," the president said on Sunday. "This is mostly for future presidents. And we're actually ahead of schedule, and we're right on budget."
The shooting at the dinner's security barricades occurred at around 8:40 p.m. The Secret Service and other authorities swarmed the room as guests ducked under tables.
Gasps echoed through the ballroom as guests realized something was happening. Hundreds of journalists immediately got on phones to call in information.
Video footage that was uploaded online showed Trump, the first lady, Vice President JD Vance, and Cabinet-level administration officials being rushed out of the room as some hunkered down.
During a Saturday evening press briefing at the White House after the incident, Trump suggested that his personal politics had made him a repeated target, but he also called for unity and bipartisan healing in an increasingly violent world. The incident appeared to be a third attempt on his life in less than two years.
“It’s always shocking when something like this happens. Happened to me, a little bit. And that never changes,” Trump told reporters.