Dana White stayed standing during White House dinner shooting
UFC CEO Dana White refused to hit the floor when armed agents stormed the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday after a shooter opened fire at the Washington Hilton.
White was seated one table away from President Trump when chaos erupted, per MMA Fighting. Tables flipped over, Secret Service agents rushed in with weapons drawn, and guests dove for cover. White stayed upright. “I didn’t get down,” he told USA Today. “It was f*cking awesome. I literally took every minute of it in. It was a pretty crazy, unique experience.”
Secret Service rushed Trump table after gunfire
White said agents converged on his section of the ballroom, leading him to believe the gunman might be nearby. “We were sitting right in front of the table, right in front of where the president was,” he said, according to MMA Mania. “Nobody got tackled, but guys came in looking for shooters and they came toward our table. I thought the shooter was over by us or something.”
The suspect, identified as 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen of Torrance, California, allegedly charged through a security checkpoint and opened fire. A police officer was shot at close range but survived thanks to a bulletproof vest, Trump said in a press conference. Allen was detained, and the officer was treated at a local hospital.
Trump praised the response time of law enforcement and said the event would be rescheduled. White attended as a guest of the president and was seated with representatives from Paramount Skydance, the UFC’s broadcast partner.
Original reporting:
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