Trump Returns To Whcd With Measured Tribute And Sharp Attacks After May Shooting

President Donald Trump initially appeared to return to White House Correspondents’ Dinner without much of the usual sharp hostility he directs toward the media, taking on a more measured tone in acknowledgment of the attack that postponed the event in May.

But his magnanimous tone didn’t last for long.

Trump began his remarks at the second WHCD dinner on Friday by commemorating the attempted shooting at the first iteration of the dinner and signaling, but quickly shifted toward targeting his usual targets — rival Democrats and the White House press corps, many of whom sat in the audience.

“What do we do here? Is this supposed to be fun? Am I supposed to be serious? Am I supposed to be a comedian?” Trump said. “Maybe a little bit of everything.”

The president began the speech by honoring the law enforcement officials who responded to the May attack, when shots were fired near the security screening area at the Washington Hilton, the dinner’s traditional venue.

He also thanked the journalists who attended the first dinner and the WHCA for organizing the second, much smaller dinner at the Waldorf Astoria in Washington.

“As I said three months ago, the show must go on,” he said.

But before long, Trump returned to his usual attacks on Democratic opponents, often the subjects of ridicule at his political rallies, and some of the journalists in attendance, drawing smatterings of applause from his Republican allies in attendance.

Friday’s remarks mark his first time speaking at the dinner after previously boycotting the event over frustration with media coverage of him. His absence bucked a tradition observed by decades of previous presidents, offering an opportunity for the president to make light-hearted remarks poking fun at the Washington press corps and other public officials.

Aside from the occasional joke at his own expense — or at the expense of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., in one case — Trump largely touted his accomplishments while demeaning his opponents. And in reflecting on the May shooting, Trump again reiterated the importance of constructing a ballroom at the White House, a controversial and costly project that has nevertheless occupied the president’s attention.

“It's White House correspondents, so I don't see any reason why you wouldn't be able to use that,” Trump said of holding future WHCDs in the White House ballroom. “It's going to be very large and very beautiful and very safe, and that's what you need.”

But despite the vindictive tone of much of the speech, Trump appeared to suggest he scaled his remarks back slightly in recognition of the occasion, even as he relished the opportunity to chastise the press.

“I could never have done the speech that I had ready just a short while. Oh, that was going to be a doozy. I was so psyched. I was going to rip people,” Trump said. “Something changed, and it's really for the better. But I just wouldn't want to do that.”

“But we'll do a little ripping if you don't mind,” he added.