Seething Karoline Leavitt blames Democrats for 'inspiring violence' against Trump as she slams conspiracies

By JON MICHAEL RAASCH, US POLITICAL REPORTER Published: 18:51, 27 April 2026 | Updated: 18:51, 27 April 2026 The manifesto of White House Correspondents' Dinner gunman Cole Thomas Allen is no different from popular Democratic talking points, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Monday. Leavitt, 28, who was supposed to be out on maternity leave this week, returned to the White House Briefing Room's podium to field questions about the stunning shooting on Saturday. The President's spokeswoman read a long list of Democratic lawmakers' posts in which they allude to violence as a practical solution to solve the issue of Donald Trump.  That rhetoric, she said, is responsible for radicalizing individuals to lash out at the President.   'This political violence stems from a systemic demonization of him and his supporters by commentators, yes, by elected members of the Democrat Party and even some in the media,' she declared, condemning the hostile language about Trump.   'This hateful and constant and violent rhetoric directed at President Trump, day after day after day for 11 years, has helped to legitimize this violence and bring us to this dark moment.' 'When you have people in positions of power that are saying things like this every single day for years, you are inspiring violence by people who are already mentally ill.' Allen, 31, a California resident, trained from his home to Washington, DC, to carry out the shooting. He left behind a manifesto that stated he wanted to harm Trump and Cabinet members.   Leavitt, 28, who was supposed to be on maternity this week, returned to the podium to condemn Democrats and the media for pushing violent rhetoric that she claims inspired the Saturday shooting at the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner Leavitt was seated next to First Lady Melania Trump at the dinner. The pair, the President and Vice President, were quickly shepherded to safety behind the stage by Secret Service agents Cole Thomas Allen, 31, a California resident, trained from his home to Washington, DC, to carry out the shooting According to a manifesto he sent to family members moments before his planned attack, Allen was attempting to take out the President and members of his inner circle. According to the New York Post, the note said: 'Turning the other cheek is for when you yourself are oppressed. I'm not the person raped in a detention camp. I'm not the fisherman executed without trial.' 'I'm not a schoolkid blown up or a child starved or a teenage girl abused by the many criminals in this administration. Turning the other cheek when *someone else* is oppressed is not Christian behavior; it is complicity in the oppressor's crimes.' Leavitt noted that the manifesto is 'no different' from what many reports in the media and many Democratic lawmakers have stated publicly about Trump.  'When you read the Manifesto of the shooter, ask yourselves, how different is the rhetoric from this almost assassin than what you read on social media and hear in various forums every single day,' Leavitt said.  'The answer, to be honest with yourself, is that there is no difference at all. Much of the Manifesto of the would-be assassin is indistinguishable from the words that we hear daily.' This is a breaking news story and will continue to be updated.  The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.