Trump thought sound of gunman at journalists’ dinner was tray falling

President says incident, in which Secret Service agent was saved by bulletproof vest, was ‘totally shocking to me’

• White House correspondents’ dinner shooting – follow live

Donald Trump said on Saturday night he initially thought that the sound of a gunman charging a security checkpoint at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner was a tray falling, in his first remarks about what was going through his mind as the incident unfolded.

“Actually, it was totally shocking to me, and that never changes,” Trump said, appearing to refer to the assassination attempt against him at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, and a second incident on his golf course in Florida during the 2024 presidential campaign.