Trump Assassination Bid At Press Gala? How The Hilton Shooting Was Meant To Take Out US President And His Top Team | Explained
The White House has confirmed that the gunman who unleashed gunfire at the Washington Hilton Hotel was on a deadly mission to assassinate US President Donald Trump during the high-profile White House Correspondents' Association dinner on Saturday night.
- World News
- 5 min read
Washington DC: The White House has confirmed that the gunman who unleashed gunfire at the Washington Hilton Hotel was on a deadly mission to assassinate US President Donald Trump during the high-profile White House Correspondents' Association dinner on Saturday night.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt described the attacker as a “depraved crazy person,” revealing that the plot went far beyond the President. She revealed that the gunman aimed to take down as many top Trump administration officials as possible.
The shooter has been identified as 31-year-old Cole Allen, who called himself ‘Friendly Federal Assassin’ in a manifesto sent to his family just ten minutes before opening fire.
Who Were Cole Allen's Targets?
Cole Allen, in a dramatic manifesto written before he opened fire at the press meet, revealed that his targets were “administration officials” prioritized from highest-ranking to lowest. Notably, he excluded FBI chief Kash Patel from his target list.
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He added that he would target the US Secret Service agents “only if necessary, and to be incapacitated non-lethally if possible”. He also hoped that the Secret Service agents would be wearing body armours.
Further, he said that hotel security, Capitol Police and National Guards officials were not his targets, unless they shot at him.
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He classified hotel employees and guests as “not targets at all", adding, “I would still go through most everyone here to get to the targets if it were absolutely necessary (on the basis that most people *chose* to attend a speech by a pedophile, rapist, and traitor, and are thus complicit) but I really hope it doesn’t come to that.”
He further wrote, “In order to minimize casualties I will also be using buckshot rather than slugs (less penetration through walls)”
Cole Allen's Motive
Detailing the motive behind his action, Cole Allen wrote in the manifesto that he is a “citizen of the United States of America" and what his political representatives do, reflects on him.
He added that he was no longer willing to permit “a pedophile, rapist, and traitor to coat my hands with his crimes.” “Well, to be completely honest, I was no longer willing a long time ago, but this is the first real opportunity I’ve had to do something about it,” he further said.
Rebuttals To Objections
The shooter also gave rebuttals to the prospective objections people might have for his action.
He listed five points though which people might object and then gave his justifications as follows:
Objection 1: As a Christian, you should turn the other cheek.
Rebuttal: 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.
Objection 2: This is not a convenient time for you to do this.
Rebuttal: I need whoever thinks this way to take a couple minutes and realize that the world isn’t about them. Do you think that when I see someone raped or murdered or abused, I should walk on by because it would be “inconvenient” for people who aren’t the victim?
This was the best timing and chance of success I could come up with.
Objection 3: You didn’t get them all.
Rebuttal: Gotta start somewhere.
Objection 4: As a half-black, half-white person, you shouldn’t be the one doing this.
Rebuttal: I don’t see anyone else picking up the slack
Objection 5: Yield unto Caesar what is Caesar’s.
Rebuttal: The United States of America are ruled by the law, not by any one or several people. In so far as representatives and judges do not follow the law, no one is required to yield them anything so unlawfully ordered.
Who Is Cole Allen?
Allen, a part-time teacher and a self-employed game developer.
An unverified LinkedIn profile in the name of Cole Allen described him as a “mechanical engineer and computer scientist by degree, independent game developer by experience, teacher by birth.”
According to the profile, Cole Allen is said to have a bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from the California Institute of Technology, and a master's degree in Computer Science from California State University.
He is presently in police custody.
The Shooting
Shortly after the dinner began, the shooter tore through the security and opened fire. As the shots rang, Secret Service agents swiftly surrounded Trump and First Lady Melania Trump, who were seated at the front of the ballroom.
During the rapid evacuation, a panicked Trump tripped and momentarily fell down while being rushed off the stage. As many as six security agents were seen helping the President up from the ground and rushing him to a secure location.
Video from inside the ballroom captured at least five loud bangs before armed officers rushed in and escorted the president and others to safety. "Get down!" and "Stay down!" screams echoed throughout the room as guests, including high-ranking officials and journalists, ducked to avoid the bullets. Several were seen taking cover under tables to protect themselves.