After the White House Correspondents’ Dinner was abruptly cut short due to a gunman firing shots on Saturday night, the Washington Hilton was left with a lot of unserved food. So staffers there decided to do something good with all of it.
Weijia Jiang, White House Correspondents Association president and CBS News’ senior White House correspondent, revealed in a social media post Monday that the Hilton donated the approximately 2,600 dinners that had not been served.
“The Hilton donated the ~2600 dinners that went unserved at WHCD,” she posted on X. “They freeze dried the steak and lobster for longer shelf life before giving them to 2 shelters for abused women and children. HUGE thank you to the staff that worked through the night under terrible circumstances.”
As the event got underway Saturday night, shots were fired as a gunman, armed with multiple weapons, reportedly charged through a security checkpoint. He fired multiple shots before being subdued by authorities. He was later identified as Cole Tomas Allen, a 31-year-old teacher from Torrance, California. On Monday, Allen was charged with attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump.
In the aftermath of the event, Jiang released a statement, calling it a “harrowing moment.”
“Last night’s shooting at the Washington Hilton was a harrowing moment for everyone in attendance,” she wrote. “We express our deepest gratitude to the U.S. Secret Service and all law enforcement personnel who ensured the safety of everyone in the ballroom and beyond. Their actions protected thousands of guests, and we wish a full and speedy recovery to the officer who was injured in the line of duty. We are grateful everyone in attendance was unharmed, including the president, the first lady and the vice president.”
Trump appeared on CBS News’ 60 Minutes on Sunday night, calling for the event to be rescheduled within 30 days.
