US President Donald Trump addressed the rescheduled White House Correspondents’ Association dinner on Friday evening. He wore a hat reading “Trump 2028” and joked about running for a fourth term in office. That declaration conflicts with the 22nd Amendment. The United States Constitution strictly limits presidents to two elected terms.
The annual gathering took place three months after its original date. Organizers canceled the spring gala following a shooting near a security checkpoint, an incident that cast a long shadow over Friday’s delayed proceedings.
Press Freedom and Political Insults
WHCA President Weijia Jiang opened the evening with a pointed address. She told the room that journalists would not be intimidated by violence. This directly referenced the April event cancellation due to a shooting and contextualized Weijia Jiang’s opening remarks on press freedom. Trump took the stage shortly after.
He then addressed his electoral history. “I won three times, now I’m going to do it again,” Trump said. This repeated his false claims regarding the 2020 election. The president then turned his attention to the crowd. He called the gathered journalists and attendees “Trump derangement syndrome people”. The event program verified Trump’s remarks about a fourth term, his mocking of Adam Schiff, and a performance by Oz Pearlman. This marks the first WHCA dinner successfully completed since the security threat forced the previous cancellation.