Nebraska Rep. Mike Flood described the confusion and fear that unfolded Saturday night during the White House Correspondents’ Dinner after a shooting outside the event.
Flood said he was speaking with others at his table when he first heard what sounded like plates breaking.
“You know, you go to enough banquets, you feel terrible for the wait staff when something like that happens, and it was a lot of plates breaking,” Flood said during a Zoom call with reporters. “And I, I kind of looked around behind me just to see where it was. I was convinced it was like, just an accident with a bunch of dinner plates.”
He soon realized it was something far more serious.
“As I turned about back to the stage, I saw all the Secret Service agents rushing the vice president, the president, the first lady, and the president appeared to like have gone on the ground like he tripped or something, because then all of a sudden we saw these Secret Service agents, I assume, that were in full fatigues with really large assault rifles,” Flood said. “They had flashlights at the end of them that were pointing out towards the crowd. I was sitting next to the Secretary of the Army at the table next to me, and his detail came and whisked him away, and the Labor Secretary, who was sitting at my table. Well, they got him out of there so fast, I didn’t even notice he was gone.”
According to NPR, authorities arrested Cole Allen, a 31-year-old teacher and engineer from Torrance, California, after he allegedly fired shots outside the event while attempting to breach security. One law enforcement officer was injured and was reportedly shot in a bulletproof vest.
NPR also reported that Allen had written a “manifesto” targeting administration officials, and his brother alerted police in New London, Connecticut, about the document just minutes before the incident.
Flood was not the only member of Nebraska’s congressional delegation in attendance. Sen. Deb Fischer said in a social media post that she was also at the dinner and expressed gratitude that everyone remained safe.
“I’m grateful the President and all who attended are safe. Thank you to brave law enforcement and Secret Service for their quick response tonight. Praying for our country,” Fischer said.
Other members of the state’s delegation also responded online, offering praise for law enforcement, sharing prayers, and emphasizing the importance of national security. Sen. Pete Ricketts said the incident “serves as an important reminder that our homeland must be defended and the effort to do so fully funded.”
Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen noted that members of the Nebraska National Guard were part of the response.
“We can take special pride knowing that several of our Nebraska National Guard troops — who are already deployed to Washington for the DC Safe and Beautiful mission — were onsite during the attack and helped Secret Service and law enforcement respond and secure the scene after shots rang out,” Pillen said. “You can see them near the end of this video, running TOWARD danger to help neutralize a bad guy and protect others. I am beyond proud, and Nebraskans should be, too.”
Flood said he does not want to frame the incident as political.
“I’m just sad for our country having experienced that last night, and I do hope they are able to get it rescheduled, because the actions of one guy who’s obviously got some major issues, mental issues, should not derail the ability of our government to get together with the First Amendment free press and celebrate a night of ‘we’re all in this together,’ and that’s what was ruined last night,” Flood said. “And that’s not right, and it’s incumbent upon all of us, myself included, to treat people with respect, to be in charge of our own rhetoric in a way that finds solutions, bipartisan solutions, because last night was very bipartisan.”
President Donald Trump, who was attending the dinner for the first time during his presidencies, said he hopes to reschedule the event within the next month.
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