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TRANSCRIPT
The gunman behind an apparent assassination attempt is expected to be formally charged in court today - after he stormed the White House Correspondents Press Dinner over the weekend.
Cole Tomas Allen was tackled and hogtied before he entered the ballroom in the Washington Hilton Hotel which was packed with journalists, administration officials, and the U-S President.
U-S Donald Trump has provided details about a manifesto authorities are reviewing as investigations continue.
"And the guy is a sick guy. When you read his manifesto, he hates Christians. That's one thing for sure. He hates Christians, a hatred. And I think his sister or his brother actually was complaining about it. Yeah, they were. Even complaining to law enforcement, so he was a very troubled guy."
F-B-I Agents have assembled outside a home linked to the 31-year-old suspect in the Los Angeles suburb of Torrance, and reportedly interviewed members of his immediate family.
Allen worked part-time as a teacher for a tutoring company, and graduated with a mechanical engineering degree, according to a LinkedIn profile appearing to match his details.
He allegedly stormed a security barricade carrying multiple guns and knives, and authorities have said they believe he was acting alone.
Residents of the community where Allen lived, like Courtney Ramiro, says she couldn't believe the news when she heard it.
“This suspect was pretty much in the community and in our daily lives. My brother in law went to the same college as when he did exactly around the same time. Again, our daughter does physical or speech therapy this week. Next to it is where he was teaching at the educational centre. And again, just, it's just so unreal to know that this is right here down the street.”
One secret services officer was lightly wounded after being shot in a bullet-proof vest during the alleged attack.
Donald and Melania Trump, Vice-President J-D Vance, and other cabinet members were evacuated unscathed.
Acting U-S Attorney General Todd Blanche has confirmed President Trump appeared to be Allen's target.
"We have preliminary work into some of his electronic devices and talking to some of us individuals who knew him. And based upon that work, I want to be careful not to say something that ends up not being true, because like I said, this is 12-hours old. But it does appear that he did, in fact, have, set out to target folks that work in the administration, likely including the president. But I want to wait and not get ahead of us on that."
Media in the US have reported a nearly 1,000 word note written by Allen identifies abuse of immigrants in detention camps and the killing of civilians overseas as key grievances.
But the incident has raised renewed questions about security for top officials, particularly as King Charles prepares to visit.
Mr Trump has praised the response from security services, and says the royal trip will go ahead.
"That's a good question. First of all, King Charles is coming and he's a great guy and we look forward to it."
A spokesperson for Buckingham Palace has said King Charles is greatly relieved nobody was hurt in the security breach.
Other world leaders, including Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese have expressed similar sentiments.
After two previous assassination attempts, Mr Trump was quick to frame the incident to his political advantage.
"It's always shocking when something like this happens. It's happened to me a little bit. But when you're impactful, they go after you. When you're not impactful, they leave you alone."
He says the incident proves it's necessary to demolish the East Wing of the White house and build an enormous and controversial ballroom.
"I will say, you know, it's not a particularly secure building, and I didn't want to say this, but this is why we have to have all of the attributes of what we're planning at the White House. It's actually a larger room, and it's much more secure. It's got, it's drone proof, it's bulletproof glass - we need the ballroom."
The legality of that project has been caught up in a lawsuit brought by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
Now, the Department of Justice has renewed its calls for the lawsuit to be dropped.
