- Donald Trump described individuals who believe the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting was staged as “sick,” noting there is also “a lot of con in there.”
- The incident occurred Saturday night at the Washington Hilton, prompting immediate online speculation that the shooting was staged, with the term appearing in over 300,000 posts on X by Sunday.
- Speaking on CBS News’ 60 Minutes, Trump initially stated he had not heard the online speculation but then dismissed the theories as a “tough sell,” drawing parallels to false claims about historical events like World War II and the Holocaust.
- Professor Cliff Lampe from the University of Michigan explained that people often seek confirmatory information rather than good information, contributing to the spread of conspiracy theories online.
- Cole Tomas Allen was arrested in connection with the shooting, charged with using a firearm during a violent crime and assaulting a federal officer, with his arraignment scheduled for Monday.
IN FULL