Stephen A. Smith calls for heated political discourse after WHCD security scare
Reporter Stephen A. Smith attends ESPN First Take at Clark Atlanta University and Morehouse College in Atlanta, Ga., on Nov. 8, 2024. (Paras Griffin/Getty Images)
Stephen A. Smith expected a typical night at the Correspondents’ Dinner at the White House. The black tie event was not, as it turned into a moment of real fear.
The ESPN host was inside the Washington Hilton on Saturday night when gunfire outside the event caused panic throughout the house.
Ben Stiller’s three-word tweet about the Knicks drew fire after a White House security scare.
President Donald Trump posted a photo on social media showing law enforcement arresting Cole Thomas Allen following a shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington, DC, on April 25, 2026. (President Trump via Truth Social/Anadolu/Getty Images)
The gun used by Cole Thomas Allen, the suspect at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, is displayed before Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and others hold a news conference at the Justice Department on April 27, 2026. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call Inc)
The anti-Trump and anti-Christian gunman did not enter the ballroom and was stopped by security, but for a few tense seconds, no one inside knew it.
On his YouTube show on Monday, Smith described the uproar as guests sought to react without specifics.
“What scared the living hell out of everybody was to think for at least a few seconds that the room had been entered,” Smith said. “So we all had to go down. We went under the tables, under the chairs and all the other stuff.”
Stephen A. Smith talks about the shocking assassination attempt at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner. (Paras Griffin/Getty Images)
What was supposed to be a moment to unite against political violence turned into a political maneuver from the Left.
Smith also pushed back against the conspiracy theories that quickly surfaced online after the results.
“You have a lot of conspiracy theorists who say that this is all rigged,” he said. “As for me, people can have their opinions, their thinking and whatever, but it would be irresponsible for me or any journalist to reach that conclusion. We will not do that.”
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At the same time, he brought up the broader issue, the tense political atmosphere that surrounds moments like this.
“I’m sick and tired of us paying lip service to dialing down. Enough of that. Stop talking about it and do it,” Smith said. “Let’s discuss the policy without agreeing to grind people’s names and talk about people in an insulting and insulting way.”
The incident also raised concerns about the event itself…
The White House Correspondents’ Dinner is held in a hotel, not on the White House grounds.
Smith did not dismiss that criticism.
“A clock that doesn’t work is right twice a day. The president has a point,” he said. “Things like this should be on the grounds of the White House. It shouldn’t be in one of those crappy hotels in DC where everyone can walk in. It shouldn’t.”
The founder of OutKick, Clay Travis, who also attended the event, raised the alarm about what he saw as the continuation of security.
On X, Travis wrote, “Fourth and fifth assassination attempts are coming. The Secret Service is not good enough at their jobs. We need better.”
In the end, the threat did not reach the ballroom. But for a few seconds, uncertainty took over, and that was enough. Because in a room full of prominent people in communications and politics, no one knew if they were safe.
Send us your comments: alejandro.avila@outkick.com / Follow on X: @alejandroaveela
