Trump Is the First President in 36 Years to Skip White House Correspondents’ Dinner

Trump Is the First President in 36 Years to Skip White House Correspondents’ Dinner
President Donald Trump delivers brief remarks before a toast during the annual Governors' Dinner in the East Room of the White House in Washington on Feb. 26, 2017. Part of the National Governors Association's annual meeting in the nation's capital, the black tie dinner and ball is the first formal event the Trumps will host at the White House since moving in last month. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Jack Phillips
2/28/2017
Updated:
2/28/2017

President Donald Trump, in a “Fox & Friends” interview, says he won’t attend the White House Correspondents’ Dinner—but he’s not the first and probably won’t be the last.

“I just thought it would be better if I didn’t do the dinner. That doesn’t mean I’m not going to do it next year, but I just thought it would be better if I didn’t do it this year,” he said.

Starting in 1921, the White House Correspondents’ Dinner is a yearly tradition typically attended by the president and vice president. Celebrities, high-level journalists, and other politicians also attend the dinner. The dinner is usually hosted by a well-known comedian who roasts members of the media as well as the president.

“I have great respect for the press. I have great respect for reporters and the whole profession,” Trump added of the dinner, which will be held on April 29.

Ronald Reagan (White House Press Office)
Ronald Reagan (White House Press Office)

Former President Ronald Reagan declined to attend the dinner in 1981, according to the Reagan Library. His reason for not attending was because he was recovering from a gunshot wound sustained during an assassination attempt.

But he provided a few remarks. “If I could give you just one little bit of advice,” Reagan said, “when somebody tells you to get in a car quick, do it.”

Trump’s reason for not attending the dinner, however, is for markedly different reasons.

His no-show might be another sign of the growing enmity between him and the legacy news media, with the New York Times, Politico, BuzzFeed, and CNN claiming they were excluded from a White House press briefing, which the White House denied.

Trump has escalated his rhetoric since he took office in January, frequently claiming and tweeting that the media—particularly CNN—are purveyors of “fake news” (CNN was described as “very fake news” during his most recent press conference).

Meanwhile, Trump’s experience at a previous White House Correspondents’ Dinner may have influenced his decision.

The president was roasted at the 2011 White House Correspondents’ Dinner by both President Barack Obama and comedian Seth Myers.

“Donald Trump has been saying he'll run for president as a Republican, which is surprising as I just assumed he was running as a joke,” Myers said, while Obama criticized his lack of political experience. Video footage and screenshots showed Trump smiling, but he didn’t respond.

Some analysts have claimed the experience—namely the jokes made in Trump’s expense prompted him to make a serious run for president.

On “Fox & Friends,” Trump denied that he was still angry over the 2011 dinner.

“Well, I’ve taken it. You know, one of the great misconceptions—when President Obama was up … five years ago or whatever, I loved that evening. I had the greatest time,” he said during the Tuesday interview.

“I had the greatest time. Now, I can’t act like I’m thrilled because they’re telling jokes. I mean, he was telling jokes—I’m going to change the name of the White House to Trump House, and other things,” Trump added.

Jack Phillips is a breaking news reporter with 15 years experience who started as a local New York City reporter. Having joined The Epoch Times' news team in 2009, Jack was born and raised near Modesto in California's Central Valley. Follow him on X: https://twitter.com/jackphillips5
twitter
Related Topics