John Hinckley Jr., the man who shot President Ronald Reagan in an unsuccessful assassination attempt in 1981, said officials should stop holding events at the Washington Hilton – the site where he shot Reagan – because it is “not a secure place.”
Speaking to TMZ, Hinckley – who attempted to kill Reagan roughly 45 years ago but was found not guilty by reason of insanity – said it was “spooky” to find out about the apparent assassination attempt on President Trump and other administration officials at the White House Correspondents Association (WHCA) dinner on Saturday night, as it “took place at the same hotel as mine did.”
While several others, including attendants of the dinner, have raised major concerns over the lack of sufficient security at the hotel, Hinckley said the space should stop holding events altogether “because bad things keep happening” and “it’s just not a secure place to hold big events,” per TMZ.
Hinckley, who remained in a mental hospital for decades and was freed unconditionally in 2022, drew parallels to his assassination attempt, telling the outlet that security was too “lax” back then as well, allowing him to blend in with reporters, remaining under the radar from Secret Security.
His remarks come just two days after Trump and other administration officials were rushed out of the Washington Hilton ballroom, after the gunman charged through a magnetometer and took a shot at a Secret Service agent, who was wearing a bulletproof vest.
VIDEO – Trump Rushed from White House Correspondents’ Dinner After Reported Shooting
Speaking after the attempted shooting spree, President Trump acknowledged that the Washington Hilton is “not a particularly secure building” and noted that this is another prime reason there should be a White House ballroom.
“We looked at all of the conditions that took place tonight, and I will say, it’s not a particularly secure building,” Trump said. “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,” Trump added, explaining that the ballroom would be “much more secure” and have “bullet-proof glass.”
The suspect has been identified as Cole Allen, a 31-year-old teacher at C2 Education. According to reports, he used an interior hotel staircase to bypass security. He also had a manifesto detailing his intentions and spouting his anti-Trump sentiments.
“I would still go through most everyone here to get to the targets if it were absolutely necessary (on the basis that most people *chose* to attend a speech by a pedophile, rapist, and traitor, and are thus complicit) but I really hope it doesn’t come to that,” he allegedly wrote.
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