White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt is delaying her previously scheduled maternity leave to brief reporters on Monday on the fallout after an alleged gunman attempted to target President Donald Trump at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner over the weekend.
Leavitt, who is pregnant with her second child, announced on X that she would hold a press briefing on Monday afternoon.
I will hold a Press Briefing at 1PM ET today.
— Karoline Leavitt (@PressSec) April 27, 2026
The press secretary had told reporters last Friday that she had likely held her last gaggle before preparing to give birth.
“On a personal matter, this will likely be my last gaggle for some time,” Leavitt said Friday afternoon. “As you can see, I’m about ready to have a baby any minute, so I will see you guys very soon.”
But the shocking events at the WHCD upended Leavitt’s plans.
The alleged suspect, Cole Allen, shot a Secret Service agent in the lobby of the Washington Hilton on Saturday night before he was apprehended and taken into custody. The agent was shot in his protective vest and was not seriously injured.
Trump, first lady Melania Trump, Vice President JD Vance, Leavitt, and several Cabinet members were inside the hotel ballroom where more than 2,000 guests had gathered for the annual dinner.
The event was eventually canceled before Trump held an impromptu conference at the White House with journalists and members of his Cabinet gathered in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room.
The president has vowed to reschedule the dinner within 30 days.
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White House chief of staff Susie Wiles is expected to hold a meeting on security protocols with the Secret Service, White House operations team, and Department of Homeland Security leadership in light of the shooting.
Leavitt cut short a previous maternity leave after the birth of her son, Niko, with husband Nicholas Riccio, in 2024, due to an attempted assassination of Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania.