In April 2026, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt delayed her maternity leave following the shooting at the White House Correspondents Association Dinner, heaping praise on the “fearless” leadership of President Donald Trump and pointing the finger at the “left-wing cult of hatred” for political violence.
“Those who constantly falsely label and slander the president as a fascist, as a threat to democracy, and compare him to Hitler to score political points, are fueling this kind of violence,” Leavitt went on to tell reporters at the White House. “The left-wing cult of hatred against the president and all of those who support him and work for him has gotten multiple people hurt and killed, and it almost did so again this weekend.”
Leavitt then said that the White House had expected to spend the evening in a lively discussion on the essential topics of “speech and the First Amendment” with members of the press, but said “the night was hijacked by a crazed anti-Trump individual who traveled across the country to assassinate the president and as many administration officials as possible.”
The press secretary then thanked local law enforcement and the Secret Service for leaping into action, noting an agent was struck in the chest by a bullet, but was saved due to his bulletproof vest. Leavitt, who was seated next to President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump when the gunfire started, described him as being “calm amid the chaos,” according to a report from Fox News.
“President Trump is fearless because he loves this country, and he is willing to put his own life on the line to deliver on the promises that he made to the American public,” she stated. “And while we are blessed to have a fearless president, we should not live in a country where such constant fear of political violence permeates our society every single day. We can and we should have fierce disagreement in this country. ”
“As you all know, we disagree often – myself in this role and all of you in the news media – but those disagreements must remain peaceful,” she said. “Debating, peaceful protesting and voting are how we need to settle disagreements, not bullets.” Leavitt also brought up several examples of the twisted rhetoric of the left that has inspired the violence against both the president and other conservatives.
“Rep Hakeem Jeffrey just THIS MONTH said, ‘we are in an era of maximum warfare everywhere all the time.’ Governor Josh Shapiro said heads need to roll within the administration. Senator Alex Padilla said people are DYING because of fear and terror caused by the Trump administration,” she said. Leavitt also mentioned Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) accusing the president of making the U.S. look like a “fascist state.”
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She also called out Illinois Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker for saying, “Never before in my life have I called for mass protest disruptions. These Republicans cannot know a MOMENT of peace,” adding that these are “Democratic elected officials calling for WAR against the President of the United States and his supporters.”
Featured Image: screenshot from embedded video