I don't know all the details, but something that struck me as odd was the fact that this was the first WHC dinner that Trump was going to, famously being too cowardly to go to the others for fear of being mocked. Why go to this one, when his approval rating is in the toilet?

Because we’ve been trained by the republicans to prepare for a distraction when the current news is bad.

All of the republican news is really bad right now. They’ve flip-flopped on wars with various countries and the Epstein files a few times already. Even thrown out some UFO stuff. Nothing is working though because gas prices are high and there’s no easy and clean way out of the quagmire the GOP is currently in.

Trump was seen as having an electoral boost after the Pennsylvania shooting.

Trump is in a deep hole with the electorate over the Epstein files, the economy, the Iran war, and support of the genocidal Israeli regime

Trump has used very blatant & underhanded tactics in the past, from the 2020 electoral certification Coup attempt, and the recent doordash PR stunt.

There will always be some amount of people who will not accept things at face value, but with Trump, experience has shown that waiting for evidence before believing what the administration is saying is a wise move.

TL;DR: a lot of sketchy crap happens in this administration and people think anything that might turn out well for Trump's voter polls is manufactured

"I’m seeing a bunch of posts insinuating" - I think we're well past insinuating. Straight out declaring would be more accurate now. The man has no credibility left. No one trusts him with the truth, their money or their daughters. If I was a betting man I'd say his foreign handlers are already lining up the next candidate for the world stage. You can also tell, by the way, that none of the big media channels are buying it either. All you need to do is compare their coverage now with at the coverage of the assassination attempts of previous presidents. When Reagan got shot the whole world stopped to look. It was literally everywhere. This, so called, "attempt" was a small front page story that will be gone in a couple of days. The mid terms are coming. I expect more and more panicked moves between now and November.

Trump's whole term in office has been difficult to follow. What's going on now? What's the truth and what isn't? Politicians lie, but trump is the best at misinformation.

The thing is that we don't know, but because of the environment his administration has created, you have to doubt everything he says and be skeptical of every event they're involved in.

The conspiratorial culture of the far right is infecting every aspect of his administration. At this point it doesn't really matter what's true and what's fabricated, so long as it can be spun into a media event to feed his ego.

I need to take a break from the Internet.

It's the kind of thing he would do. Putin does it all of the time, and you know how Trump feels about him. One time Putin staged a takeover of a theater, and then gassed the theater. With hundreds of innocent members of the public inside. They got dragged across the ground and stacked up in public busses to be taken to the hospital. Over 100 died. They refused to publish the actual total. For a press op.

Because the fact of the matter is, his PA 'attempt' stinks to high heaven. USSS broke numerous protocols with that incident, and you literally see people coordinating and 'directing' his fight fight fight shot.

Once is happenstance,. twice is a coincidence, and three is a pattern.

He's had three of these incidents if you include the bushes in Mar A Lago dude. And what happened here? Did we have congressional reports detailing these events, the places they took place, suspect motivations, and the data broken down for everyone to see what went wrong?

No. We didn't have anything of the sort.

We will not for this one either. Because this likely is more theatrics from a historically unpopular administration.

Probs coz of the weird footage by some people. Guests sitting there still eating, others grabbing bottles, people smiling and chatting afterwards. People also are assuming that each attempt on his life was so bad that it felt staged (the way his ear looked after the first one, how incompetent the shooters were etc, theres lots of things flying around in comments). And then there's the lack of sympathy for Trump so most people would want any reason to keep hating him.

Whether this was staged or not is up for debate, but calling this guy a shooter is misinformation. Show me where this guy fired any shots. The officer that was shot in his bullet proof vest was hit by friendly fire, all shots fired were by law enforcement. If I'm wrong direct me to where there's creditable evidence that says otherwise.

The response was too canned and uniform. There's no fact finding, no actual concern for what happened here its all just rhetoric aimed at curtailng free speech. Add in the FBI director weighing in way too early and it all points to a setup.

There's a real possibility the guy that did the shooting is the target of an FBI entrapment scheme or something similar.

Who made millions off the Polymarket bet that Trump would have an assassination attempt again?

The quote I saw elsewhere that summed it up best for me is, "even if it's real, it's still fake".

The whole thing was just a bit too rubbish, like, if you were going to try shooting the President, the events as report seem like such an obviously useless way to go about it that there's got to be something else going on.

My favourite conspiracy theory is that it's their way of getting an already-sympathetic White House press corps to feel like they're part of the whole thing, that attacks on the President are also attacks on them personally - trying to create a feeling that they and Trump are all trauma survivors who are in it together.

Forgive me if some of the details are a little off, happy to be corrected, but:

• the first attempt during the campaign was almost certainly fake.
• barbie lady said something about "shots fired" a few hours before the incident, as though she had misunderstood something in the group chat.
• last week a judge said the only basis on which Trump could build the Ballroom was over security concerns.
• moments after the incident Trump said that they need the Ballroom because of security concerns at the WH.
• the photos do look pathetically staged, although the videos less-so.

Because this was Trump's reaction to the gunshots.

He knew. Melenomia didn't.

Also, here you can see Trump hiding behind a curtain, reveling in his kayfabe.

He would have been removed from the area by the Secret Service if there was an actual threat.

I think it's just because the PA event was so obviously faked, his handlers have proven they are willing to use a fake attempt to gain favor and he seems to be very unfavorable right now.

It's a lack of trust in institutions on full display. Rather it was faked or not doesn't matter, no one would put it past the antics of this administration and no one trusts the narrative or the investigators. It doesn't matter who comes out or what they say. Once the trust is broken we're cooked and every event will turn into conspiracy time.

Mainly because he's using it as an excuse to imply he needs his stupid ballroom because of national security.

• It came on the heels of a court case that said Trump could only build his ballroom if there was a legitimate security concern (and all the right wing media had posts ready for ballroom support)
• He (Trump) had never attended before now
• The response from the SS seemed... lacklustre at best.
• Karoline Leavitt said that everyone should watch because there would be shots fired.
• He (the shooter) was entirely ineffectual.
• Right wing women are so botox'ed that no one could see them being upset; right wing men were standing behind their wives.

Personally... fake is not exactly the answer, but it's oh so convenient, and given that people were sending in tips about him before this, I suspect that if they hadn't wanted this to happen, they'd have done security normally and he'd have been removed from the premises before he shot. But maybe I'm just underestimating how bad the US government's security has become since they fired so many people.

Because it is so convenient. He's way down in the polls with no chance of recovery. He needs an excuse for martial law to keep the elections from happening. He is so unfit to speak and be seen publicly that they need an excuse why he can't be out in public. And, it worked last time to get him elected. Although this time I don't think they killed an spectator.

I trust Trump to do whatever makes him have more wealth and power and its easy to see how he would use this to claw at both.

I was watching the Minnesota Denver game when they interrupted the game to show the WHCD. It didn't seem like there were shots fired. Everyone in the crowd seemed a little concerned but not like they had heard gunshots. So it seems unlikely that gunshots were fired.

Trumps team is so full of shit that it doesn't feel crazy to think they would stage assassination attempts in order to garner some kind of support.

The actual reason, which no one seems willing to admit, is because it's an easier narrative to weaponise against Trump and MAGA. "Yes we are really trying to kill your hero but keep failing" is kind of hard to use in an internet flame war, but "you guys know he's just using this to distract from the Epstein files, right?" is a hook that can work on some Trump supporters, who are often very conspiratorial themselves and quite obsessed with the release of the Epstein stuff. In addition, there's this sort of cognitive dissonance going on here for many people who believe they are on the side of the moral and just, but also condemn violence (including political violence). They can't accept that people from "their side" might actually be trying to commit murder, so instead they look for explanations that can flip it back to the black and white narrative of "we are the good guys and they are the bad guys".

The same thing happened with the Brian Thompson and Charlie Kirk murders. Some people cannot cope with the reality that not everyone on "their side" lines up perfectly with their values, so instead they create and believe in a conspiracy theory that frames them as victims of a right-wing plot to damage their public reputation and imprison their members.

That 3 people in the US, a nation with a long history of extreme gun violence and political assassinations, may have attempted to assassinate the most divisive and dangerous president in the nation's history during a period of extremely toxic and violent political discourse is actually a very rational and logical explanation for the three attempted shootings. Unless your entire identity is bound to this stuff and you simply can't accept the above premise, there is really no reason to go looking for alternative conspiracies to explain what is happening.

There are a few videos out there that break down the... let's say questionable or highly suspicious series of coincidences that trail behind the shooting, as well as the kneejerk reaction from the right in response that raises some eyebrows, so I would say just go watch those. People are really latching onto flimsy evidence for this one. I haven't seen anything really convincing yet that would suggest that the government orchestrated a false flag attack, and I feel like this administration is too incompetent to be able to handle a covert operation of that nature without fumbling it badly.

I like to lean on the side of Occam's Razor and say that it's pretty likely that in a country with hundreds of millions of people and hundreds of millions of guns and a very publicly hated president, it's not that surprising that a few of those people have tried to kill him and got close enough to try. As far as security goes, yes it was a much lower security detail but the shooter was also apprehended at basically the first possible security checkpoint and Trump and the dinner guests were never in any danger. The security worked exactly as it should have.

speculating, it happened 2 other times with the same exact pattern. and almost no followup, also its always at a critical time when epstein files are being released, and plus the iran war, its going so badly that they arnt even showing the damage to US bases in the middle east.

also its almost always a right wing rando, hmm no LEFTIST so they can pin on them, thats why they dont blast this over the news 24/7, because right wingers are the mass shooters 100% of the time.

not only that the suspicious activity both before and during the shooting. like karoline leavitt foreshadowing a shooting hours before. the general non-chalant reaction by trump.

Doesn't matter whether it was real, or fake. Although, if it was real, then the Secret Service really fell down on the job. A very well-known venue, with all the time to prepare--what the fuck happened there? It could have been set up, without Trump, or the Secret Service knowing about it. The shooter might have had help from someone high up in the administration. So, not "fake", but not a "lone gunman", either.

All that matters is he missed.

Isn’t it weird that it leaked that this correspondents dinner was going to be all about revenge and then this happens?

Honestly, I could see someone showing up and trying to assassinate Trump for being a pedophile, but I could also see this admin faking something like this. Though, I suspect this was faked we’ll see the leaked signal chats sometime soon.

I don’t think it was fake.

I think they knew it (or something dramatic) was going to happen with plenty of warning and deliberately allowed it to play out for dramatic effect. That was unenthusiastic and unhurried securing of the leadership.

Just another episode of trump whatever show. Who cares. I stopped watching that series months ago. It just got too stupid

real one would have succeeded

This seems like an organized propaganda campaign to simply disrupt and people are falling for it.

It's likely not fake but Russia and China have official policies for spreading firehose of falsehoods whenever anything happens. They don't even have to invent anything just amplify enough for grifters and memers to take off from there.

We are so fucked and people have just given up on finding reality sadly.

Even journalists are losing it. 60 minutes doing interview immediately without any research or preparation or time for story to develop is peak nail in the coffin for our information landscape. It's literally the slow journalist group and they couldn't slow down. We didn't even need AI.

Fun Fact: The hotel shooter was 2 floors above the President when shots occurred. Orange Donnie was not in any danger.

My reason is that he read from a prepared statement shortly after the incident and that he used this as his reason to promote the unwanted ballroom that he seems so desperately to want. I could be wrong but, based on his moral character, I think it's a big fake.

I don't like the conspiracy theories going on here. If it were staged, why would the gunman be off-camera to fire the shots? Wouldn't we get more dramatic imagery? Everything in the footage seems awkward, not like tense danger. Trump doesn't even realize (not to mention react) when the shots are fired (which, btw, were in the hallway outside just in case this is how somebody learns that this happened) until 20 seconds after.

A society with an endless deluge of information increasingly known as "may contain distortions of reality" tends to make anyone lose their minds, one way or another.

At this point I've seen people spread this theory even if they don't really believe in it. It's ammunition in a propaganda war. It seems like it's needed.

Because it looked staged, dude never did one before, made a big stink about going, then suddenly a half naked man is there? Nah, fake as fuck. All of the attempts were fake so far.

When you repeatedly lie and act like an AH about some pretty major stuff, why would you expect people to believe ANYTHING you claim? 🤷‍♀️ Be more of a surprise if the guy ever spoke for 3 minutes without a single lie at this point lol

Because there's no reason to believe it's legitimate and every reason to believe it's fake.

There seems to be a coordinated effort to push this theory. I don't know if it's strictly Lemmy or if it's also on Facebook and Reddit as well.

It's hard to say exactly what they are trying to accomplish. Do they want to actually convince other people that it's a conspiracy, or do they want to give the impression that lots of people believe in a conspiracy? I couldn't say.

people are really stupid. they are really, really stupid. they can't imagine the simplest answer being the correct one. they have to think of something super complicated and unlikely and then insist on it being the correct explanation. there no reason anyone should think like this

There is some suggestion that google trends shows people in a controversial far away US ally were googling his name about 12 hours before he made his move.

I think it's because there was a series of coincidences and it's easy to believe.

Trump DID attend a previous dinner and was roasted but he wasn't president at the time. But he is well known for attacking anyone that doesn't praise him openly. So he hasn't traditionally attended because it hurts his little ego. It seems very suspect that the one time he does, he manages to avoid it after all.

Certain members of his staff, seemed to know the name of the attacker with ridiculous speed or even beforehand. (I have not seen time stamps on those).

Certain members of the press remarked on the unusually sparse security. Some even reportedly left because they felt uneasy.

A Fox News reporter seemed to be explaining how the husband of Caroline Leavitt was telling her in advance that she needed to "stay safe" when her audio suddenly and suspiciously cut out. I did listen to that.

The administration pretty quickly spun this as a reason to build TACO's ballroom. Therefore he would benefit from it.

It's easy to jump to this conclusion of these items are true. Personally I doubt it, but when I first heard about it, my first thought was, "How convenient." Let's say if actual proof surfaced I wouldn't be surprised.

Just sneak in a Javelin, I don't think it will miss

I hope it's just people running misinformation campaign to diminish any sympathy approval Trump might get out of it but reading the comments I'm not sure. Looks like at least some people really believe it.

The only thing I would like to know is where, according to the conspiracy theorists, do they keep getting the fake shooters from? Are they brainwashed MKUltra style? Are they Trump supporters willing to go to prison for Trump? Are they actual assassins but SS knows about their plans and is not stopping them on purpose?

The manifesto specifically excluded Kash from the people he considered targets within the admin. At the very least, the supposed manifesto seems pretty sus based on that alone. But that wouldn't imply the assassination attempt was fake (and even if it did, it could be interpreted as the FBI trying to take out trump and his administration rather than being done by Trump).

https://news.abolish.capital/post/45251

If for no other reason, his crooked mouthpiece gave a warning before the dinner that there was going to be a shooting.

I don't care, do you?

There's a very detailed American politics podcast here in Australia called PEP that covered the conspiracy theories in their most recent episode. I thought you might be interested in watching. The main section starts from here (I've timestamped the link for you), but there's also some earlier discussion about conspiracy theories as well as just the incident in general that also might be of interest/useful context.

Someone I know (who believes the previous one could have been staged) has suggested the opposite. They argue that, in the previous attempt, Trump raises his fist and isn't very scared, while in the most recent attempt, he looks quite scared and even trips.

I think there's not enough evidence to say that the previous attempt was staged (but there's a small chance it could have been), and it is very unlikely that this one is staged.

Because it seems like a him thing to do amd he's all about the "presentation" now, to bump up stock prices.

There will always be conspiracy theories for things like this. It's probably just the usual noise

Even people who hate Trump sometimes help him out by pretending that everything about him is 5D chess instead of just shit that happens.

because it makes people feel like they are smart to imagine an organized conspiracy.

rather than shit just being random occurrences.

Because US politics are so polarized now, MAGA types are now matched with conspiracy types that somehow think a sleepy 80 year old man with dementia is playing 4D chess with faked events.

I imagine this video doesn't help the this was real crowd: https://youtu.be/tw9R4E--I2c

There are a few signs of it I'll cover here.

Firstly, the "shooter". Dude was found to be a Zionist, and had an IDF shirt on. He wasn't the one who "shot" necessarily, because it happened to fit the numerology required to do this. (Proof of shooting being fake: https://gematrinator.com/blog/2026/04/26/shots-fired-at-white-house-correspondents-dinner-trump-ushered-out). Side note, dude is married to an Indian woman.

Secondly, this is the third fake assassination attempt. We know this pattern, because the first two were, indeed, fake, both of them being scripted. The first one saw Trump (or his stand-in) using either fake blood or a ketchup packet on his ear.

Thirdly, this was a Jesuit distraction from the US government making more moves towards mass surveillance of all Americans, no matter their religious, political, or philosophical standing. Another reason for it is because of the ballroom, which is actually a front for an AI data center in the White House (fun fact: the White House is named after a man with the surname of White, not by Roosevelt as many people proclaim wholesomely).

Because Non-MAGA isn't really smarter than MAGA.

People like to act like they are, but they're really not.

People are idiots.

The "jet fuel can't melt steel beams" people had babies, and some of them grew up to be progressives.