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Man who kept eating salad during WHCA dinner shooting says he ‘wasn’t scared’
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One man who did not panic after shots were fired in the vicinity of the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner on Saturday was Michael Glantz. Glantz, an agent at the Creative Artists Agency, was captured on CNN calmly sitting at his table and eating salad in the aftermath of the shooting. Just after 8:30 p.m. EDT, an armed man charged a security checkpoint and exchanged shots with law enforcement officers. One Secret Service officer was struck but saved by a protective vest. As for why Glantz appeared undisturbed by the commotion, he gave one reason: “I’m a New Yorker.” “We live with sirens and activity happening all the time,” he told The New York Times on Sunday. “I wasn’t scared. There are hundreds of Secret Service agents hurtling themselves over tables and chairs, and I wanted to watch.” When shots were first fired on the floor above the ballroom, many guests ducked for cover under their tables. President Trump, Vice President Vance and other administration officials in attendance, meanwhile, were whisked away by law enforcement personnel. Glantz said that others asked him why he didn’t get on the floor. His explanation for that was also simple. “First of all, I have a bad back,” he told the Times. “I couldn’t get on the floor, and if I did get on the floor, they’d have to bring in people to get me off the floor. And No. 2, I’m a hygiene freak. There was no freaking way I was getting in my new tux on the dirty Hilton floor. It was not happening.” The suspect in the shooting, 31-year-old Cole Allen, was charged Monday with attempting to assassinate Trump, transporting a firearm or ammunition in interstate commerce with the intent to commit a felony and discharge of a firearm during a crime of violence. He did not enter a plea. Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
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