Secret Service Director Sean Curran on Tuesday praised agents who prevented a gunman from crashing the White House Correspondents' Association dinner on Saturday night at the Washington Hilton.
Lawmakers, including House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., have called on the Secret Service to tighten its security protocols after the suspect, Cole Tomas Allen, 31, breached a checkpoint and tried to move toward the main ballroom before being stopped by law enforcement. The incident triggered a rapid evacuation of top officials.
"My agents did a good job," Curran told CBS News after meeting with Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability.
Allen, who was armed with guns and knives, is facing federal charges of attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump, transporting a firearm and ammunition in interstate commerce, and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence. His first court appearance was Monday, and he did not enter a plea.
Curran was asked whether the annual correspondents' dinner should be designated a National Special Security Event, which requires extensive federal coordination, like the State of the Union address or a presidential inauguration.
"We'll assess every event and see if that deserves the designation, but we'll do it by a case-by-case basis," Curran said.
Bill Gage, a 12-year Secret Service veteran and executive protection director for SafeHaven Security Group, told PBS on Monday that it was a "mistake" the event didn't have a higher security protocol, given that Trump and many in line for presidential succession, including Vice President JD Vance and Johnson, as well as other Cabinet members, were in attendance.
"This is a mistake probably that someone overlooked," Gage said. "I think we can all agree that there should have been some more procedures in place. One of the things that I talk about here is that the State of the Union, that happens every year. We have to ensure the continuity of operations or the continuity of our government to make sure our government can function, we have a leader. So, the service, they operate that program for the designated survivor.
"Why it wasn't done here, I don't know, but I think … moving forward you're going to see events like this that have all of the leadership and the members of the lines of succession in there. There's going to be probably a designated survivor."
Gage added the Secret Service's "protective sort of model" at the dinner "worked."
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.