I heard the news of the shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shortly after it happened – hot off the press, as it were. First I saw photos of Trump, then Vance, and I thought “Oh wow; Vance was there too.” Almost immediately after that I saw a photo of Rubio, and thought with growing alarm: “Rubio too?”

So right at the outset I wondered how many people in the line of succession were there at once, and I found this:

At least twelve of the cabinet officers at the top of the line of succession for the presidency were reportedly in attendance at the 2026 White House Correspondents Dinner when shots rang out and President Trump was rushed from the stage.

The line of succession refers to who becomes responsible for carrying out the duties of the office of the president if the president is no longer able to serve. …

The line of succession is listed below along with the name of who currently holds the position and whether it is known if they were in attendance at the dinner.

1. Vice President – JD Vance – Was in attendance

2. Speaker of the House – Mike Johnson – Was in attendance

3. President Pro Tempore of the Senate – Chuck Grassley – Unknown

4. Secretary of State – Marco Rubio – Was in attendance

5. Secretary of the Treasury – Scott Bessent – Was in attendance

6. Secretary of Defense – Pete Hegseth – Was in attendance

7. Attorney General – Todd Blanche (acting) – Was in attendance

8. Secretary of the Interior – Doug Burgum – Was in attendance

9. Secretary of Agriculture – Brooke Rollins – Unknown

10. Secretary of Commerce – Howard Lutnick – Unknown

11. Secretary of Labor – Keith Sonderling (acting)- Unknown

12. Secretary of Health and Human Services – Robert Kennedy Jr. – Was in attendance

13. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development – Scott Turner – Unknown

14. Secretary of Transportation – Sean Duffy – Was in attendance
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15. Secretary of Energy – Chris Wright – Was in attendance

16. Secretary of Education – Linda McMahon – Was in attendance

17. Secretary of Veterans Affairs – Douglas Collins – Unknown

18. Secretary of Homeland Security – Markwayne Mullin – Was in Attendance

So, had the shooter been far more successful, we might have had a 92-year-old President Grassley.

Fortunately no one was hurt and the incident will be only a footnote. But the attendance of so many high officials at one venue – particularly one that is public – dictated an extremely high level of security that was not met. This wasn’t business-as-usual even for a presidential appearance; this was of a higher level even than that.

When I say the security level was not met for such an event, I’m also relying on eyewitnesses. I’ve read several eyewitness accounts that very much agree with this one from attendee Stephen Moore, who is an economist:

I had anticipated a very long security line and about an hour wait to enter the hotel. I brought my paper ticket and my passport identification.

To my surprise the security was lax, to put it lightly. Wearing my tux, I walked in the front door by flashing the paper ticket. There was no code to be scanned and I never once was asked for my ID.

The room was packed at 7pm when President Trump entered to shallow applause. What shocked me was that, after the National Anthem and military color guard, Trump and the First Lady sat for dinner front and center in front of 2500 people. That didn’t strike me as safe or advisable. For a sniper, God forbid, it seemed he was a sitting duck.

It also struck me that the President, the VP and Speaker of the House Mike Johnson were all in attendance. I am told five of the six in succession to the presidency were there. …

Trump was right in praising the agents on site were amazing in keeping us safe and restoring order.

But this was clearly a major security breakdown on multiple levels. It was easier to get into the Hilton to see the president and to get 30 feet from him than to attend a Wizards basketball game down the street.

As I said, I’ve read very similar observations from others. I’ll also add something I’ve written before, which is that for quite a while after 9/11, when I stayed in hotels in a few big cities, there were stringent ID checks and metal detectors going in or out and only one or two entrances were even open. These were ordinary large hotels with no special functions going on.

The WH Correspondents’ Dinner was a one-night event, but it’s also obvious that anyone wanting to attack might come there earlier to check in. So the security would need not to just be the day of, but at least a day or two earlier. Obviously, security can’t be perfect and it’s a judgment call when the enhanced security would begin. But I continue to believe that some very obvious precautions were not taken, considering the unusual nature of the get-together.

In previous years, of course, it had occurred without incident. But Trump had never attended as president during his first term, and it is Trump and his aides who are targets even more than previous administrations. That is obvious.