The White House power play post-dinner shooting: do what we say or else

Less than 72 hours after a man was arrested for trying to assassinate Donald Trump at the White House, the justice department rushed to court to make an extraordinary filing.

The subject of the emergency was a lawsuit by the National Trust for Historic Preservation seeking to halt the construction of a new White House ballroom. A federal judge ruled earlier this month that construction had to stop, though an appeals court later paused that ruling.

Filled with vitriolic language, the purpose of DoJ’s Monday filing was to make clear that the failed assassination attempt only strengthened the administration’s argument for why a new ballroom was needed. “Saturday’s narrow miss – which marks the third assassination attempt on President Trump since 2024 – confirms what should have already been obvious: presidents need a secure space for large events, that currently does not exist in Washington DC, and this court’s injunction stalling this project cannot defensibly continue, for the sake of the safety of President Trump, future presidents, and their families, cabinets, and staff.”

The episode was one of several this week that underscores how the Trump administration is willing to quickly capitalize on cases of violence to pursue its political goals. The administration deployed a similar approach after the killing of Charlie Kirk last year. In the aftermath of Kirk’s death, the Trump administration pledged to crack down on “antifa” and other leftwing groups, even as the motive for the shooting remained unclear.

This week, following DoJ’s filing in the ballroom case, Todd Blanche, the acting attorney general, stood at a lectern at justice department headquarters to make another announcement regarding the president’s safety. A grand jury in North Carolina had indicted former FBI director James Comey with threatening Trump.

The charges stemmed from a picture he posted on Instagram last year of sea shells arranged in the beach that said “86 47” (86 is often used as shorthand to get rid of something). The post was deleted and Comey apologized, saying he was not aware that 86 could convey violent intent. After nearly a year of investigating, the justice department chose to unveil the charges in the days after the incident at the White House correspondent’s dinner.

“In a democracy, being critical of a leader does not get you thrown in jail. James Comey’s latest indictment is yet another example of President Trump abusing his power to target his perceived political opponents,” Mike Zamore, the national director of policy and government affairs at the ACLU, said in a statement. “The Trump administration has made it clear time and again: appease the president or you will face the wrath of the federal government.”