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Trump Safe After Shots Fired At White House Correspondents' Dinner; Suspect in Custody After Shots Fired At White House Correspondents' Dinner; Investigation Underway After Shots Fired At White House Correspondents' Dinner. Investigation Underway after Shots Fired at White House Correspondents' Dinner; Could GOP Lose House Majority after Redistricting Wars; Tomorrow King and Queen Arrive for U.S. Visit Amid Tensions. Aired 8-9a ET

Aired April 26, 2026 - 08:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[08:00:04]

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

MANU RAJU, CNN HOST: Good morning and welcome to INSIDE POLITICS SUNDAY. I'm Manu Raju.

Chaos overnight here in Washington after a suspect gunman charged through a security checkpoint outside the White House Correspondents' Dinner with President Trump, Vice President Vance and members of his cabinet inside, along with the Washington press corps.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)

RAJU: The 31-year-old suspect is now in custody and facing federal charges. Police say he was armed with a shotgun, handgun, gun and multiple knives. One Secret Service agent was shot in his protective gear, but is expected to recover.

President Trump was unharmed, and soon after addressed reporters in the White House briefing room.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Very unexpected. It comes with the territory. And if you want to do a great job, I really believe that you take a look at what's happened to some of our greatest presidents. And it doesn't happen to people that don't do anything.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: I'm joined now by CNN White House correspondent Alayna Treene.

Alayna, you were in the room along with me last night and so many others. You've been doing a lot of reporting from your sources overnight. What are you hearing from the White House about everything that transpired last night and how things are this morning? ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yeah. Look, obviously,

there is a lot that is going to need to be looked into about the security of the building.

RAJU: And whether it was adequate enough.

TREENE: Exactly. I mean, a lot of the same questions we heard about in the aftermath of the assassination attempt -- an assassination attempt in Butler. I've already heard some questions about whether they worked well to get him off the stage as quickly as they should have, but also mainly, I think, more about the security of the overall building. A lot of people, of course, very grateful and kind of lauding the work of them to apprehend the suspect so quickly outside.

But one thing that was interesting is I did end up going to the White House immediately after to go to that press conference with the president. He didn't seem that ruffled. And that is exactly what I've been hearing from my sources. I mean, I was messaging with them as soon as he was rushed off the stage, everyone saying that all of the cabinet members who were there, the vice president, obviously the president, were all safe.

But I was also, you know, afterward, he wasn't as ruffled by it. You know, especially for someone who has faced many different assassination attempts already. But one thing that was interesting is the first lady, Melania Trump, was there, and this was one of the first, if not the first, I think, incidents where she has been in a situation like this and the president even himself said last night that she was pretty trauma -- a little bit traumatized by it.

I've been picking that up in my conversations as well, that it has been hitting her hard, but they're all very obviously, I think after they got through the shock and the adrenaline of everything last night, there's a lot of questions that they still have and a lot of investigative work about, you know, how to present something like this again.

RAJU: How to and he wants to do this again in 30 days.

TREENE: I know. Yes. I mean, he wanted to come back out on stage. I remember that was part of why I wasn't sure whether or not to leave last night while trying to report all of this out, because the president was still at the hotel for a good maybe 30 minutes or so, maybe longer, I'm losing -- I was losing track of time while we were on the floor out there, but he wanted to come back on stage himself last night --

RAJU: Someone told me last night he was going to come back. Don't leave, he's coming back. But clearly security personnel --

TREENE: And that was the right call. I mean, everyone I was talking with, they were like, he wants to say there's no way they're going to let him.

RAJU: Right.

TREENE: But yeah.

RAJU: What do we know this morning about the suspect. We know that there's an investigation that's happening in LA. outside the suspects home. What are you hearing about that?

TREENE: Yeah. Look, I think and I was very grateful that we were able to see the president briefed so quickly. You had, you know, Kash Patel, the FBI director, many of the cabinet members, many of whom were at the dinner standing around with him.

And then we heard from the police, I think one is it does seem like he was a lone wolf. The president said that last night. Some of us were worried. It was maybe a little premature, but we did hear that reinforced by law enforcement.

And they're still trying to figure out the motive. Obviously, everyone's kind of assuming this was political in nature, given that this was a dinner with journalists and the president and his cabinet. But that's something they're still figuring out as the investigation continues. We're going to see the suspect in court on Monday. We heard from Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney, that he's -- these are the charges that he's currently facing, using a firearm during a crime of violence and assault on a federal officer using a dangerous weapon.

But I think there's still a lot more that needs to go into it. You know, they have heard of threats that perhaps he was issuing prior to this event. He had been staying at the hotel, which adds a different layer to all of this. So there's going to there's still a lot of questions that need to be answered.

RAJU: No question about it. And that's 31-year-old Cole Allen from California, as you can see there on your screen. Here's a suspect arrested. Well see him arraigned in court tomorrow.

[08:05:00]

Alayna, stick with stay -- stand by because were going to be with you back later in the show.

Joining me now on the phone is Republican Congressman Mike Lawler, who was also in the room last night.

Congressman Lawler, thanks for being with me.

You actually were sitting right next to me last night, along with your wife. I want to know what was going through your mind as the chaos unfolded. And what are the major questions you have right now for law enforcement?

REP. MIKE LAWLER (R-NY) (via telephone): Well, thanks for having me, Manu, and obviously glad that everyone ultimately was safe. And certainly, our prayers are with the Secret Service agent who was shot but, you know, seemingly will make a full recovery. And certainly, we hope that's the case.

But, you know, it was -- it was unnerving in part because my wife was there with me and so certainly wanted to make sure that, you know, she was safe. But moreover, there was just chaos and confusion. I mean, obviously we started hearing noises. I think a lot of, you know, plates started flying, and dropping on the floor. And that created a lot of confusion.

And then, you know, the Secret Service and federal agents and security details poured in, en mass. And, you know, they reacted very, very quickly, which we're grateful for and obviously got the president and the vice president and the cabinet secretaries and the speaker, out of the room relatively quickly.

And as you know, that room is packed. You can't move. So, the fact that they were able to get in and get everybody secure as quickly as they did, but, you know, frankly, what was unnerving is you didn't know if the shooter was in the room. And that, that I think caused a lot of confusion and concern. But look, I mean, I have a lot of questions.

Obviously, the fact that the shooter was seemingly staying at the hotel was able to get a gun to the lower level, multiple guns to the lower level, and, you know, how did he get past those first two levels? You needed a ticket to get down to that third level.

And so, you know, I think there's a lot of questions not just on motive, but in terms of the outer perimeter security, you know, when you -- the president said it last night about, you know, having a ballroom, part of the reason is you cant get on the White House grounds without photo ID and being verified on the list.

There was no photo ID required last night, and you didn't need to be on a list. You just needed to show a ticket.

RAJU: Yeah, I guess --

LAWLER: That to me is a big problem.

RAJU: And that's sort of my next question because I wonder how you found the security at the event. Was it insufficient, in your view?

LAWLER: Having attended a lot of events and certainly having attended events with the president and cabinet, woefully insufficient when you're talking about that many people getting into a room of that size. And, you know, obviously, given the fact that the shooter was able to get to that lower level.

Even -- and the Secret Service did their job when they encountered him and they were able to stop him and detain him. But it shouldn't even have come to that. He shouldn't have been anywhere in, in that vicinity to begin with.

And so, from my vantage point, you know, that's something that needs to be addressed. I mean, I hold public events all the time, town hall meetings. We have photo ID, you have to be a resident of the district. We have security, law enforcement, screening everybody before you even get in the building. And that's -- I think that is something that, you know, moving

forward, they're going to have to adjust how they handle that. This is the third, you know, known public attempt. You know, within the vicinity of the president. And I will tell you, I was on Air Force One with him yesterday, and spoke to him.

He was excited. He was looking forward to delivering remarks. I thought, you know, obviously his press conference last night, he wants to do it. And I'm sure it will get rescheduled.

But this is -- this is something where I think from a security standpoint, everybody's got to take this way more seriously. We live in a very different world today. People are frankly unhinged. And the calls for political violence that we see on social media -- I mean, you have people saying this was staged. You have people attacking, you know, folks like Erika Kirk, whose husband was assassinated seven months ago in the public.

And she, you know, clearly was very traumatized last night. And they're attacking her.

RAJU: Yeah.

LAWLER: This is -- we're living in a very different world right now. And I think we got to take this way more seriously from a security standpoint.

RAJU: Yeah. It's an era of political violence, sadly.

Mr. Lawler, Secret Service is under the Department of Homeland Security, which, as you know, has been shut down for 71 days, meaning agents are not getting paid.

The Senate has now passed a bill to reopen all agencies other than ICE and CBP. They've passed that twice, and meaning Secret Service would get paid under that bill.

Speaker Johnson has not moved on the bill. Should the speaker put the Senate bill on the floor this week and send it to the president's desk and end this shutdown once and for all?

LAWLER: Well, Manu, let's be clear. It's not 71 days. It's 114 days. During this fiscal year that the Department of Homeland Security has been shut down because of Chuck Schumer. Chuck Schumer shut the department down over policy disputes and differences. Whether it was health care back in October or ICE now.

The Department of Homeland Security in full needs to be fully funded, not just Secret Service, but the Coast Guard. We are in the middle of a war in the Middle East. The Coast Guard is not being paid. ICE and Border Patrol agents are not being paid.

These things matter. And I'm sorry. Everybody has got to stop with their politics. We can have policy disputes. We can have disagreements. But the fact is that these civil servants need to be paid immediately

and in full. Yes, bills should be put on the floor right now. We have passed through the House.

RAJU: So, just to be clear, you're saying the Senate bill, the speaker should pass the senate bill. Is that what you're saying?

LAWLER: No, Manu, the entire department needs to be funded. We have passed the bill through the house five times, five times to fully fund the Department of Homeland Security. You can't pick and choose which federal agents and departments you want to fund. All of it needs to be funded immediately.

This week, when we get back on Monday, its time for the leaders of both parties to say, enough, enough with the politics. It's time to put the bill on the floor to fully fund the Department of Homeland Security, inclusive of the Secret Service and ICE and CBP. It's time for everybody to tell their extremes in both parties. We're done.

RAJU: Okay, Congressman Lawler, we're going to have to leave it there. So thank you so much for joining us. Really appreciate your time.

LAWLER: Thank you.

RAJU: Up next, we'll break down the latest in the investigation where it heads from here with two law enforcement experts.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: That was really a first line of defense. And they got him. And they really, you know, they acted incredibly.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:17:03]

RAJU: The Secret Service officer shot last night at the White House Correspondents' Dinner is now out of the hospital. Law enforcement now switching to an investigation of what happened and also into the suspect, 31-year-old Cole Allen.

The Los Angeles County resident being charged with two counts of using a firearm and one count of assault on a federal officer using a dangerous weapon. And that's according to the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, Jeanine Pirro.

Law enforcement now searching his Torrance home as part of its investigation.

I'm joined now by two experts to help us unpack all this. CNN's senior national security analyst, Juliette Kayyem, and CNN's senior law enforcement analyst, Chief Charles Ramsey.

Thank you both for being with me this morning.

So, Chief, you know, the security of this hotel better than pretty much anybody here. What are the challenges about securing this hotel and how does someone with a gun able to get so close to the president?

CHARLES RAMSEY, CNN SENIOR LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Well, first of all, good morning. And one of the biggest challenges is when you have an event like this in a hotel, then it presents additional challenges because you have people that are already staying there. They have a legitimate reason to be on the premises. That's one of the biggest hotels, if not the biggest in D.C. about 1,100 rooms or so, rather than have it at a convention center or someplace where you do not have that particular problem with screening.

However, I've been to events where POTUS has appeared in a hotel. Usually as soon as you get off the elevator, there's going to be some screening that's going to take place, uh, for individuals to get near where that event is taking place. So, they're going to have to go through this with a fine-toothed comb to find out how that individual got to that particular level, even though it wasn't on the same exact level as the ballroom. But just to get that close is something of great concern.

And they're going to have to review. And when they do this again, if they do it there, I guarantee you, there will be a different security posture in terms of how they handle the guests that are there, that look at the people who are coming in, and that's understandable. But for security reasons, they're going to have to tighten that up.

RAJU: And, Chief, just to stay with you for one second, chief, to follow up on the hotel specifically because, of course, this is where Ronald Reagan got shot. There are two entrances to this hotel.

Should the Washington Hilton be hosting events like this, or is it too vulnerable?

RAMSEY: Well, I mean, the Secret Service doesn't make that decision. I mean, of Correspondents Dinner folks would be the ones that would make that. But again, I have concerns when it's in -- not only that hotel, any hotel, because of the concern of the security concerns.

I mean, you have a convention center right there in Washington, D.C. that could be used. But again, that's a matter of choice. But even if they choose to have it there, and there's nothing wrong with having it there other than making sure you have to make certain security allowances, being in a hotel, they're going to have to tighten it up because, you know, this just can't happen.

And again, this wasn't a guest that did it. This was someone who was already staying in the hotel.

[08:20:01]

And it's important to remember that.

RAJU: Yeah, it certainly seems that way. President Trump has -- Juliette, President Trump has acknowledged this

is just one of many times, several times a gun has been brought close to him. Listen to what he said last night at the White House.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: They did the job, a much better -- in my opinion, a much better job than Butler. Butler had one weak spot that we all know about. Somebody should have been up there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: Juliette, what's your sense about why this keeps happening?

JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: So, it's hard to know for this instance, we're less than 24 hours out. It has the makings just to remind people, as we learn more about the suspect of the 2017 Las Vegas shooting over the country music from the Mandalay Hotel, where the person, the suspect or the killer checks in before. So, they're sort of protected in terms of planning.

So, what they want to do now is look at two different components. The first is, was the risk environment different for tonight. And we've heard some reporting about, you know, had the suspect been saying things, and what they're going to learn stuff from the house in California.

So, you want to look at the risk environment. We are also in war. I'm not saying those things are related, but obviously the risk environment, the threat environment is bigger here.

The second question I have in this review, sort of to the question you asked, why is this still happening, is -- was the were the security features the same more or less? And, you know, right now we're just getting reporting from people in the room. And so, we will find out, you know, did they ratchet it up in any way or was it less?

As the chief said, when you have a sort of fluid, complex environment, you have the public, you have the streets, you have the guests, the hotel guests, and then you have a major event that's really, really tricky to get the -- to close all the vulnerabilities. And I think that's actually what President Trump was talking about.

RAJU: And, Juliette, just to stay with you, what does this investigation into the suspect look like right now?

KAYYEM: So, it's going to -- it's going to get to motive. And we'll be super careful right now because we really want to get this right. The complaint or the charges against him now do not have a motive yet. So, they're going to investigate that in Los Angeles.

I find it hard to believe that someone who has planned that much weaponry and who makes the trip across and gets into the hotel room, hasn't left an ideological trail. And then you're going to get to the questions of what was that motivation? Was he supported by anyone else? And then of course, what charges would you eventually bring to them?

I'm not going to speculate here what those charges are. Any attack against the president or just as we see here, you know, just the institution of our government, media and all the top levels of government is a political attack and absolutely wrong, regardless of any atmospherics or motive or anything like that.

RAJU: And, Chief, just very quickly, how do you see this investigation playing out? What are your big questions?

RAMSEY: Well, I mean, I have a lot of questions. But first of all, as Juliette said, we don't have a motive yet. This is a very high-profile event.

Now, most people are assuming this was an attack on the president. We don't know that. I mean, this could have just been random. When you have an event this large, the fact that you do anything is going to get international coverage.

And remember, we have the 250th anniversary coming up. We got world cup coming up. I mean, it, any event like that of that magnitude, anything is going to get generate the kind of publicity that some person with ill intent would want to take advantage of.

And so that's another layer of complexity that we not only have with this event, but with events coming up this year.

RAJU: Yeah. All right. Juliette Kayyem and Chief Charles Ramsey, we're going to have to leave it there. Thank you so much for joining us and for your expertise. Really appreciate it.

And coming up, I'm joined by journalists who are at the White House Correspondents' Dinner as the shooting happened. Their first firsthand accounts, that's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:28:37]

RAJU: So, what was it like inside the room with the White House Correspondents' Dinner last night, and how did the crowd react when shots were fired? And what is next?

I'm joined by reporters who were there.

Joining me now is CNN's Elex Michaelson; Amy Walter with "The Cook Political Report"; Astead Herndon with "Vox"; and CNN's Aalayna Treene is back with us as well.

Okay. So, Elex, this was your first White House Correspondents' Dinner. What a way to begin. What did you -- what was it like? What did you experience? What was going through your mind?

Did you think it was shots fired right away? And how long did it take you to understand the gravity of the situation?

ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN ANCHOR, "THE STORY IS WITH ELEX MICHAELSON": Well, I was literally a few feet away from you.

RAJU: Yes, you were. And Mike Lawler, who was just on the show, too.

MICHAELSON: Was right next to me. I mean, it was -- I did not think it was shots fired right away. At first, I was like, did somebody drop a plate or something? We did not, from our perspective, hear any shots.

But then to see this overwhelming law enforcement presence running into the room, first going for the vice president, then going for the president, then sort of slowly coming in, taking the cabinet secretaries out. I'm thinking, are we in a shooting?

Did this just become like a mass shooting? Then you wonder is has the threat been neutralized? And were in a room that is so crowded, the biggest ballroom in Washington, with so many people all around thinking, if I have to get out, where do you go? Could you imagine if people tried to, like, go out of that room?

So, it was -- it was a scary experience, a sort of surreal experience. But then afterwards, the other thing is there was like almost no Wi- Fi. Terrible cell service --

RAJU: Yes, it was impossible. You couldn't even make a phone call.

MICHAELSON: All the reporters in the world -- most of them had no idea what was going on and everybody trying to get a sense of what was happening.

And then the thought that they were going to resume the dinner was also weird, but made you think maybe it wasn't as bad. And thankfully, you know, we're getting our information from Wolf Blitzer, who happened to be on a bathroom break.

RAJU: Yes.

MICHAELSON: That's -- and then he was there and got to see it and explain it all.

RAJU: And the wi-fi issue, actually, that's actually an underreported, under-discussed issue. You should be able to call somebody in an emergency situation.

I get there's some thousands of people in the room, but hey, this is an emergency. There should be a way in which we can communicate with the outside world. That would be a problem inside that ballroom.

MICHAELSON: Yes.

RAJU: Amy, these things keep happening -- these political violence. I mean, we are in this epidemic right now. It's been happening since Gabby Giffords in 2011 and all the way until -- you just look on your screen -- just so many incidents right now. The baseball shooting, when Steve Scalise was shot in 2017.

But really, it's been the recent years. Look at 2025, 2024 and now this. Now, we don't know the motive of this suspect here, but this is clearly a very troubling pattern.

AMY WALTER, COOK POLITICAL REPORT: It is. And the balance that you always have to strike in a democracy where voters should have the opportunity, Americans should have the opportunity to meet and see their elected leaders. And then you have the need to protect those same people from this violence.

It's also a reality in this country, and a very sad reality, that whether you are sending your child to school, whether you are going out for the night or your child is going out for the night, a loved one is going out that you could get an alert on your phone is now, unfortunately, all too common. That something terrible has happened in what should be a safe space.

This is a space that is protected by hundreds of law enforcement, who thankfully did an amazing job. Most of us are living in a world where we don't have that layer of security, and that is -- that's not a world I think people want to live in where you can't go around without security at every public place.

RAJU: Really, really disturbing. I mean, Astead, there were so many -- look, the president was in the room last night. The vice president was in the room last night. The Speaker of the House was in the room last night. That's the line of succession right there, as well as many other cabinet officials and the like.

Do they need to start to rethink, given all the episodes of political violence we're seeing in this country, do they need to start to rethink whether they can have events like this in which everybody, the most important people in our country, are in the same room?

ASTEAD HERNDON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: I mean, to Amy's point, if those -- if that line can't be secure, if we can't find a way to protect the president, vice president, Speaker of the House, it does feel like it cause a bigger question.

I think that was the immediate reaction for folks yesterday when this happened, was, you know, in a place that is so secure, a place that is a kind of known, you know, activity spot, how could this happen?

You know, you mentioned this person was a hotel guest, was able to kind of get to a couple levels of security. I know this yesterday, kind of how easy it was to walk up to the Washington Hilton.

And, you know, usually there's protesters, there's some kind of more activity outside. And that was, you know, in previous years, I've had to show a little more ID or something to get around there. But I was at one of those free parties. You just walk right in.

And so the ability for someone to kind of use that as a target was something that was kind of talked about even before this happened.

But I think, you know, to Amy's point, we can't just minimize, it's sad to say we can even minimize it. We can't just isolate this to political violence like violence in America is so pervasive that it can be the White House Correspondents' Dinner. It could be a day on the train, it could be anywhere.

And we have to live with those realities because it's something that we have normalized as a part of our lives. And that's the scary part.

RAJU: Yes.

MICHAELSON: Yes. And we were lucky that this guy didn't try to come in a half hour, 45 minutes earlier, because that area, that was totally clear because everybody was in the room.

If that had been just the security line, think about how many people could have potentially been shot right there.

RAJU: That's such a good point. Yes, you're right, because everybody was inside the ballroom by that point, having gone through security.

MICHAELSON: Yes.

RAJU: Alayna, I want you to listen to what Trump said last night. You were at the White House last night. Listen to what he said about when he was asked about why this keeps happening.

[08:34:44]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I ask respectfully, why do you think this keeps happening to you?

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, you know, I've studied assassinations, and I must tell you, the most impactful people, the people that do the most -- you take a look at the people, Abraham Lincoln -- I mean, you go through the people that have gone through this where they got them.

But the people that do the most, the people that make the biggest impact, they're the ones that they go after. They don't go after the ones that don't do much because they like it that way.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: Alayna, you were at Butler, you were there covering it during that assassination attempt. What do you take away from your experiences in both of being there on the ground for both of these incidents?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I mean, in both situations too, we're kind of seeing, you know, once the chaos of what happens settles, you know, just these huge questions that everyone on this panel are bringing up about how could something like that happen? The breakdown in security.

I mean, it's scary in those moments. I mean, when -- Butler was a different type of scary -- it was very scary last night, but also very similar, just like the chaos. I think it was the same thing I was hearing from all of my sources who

were in the room last night as well, talking about the president and the vice president, about just like the lack of information you have in the moment and how that is almost even more terrifying. Once that settles on it's you know, after everything is happening.

The president's answer there was interesting. I mean, obviously, Trump is a very divisive figure. And that's what we saw in Butler and on the ground there. And then obviously we're still learning more about the motive of this shooter of last night.

But it is remarkable to me that, you know, some of this is, in talking to people last night and about how Secret Service has done their jobs, you know, a lot of people are saying, one, they need to be doing a better job, but others are saying they are dealing with unprecedented times right now and what we are seeing.

RAJU: Unprecedented threats.

TREENE: And, and things that --

RAJU: Lack of resources.

TREENE: Exactly. And so as much as I agree that the breakdown in security and how the shooter was able to get to that location is just unacceptable, but also recognizing it was the same thing in Butler.

I mean, in Butler, they had incredible security. I mean, it was harder security in some senses to get into that rally. But then having the shooter be on a building, you know -- there are, it's just, it's incredible this time we are in to, to see it all play out, but it's incredibly scary.

I mean, personally not to, I don't like to get personal, but being in that room last night again with shots firing, not knowing what's going on --

RAJU: Yes. Not knowing --

TREENE: you don't expect as a journalist -- like I'm like, ok, where's my hostile environment training? We got to get, you know, because these are situations now that we just have to be prepared for where in before we didn't.

RAJU: It's the lack of information that is obviously the most concerning in that situation. No question about it.

All right. Still ahead, there is other news to get to. The battle for the House that now heads to Florida with the majority on the line. What will Governor Ron DeSantis do to hurt Democrats' chances?

Plus, the British are coming. Some news about whether last night's shooting will affect King Charles' visit to the United States.

[08:38:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

RAJU: As we continue to follow the latest from last night's news out of the White House Correspondents' Dinner, we're also tracking some big developments in the political realm after Democrats pulled off a critical win last week in Virginia, when voters greenlit their plan to redraw House lines so they could gain four seats in that chamber.

Now, in Florida, state lawmakers returned for a special session on Tuesday so they could change their congressional map to give Republicans an edge.

But it all comes amid GOP finger-pointing over Virginia and whether it was wise for Trump to launch this gerrymandering war in the first place.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: I mean Republicans have spent more in Virginia -- it was so close.

(CROSSTALKING)

REP. TROY NEHLS (R-TX): There's a lot of people saying, what the hell? Were we asleep at the wheel? Can't disagree with that.

REP. DON BACON (R-NE): I think in the end, the Republicans may end up losing in the long run here.

RAJU: Are you -- do you think -- do you think the House -- how much at risk is the House GOP majority right now?

BACON: Well, it's very much at risk.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: All right. My excellent panel of reporters is back, including Amy Walter. You guys have a poll out of the Cook Political Report about the generic congressional ballot giving Democrats a six-point edge in the -- in likely in the competitive House districts. That's the important part here.

Six points is a significant amount. And Democrats they have the enthusiasm absolutely certain to vote this fall. The question in that poll, 90 percent of Democratic voters compared to 79 percent -- Republican voters in those competitive districts.

Is Don Bacon right. Is the -- how much is the House majority at risk of flipping?

WALTER: Very, very, very -- how many more verys can I put on top it? Remember, Democrats only need to net three seats. So the whole point of the redistricting adventure that Republicans went down was to try to turn that three, maybe into 15.

We had thought early on in the cycle that Republicans could get enough seats to pad their majority significantly. Obviously, it's now, at best, a wash.

At the same time, I think what our poll is showing is goes to why redistricting has been such a challenge for Republicans. Once it started, it didn't only motivate Republicans to try to protect their seats, what it did is supercharged Democratic opposition.

That's what put the California referendum over the line. It's what ultimately put Virginia over the line, and is why Democrats continue to be favored right now --

[08:44:50]

RAJU: Yes.

WALTER: -- because they do have the energy and enthusiasm.

By the way, given where those numbers sit right now, again, those are in the most competitive districts. Trump won those competitive districts on average by about two points.

So if you were in a district that Trump carried as a Republican by anything fewer than ten points, you're going to be in a competitive race.

RAJU: Yes. And --

WALTER: If you have a serious challenge.

RAJU: Just look at the map. This is a nationwide redistricting. We've seen this playing out state by state. It was launched by Trump this cycle in Texas.

Elex, you live in California --

MICHAELSON: Yes.

RAJU: -- which responded in kind. Is this now at risk of backfiring for the GOP?

MICHAELSON: It certainly seems that way. And the interesting thing is it's not like the Democrats have such a dramatic message. What's their message right now? Basically, we're not Trump, we're not GOP. We're -- give it -- you know, and that seems to be working for them.

It certainly fired people up in California and united the Democratic Party there, no doubt.

RAJU: Yes. Ok. So then I have -- since you mentioned that I have to go to this moment on Capitol Hill on Thursday during "Take Your Kids to Work Day", when that question was asked Hakeem Jeffries --

MICHAELSON: Yes. Class (ph) reporter asked him.

RAJU: About whether or not Democrats, how they're viewed by voters.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SONYA RAJU, DEPUTY CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Why do voters (INAUDIBLE) Democrats so poorly?

REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES (D-NY), HOUSE MINORITY LEADER: Did your dad give you that question?

It's a great question in that -- I'm going to have words with you after this, Manu.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: Now, Jeffries did -- went on to say that people don't trust institutions and the like, but just look at the polls from the "Cook Political Report" poll in these likely competitive districts.

How do people view Democrats, favorably or unfavorably? 37 percent view Democrats favorably. That's worse than Republicans, more than Democrats unfavorably. Yet they're winning special election after special election.

HERNDON: Yes, I mean, I think this speaks to kind of the change in the electorate, the change in the Democratic base and a motivated Democratic base to everyone's point.

I mean, we should be clear that Donald Trump tried to win the midterms before they started. That's what this redistricting push was about. It was about kind of circumventing what he could -- what he realized was an electorate backlash against his second term.

That's failed. It's flopped. And I think it's not just because it's motivated Democrats in the Virginias and Californias. In Indiana, Republicans are pushing back against him. And he hasn't been able to follow through on some of the redistricting pushes he wanted.

And so I really just think that we're -- we should see this midterm as a referendum on him. But that's distinct from people buying into the Democrats vision.

So that's going to be a question that's answered in 2027 -- 2028 when people are looking for Democrats to embrace a more affirmative message.

But right now, in this year, I think a lot of people are thinking about the emergency of Trump in the White House, and that's allowing Democrats to succeed.

MICHAELSON: Yes.

RAJU: Yes. It's the anti-Trump party. The question is, will they put forward an agenda to run on? It doesn't seem like at the moment, because sometimes that being the opposition party is sufficient.

MICHAELSON: And what a pit bull reporter. I mean that is -- that was impressive.

RAJU: Yes. That's -- MICHAELSON: Asking the tough questions early on.

RAJU: Well, I hope that they become -- my kids, become doctors or engineers, not necessarily --

(CROSSTALKING)

RAJU: -- for both Sonya and Sanjay. They both asked really good questions to members of both parties this past week.

All right. Coming up, the king and queen set to arrive in the U.S. for their first state visit. That's tomorrow.

So what is Trump planning and what are they saying in the U.K. about the U.S. these days? Our report from the ground ahead.

[08:48:24]

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RAJU: It's been nearly two decades since a reigning British monarch visited the United States for an official state visit. And 35 years since one addressed a joint meeting of Congress. That's Queen Elizabeth in 1991. But that drought ends tomorrow when King Charles III and Queen Camilla arrive in the U.S. for a four-day visit.

And in light of the incident at the correspondents' dinner last night, a spokesperson for Buckingham Palace says that, quote, "a number of discussions will be taking place throughout the day to discuss the with U.S. colleagues and/or respective teams to what degree the events of Saturday evening may or may not impact on the operational planning for the visit.

Now, the Trump -- this trip also comes amid major tensions between Trump and the U.K., particularly with Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

For that, I want to bring in CNN's royal correspondent Max Foster. So, Max, just how bad are relations between the two countries right now? And can a visit from the king change that?

MAX FOSTER, CNN ROYAL CORRESPONDENT: Manu, the U.S.-U.K. special relationship is under undoubted strain. For weeks now, President Trump has been lashing out at the British government over its handling of everything from the war in Iran, to immigration, and even North Sea oil drilling.

But the president has nothing but warm words to say, it seems, for King Charles. He's talked several times about how much he's looking forward to this royal visit from Charles and Camilla.

Now, the official welcome for the king and queen will be Monday. But the big day is Tuesday when the king will address both parts of Congress, followed by a state dinner.

There'll be several one-on-ones between the two heads of state, but none will be on video. The message I'm getting from the U.K. side, at least, is this trip is actually bigger than President Trump, anyway, transcending any single occupant of the White House.

This is very much about looking back in history and showing how relations between the two nations have only improved certainly since the U.S. fought to escape British rule and gained independence 250 years ago. The king wants to celebrate that with America.

[08:54:51]

FOSTER: Now expect to see Charles and Camilla at a series of engagements across Washington, New York and Virginia, meeting a cross- section of society, including a community in Harlem, the families of victims of 9/11, and also domestic violence organizations.

Because just as the king is constitutionally barred from getting involved in politics, the palace also says he can't address the Epstein scandal, despite his brother Andrew being investigated for his links to the late sex offender. The palace says it would risk prejudicing the case if he got involved.

But the couple have always talked about how survivors should be front of mind, and I think that'll be reflected in that visit with survivors of domestic violence. Andrew has always denied any wrongdoing, of course.

No meeting slated with Charles' second son, Prince Harry. I'm told he will be in the U.S., but no private family time has been factored into this visit.

Trump, of course, last week dismissed some comments that Harry made on Ukraine, saying he speaks for the U.K. more than Prince Harry does, Manu.

RAJU: All right. Max Foster in London, thank you so much.

And that's it for INSIDE POLITICS SUNDAY. You can follow me on X @mkraju. Follow the show @INSIDEPOLITICS. You can also find me on TikTok and on Instagram.

Up next, "STATE OF THE UNION WITH JAKE TAPPER AND DANA BASH". Dana's guests include acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, Democratic Congressman Jamie Raskin, and the mentalist Oz Pearlman, who was supposed to be the White House Correspondents' Dinner entertainment last night.

Thanks again for sharing your Sunday morning with us. We'll see you next time.

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