John Hinckley Jr. The Man Who Shot President Ronald Reagan Gives His Thoughts On The Latest Assassination Attempt On President Trump

There should be a new rule.

U.S. Presidents should not attend or host any events at hotels.

The risk is just too big.

On Saturday, 31-year-old Cole Allen allegedly opened fire inside the Washington Hilton Hotel in an attempt to assassinate President Trump and other U.S. officials.

The shooting at the Washington Hilton Hotel isn’t the first time an assassination attempt against a U.S. president has occurred there.

In 1981, President Ronald Reagan was shot outside the hotel by John Hinckley Jr.

In response to the recent shooting, Hinckley, who is now free, gave his thoughts on the recent shooting and shared that it was “spooky.”

TMZ provided the full quotes from their conversation with Hinckley:

TMZ spoke with Hinckley Sunday about security at the Washington Hilton, which has been a topic of national debate in the wake of Saturday night’s WHCD shooting, with many people making comparisons to the Reagan shooting.

Hinckley kicked off our convo by telling us he first learned about the WHCD shooting when a newsflash came up on his phone and he turned on the TV to watch some of the coverage. He said it was “spooky” to find out the WHCD shooting “took place at the same hotel as mine did.”

As you know, the WHCD shooting occurred in the hotel lobby near the ballroom where President Trump, his cabinet officials, the First Lady and media were all gathered for the event. The alleged gunman, Cole Allen, fired several shots and Secret Service agents returned fire, but missed Allen, authorities said.

During the mayhem, a Secret Service agent was struck by a bullet, but was not injured thanks to his bulletproof vest. Allen was promptly arrested and is facing serious federal charges.

Hinckley is now calling on the hotel to stop holding events there “because bad things keep happening” and “it’s just not a secure place to hold big events.”

To illustrate his point, Hinckley described what happened back in ’81 when he showed up at the hotel to shoot Reagan. He said back then, the security was “lax” too … because he was able to sneak into a crowd of reporters waiting outside the hotel for Reagan to exit after delivering a speech. He said Secret Service agents never checked whether he was a reporter during their sweeps.

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If they had, Hinckley said he would have bolted because he was not a journalist, had no press credentials and his devious plot would have likely been exposed. As a result, history might have turned out very differently.

🚨INFORMATION: HISTORY REPEATS ITSELF!

On March 30, 1981, President Ronald Reagan was shot and wounded by John Hinckley Jr. in Washington, D.C., as Reagan was returning to his limousine after a speaking engagement at the Washington Hilton hotel, the SAME HOTEL in which they… pic.twitter.com/THmQefmN2l

— US Homeland Security News (@defense_civil25) April 26, 2026

WJLA reported more on the comparison between the two assassination attempts:

The 1981 assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan occurred as he was leaving the same hotel where Saturday’s White House correspondents’ dinner shooting took place.

Reagan was walking to his limousine after giving a speech on March 30 at the Washington Hilton when gunshots rang out. A ricocheted bullet struck Reagan in the chest causing serious injuries.

Jon Hinckley Jr. was later arrested for the shooting.

Hinckley would be found not guilty by reason of insanity and held at a psychiatric hospital until his supervised release in 2016.

Forty-five years later, a similar attempt occurred at the White House correspondents’ dinner when a gunman opened fire near the hotel’s ballroom.

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At approximately 8:36 p.m. Saturday, a single suspect armed with a shotgun, handgun, and multiple knives charged into the hotel lobby area and attempted to breach a Secret Service checkpoint, according to law enforcement. He was intercepted immediately by Secret Service agents, and gunfire was exchanged.

The suspect has been identified as Cole Tomas Alan, 31, of Torrance, California, according to officials.

Hinckley nowadays is not in prison as most people believe, but is rather making music on YouTube.

Watch here: