President Trump on Monday confirmed he will be accepting an invitation to this year's White House Correspondents' Dinner.
Why it matters: Trump never attended the event that's historically known for poking fun at presidents and their policies during either of his presidential terms.
What they're saying: "We're happy the president has accepted our invitation and look forward to hosting him," the White House Correspondents' Association President Weijia Jiang said in a statement.
Context: Since 1921, the WHCA has held the annual dinner, which supports journalists working to cover the administration and creates programs and events to highlight the First Amendment.
- This year's event on April 25 will also help fund scholarships for promising journalism students.
- Mentalist and mind-reader Oz Pearlman will be the 2026 headliner, WHCA announced last Thursday.
Flashback: At the 2011 dinner, then-President Obama made several jokes about Trump.
- "I know that he's taken some flak lately, but no one is happier, no one is prouder, to put this birth certificate matter to rest than the Donald," Obama said, referencing a claim Trump and other Republicans spread about his citizenship status.
- "And that's because he can finally get back to focusing on the issues that matter — like, did we fake the moon landing? What really happened in Roswell? And where are Biggie and Tupac?" Obama added.
Of note: Even without Trump's attendance last year, headliner Amber Ruffin's appearance was canceled due to comments she made about the president.
- On a Daily Beast podcast talking about her preparations for the dinner, Ruffin referred to the Trump administration officials as "kind of a bunch of murderers."
Go deeper: Michelle Wolf's vulgar anti-Trump jokes draw intense criticism
Editor's note: This article has been updated with additional details throughout.
