US President Donald Trump arrived hand in hand with First Lady Melania Trump at the Governors’ Dinner on Saturday, capping a turbulent week for the White House.
The high-profile event unfolded amid glitz and ceremony but was overshadowed by fresh controversy surrounding the administration.
The annual White House dinner with governors is typically a bipartisan occasion, bringing state leaders together for an informal evening with the president.
This year’s gathering, however, became unusually contentious, reflecting tensions that have characterised Trump’s second term.
In the lead-up to the National Governors Association meeting, Trump publicly criticised the association’s leadership, including Republican Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt and Democratic Maryland Governor Wes Moore.
He initially excluded Moore and Colorado Governor Jared Polis from a White House working session on Friday, before reversing course shortly before the event, as cited by AP.
Several Democratic governors had threatened to boycott the event if members of their party were excluded from Friday’s White House meeting. Even after Moore was ultimately invited, some Democrats said they would still skip the dinner.
The US president addressed guests who chose not to boycott the dinner amid disputes with his administration.
He said the room was filled with “many, many friends and very competent people.”
Trump also claimed that his administration had made significant progress in its first year, including on inflation and crime, and had earned respect worldwide.
"We've transformed stagnation into growth, weakness into strength and chaos into order, liberty and justice," the US president said, as cited by the Daily Mail.
The dinner ended earlier than planned after Trump was informed that the Supreme Court had struck down his sweeping tariff policy, according to people familiar with the matter.
“President Trump has made this whole thing a farce,” Massachusetts governor Maura Healey said through a statement.
When the dinner took place, no Democratic governors were seen in attendance. The black-tie event, featuring candlelit tables and formal decor, was attended only by senior administration officials and Republican governors.
In brief remarks, Trump joked that state leaders “look in that mirror and say, I should be president, not him.”
Officials who have attended past governors’ dinners said the event traditionally provides a rare opportunity for state leaders to engage informally with the president and Cabinet members outside the pressures of daily governance.
Some also noted that the gathering offers a valuable chance to build relationships with governors from across party lines, whom they may not otherwise meet frequently.
The dinner followed a major setback for Trump this week, after the Supreme Court struck down his sweeping tariff policy on Friday.
In a 6–3 ruling written by Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr, the court said Trump had exceeded his legal authority by imposing tariffs on most US trading partners last year, dealing a significant blow to a key pillar of his economic and trade agenda.
