The man who attempted to storm the White House Correspondents' dinner wrote to family members about the "rage" he felt toward the Trump administration.
NBC News reported that Cole Tomas Allen, 31, wrote to family members before attempting to enter the event armed with a shotgun on Saturday.
"I experience rage thinking about everything this administration has done," Allen stated, based on transcripts provided to the network. "I don't expect forgiveness. Again, my sincere apologies."
The writing also detailed Allen's plans for targeting officials inside the dinner: "Administration officials (not including Mr. Patel): they are targets, prioritized from highest-ranking to lowest," NBC News reported.
The Associated Press reported that the message also used a jarringly friendly tone. Allen described himself as the "Friendly Federal Assassin" and opened with a seemingly upbeat "hello everybody!"
According to his LinkedIn page, Allen received an engineering degree in 2017 from the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena and received his master's in 2025 from California State University-Dominguez Hills.
The profile states that he worked as an "indie game developer" for the last seven years. He also listed working part-time as a teacher for the last six years.
NBC News reported that a person who knew Allen in college described him as a "borderline genius." The classmate also said, "Other people study hard. He didn't have to study. It would just come to him. He was really, really smart."
CBS News also reported that Allen had a room on the tenth floor of the hotel where the White House Correspondents' dinner was being held. He left the room dressed in black, carrying a shotgun, handgun, knives and a black bag.
According to the network, Allen used a stairwell to avoid security and, once on the event floor, ran through the final security checkpoint in a desperate attempt to access the dinner. CBS News reported that an exchange of fire between Allen and security ensued, and one officer was struck but not seriously injured due to a bulletproof vest.
Allen was then tackled and subdued.
Trump used the shooting to advance his plans for a White House ballroom. He wrote on social media, "This event would never have happened with the Militarily Top Secret Ballroom currently under construction at the White House. It cannot be built fast enough!"
He also posted footage of Allen running through a security checkpoint.
In a press briefing following the shooting, Trump described Allen as a "whack job" and a "lone wolf."
