In an interview for CBS's “60 Minutes” about Saturday's foiled attack, Trump referred to, among other things, to allegations of insufficient security at Saturday's correspondents' gala at the Washington Hilton Hotel. The weak – in his opinion – level of security was also noticed by the would-be assassin himself, Cole Allen, who wrote in his manifesto about the “insane incompetence” of the Secret Service.
“Well, he's incompetent too because he got caught. And he got caught quite easily. So I would say he is quite incompetent, said the US president. – You know, I can take any security event or whatever, and I'll always find something wrong with it. “But these guys did a great job yesterday,” he added.
He called on journalist Nora O'Donnell to tell the gala organizers to hold the event again within a month. — Then they will have even better security and greater perimeter security, it will be good. But tell them to do it again. We cannot allow (…) I think it is very important that they do it again, he noted.
The journalist asked about the attacker's manifesto. “You should be ashamed of yourself”
The president reacted with visible indignation when O'Donnell asked him to comment on the words of the manifesto attacker, who said that he “no longer intends to allow a pedophile, rapist and traitor to burden him with his crimes.”
– Well, I waited for you to read this because I knew you would, because you guys are terrible people. Terrible people. Yes, he actually wrote it. I'm not a rapist. I didn't rape anyone, Trump said. When the journalist asked if he thought Allen was referring to him as a rapist, the president added that he was not a pedophile.
— You read some sick man's nonsense (…) I was associated with something that has nothing to do with me. I was completely cleared of the charges. “Your friends on the other side are the ones who were involved in, say, the Epstein scandal or other things,” Trump said. — You should be ashamed of yourself for reading this, because I am none of those things. I'm sorry, you shouldn't have read this on 60 Minutes. “You are shameful,” he added.
When asked about the moment when the president fell while the services were taking him out, Trump argued that he slowed down the services because he wanted to see what was happening. He also added that the officers escorting him ordered him and his wife, Melania, to lie down on the ground.
