The annual White House Correspondents’ Dinner is set for Saturday, and while most of Washington’s journalism elite will be on hand, one of its usual guests – the president of the United States -- won't be there.
President Donald Trump will not attend the dinner, which customarily includes a roast of sorts of the commander in chief.
The White House announced that Trump will be at a rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday night, not hobnobbing at the Washington Hilton Hotel.
"This wasn't a president that was elected to spend his time with reporters and celebrities," White House deputy press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said on ABC's “This Week.”
"I think it's kind of naive of us to think that we can all walk into a room for a couple of hours and pretend that some of that tension isn't there.”
If you don’t have a ticket but want to catch it, here’s how to watch.
What time: 9:30 p.m. ET Saturday
Where: The Washington Hilton Hotel
What channel: C-SPAN is on channel 350 for DirecTV subscribers; Channel 230 on AT&T U-verse; Channel 210 on Dish
Livestream: The dinner will be livestreamed on C-SPAN.org
Host: "The Daily Show's" senior correspondent Hasan Minhaj is the host for the evening. "Hasan's smarts, big heart and passion for press freedom make him the perfect fit for our event, which will be focused on the First Amendment and the importance of a robust and independent media," White House Correspondents' Association president Jeff Mason said in a statement.
Has any president skipped it before?
Yes, President Ronald Reagan missed the dinner in 1981, a few weeks after he was shot in an assassination attempt. Both Jimmy Carter and Richard Nixon skipped the dinners at times, Carter in 1978 and 1980 and Nixon in 1972 and 1974.
What else do they do at the dinner?
The White House Correspondents’ Association hands out scholarships and awards. This year, awards are going to Greg Jaffe of the Washington Post, Edward Isaac-Dovere of Politico and David Fahrenthold of The Washington Post, along with Watergate reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein.
Dan Hallman
Dan Hallman
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