The suspect, Cole Allen, was seen on surveillance video sprinting past Secret Service agents inside the security perimeter of the Washington Hilton as the event to celebrate freedom of the press was underway.
“He came in running like he was an NFL running back, frankly, he was very fast and they just stopped him cold,” Trump added.
One Secret Service agent was shot but survived because the projectile hit the agent’s bulletproof vest.
Allen was charged with using a firearm during a crime of violence and assault on a federal officer using a dangerous weapon.
The 31-year-old suspect, who was a part-time teacher and amateur video game developer, will be arraigned on Monday.
“It is clear that this individual was intent on doing as much harm as he could,” U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro said during a press briefing on Saturday night.
“Presidents have wanted it for 150 years just because they wanted a big space but [the] military [and] secret service have wanted it for many years and I’m getting it built,” Trump said while speaking on Fox News Channel’s “The Sunday Briefing.”
“The one good thing is that now everybody knows how badly we needed it.”
Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.), who attended Saturday’s dinner and was present during the incident, voiced support for the planned White House ballroom on Sunday.
The Washington Hilton “wasn’t built to accommodate an event with the line of succession for the U.S. government,” Fetterman wrote on X.
“After witnessing last night, drop the TDS [Trump Derangement Syndrome] and build the White House ballroom for events exactly like these.”
Trump said he is “fine” and that the first lady is “doing great” after the incident.
“It was a very sad evening in many ways and it was also an evening where a lot of people got together,” Trump added.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, who is eight months pregnant, attended the high-profile event and said Trump was “truly fearless” during the attack. She urged for an end to political violence.
“Pray for our country,” Leavitt wrote in a post on Sunday.
