The horrifying incident of a gunman at the Washington Hilton Hotel during the White House Correspondents Association Annual Dinner was more than just a threat to the President of the United States and the 2,500 guests, many of them journalists.
It also was the reality that MOST of the group under the 1947 Presidential Succession Act were also there, truly a dangerous and unacceptable scenario.
13 members of the Presidential succession were at the event, including Vice President JD Vance and Speaker of the House Mike Johnson.
But also almost all of the Cabinet Officers were present, leaving an alarming situation.
The only people under the Presidential Succession Act NOT present were:
President Pro Tempore of the Senate Chuck Grassley of Iowa, nearing age 93;
Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins;
Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick;
The two “Acting” Secretaries–Attorney General Todd Blanche, and Secretary of Labor Keith Sonderling were there, who some observers would say are not eligible to succeed to the Presidency, as they have not been selected yet as the successors in those posts, and have not been confirmed.
Also, it is unclear if Scott Turner, Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and Doug Collins, Secretary of Veterans Affairs were present at the event.
There was no formal “Designated Survivor” chosen before the event in case of a tragedy.
Never again can the federal government allow even the unlikely scenario that occurred on April 25 to happen again.