Chinese State Media: "Even After the Gunshots Stop, U.S. Political Dignity Will Be Hard to Restore"

Chinese State Media Report on Dinner Shooting in Unison
"Political Division Leads to Extreme Incidents"
Chinese Foreign Ministry: "Consistently Oppose Acts of Violence"

Chinese state-run media have released a series of reports identifying political division and social hostility in the United States as the causes of the shooting incident at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner.

U.S. President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump. Photo by AP Yonhap News

According to Yonhap News on the 28th, the Global Times, an English-language newspaper affiliated with the People's Daily, the official newspaper of the Communist Party of China, reported this on the 26th, citing Li Haidong, a professor at the China Foreign Affairs University’s Institute of International Relations. Professor Li stated, "The deepening of political division and social hostility within the United States is leading to extreme incidents," diagnosing the situation as "a case of social fragmentation occurring because the traditional political system is failing to resolve conflicts."

The state-run Xinhua News Agency’s social network account ‘New Tanqin’ highlighted the fact that the suspect is from California, a Democratic stronghold, and commented, “In the past, when opinions were divided, the two parties would confront each other through debate, but now they are speaking through guns instead of persuasion.” The account added, “In U.S. politics, it has become common for Donald Trump to mock, ridicule, and attack those who oppose him or try to block his intentions.”

State-run Beijing Ribao also commented on social media, “(The White House Correspondents’ dinner) used to serve as a ‘buffer zone’ in U.S. politics and as a lubricant for American democracy, but now it has become a space where extremism and social hatred are spreading.” The account went on to point out, “While dinner may resume after the gunshots, it seems impossible to restore the political dignity, social consensus, and civic moderation of the United States.”

The police responding to a shooting incident at the Washington Hilton Hotel in the United States. Photo by AP News Agency

The Global Times also cited statements from Chinese reporters who covered the scene at the time, raising concerns about lax security at the event. The outlet reported, “At the event, which was attended by about 3,000 people, simple single-sheet paper tickets were used, and only basic bag checks were conducted.” It continued, “The tickets did not have QR codes or any information to verify the identity of the attendee, and entry was allowed after only a bag check without a body search.”

Previously, on the 25th (local time), an incident occurred at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner held at the Washington Hilton Hotel, where the suspect, Cole Thomas Allen, fired a shotgun at a Secret Service (SS) agent. It was reported that the suspect had targeted U.S. President Donald Trump and others, but was subdued by agents during his attempt to enter, and there were no casualties.

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated at a regular briefing on the 27th, “We are paying close attention to this shooting incident,” adding, “We consistently oppose illegal acts of violence.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.