Trump to skip White House Correspondents Dinner for campaign rally in Wisconsin
For the third year in a row, President Trump will skip the White House Correspondents' Dinner in order to attend a "Make America Great Again" rally. Mr. Trump told reporters earlier this month he would skip the "boring" event.
The Trump campaign announced the president will hold a rally on Saturday, April 27, in Green Bay, Wisconsin, as the president looks to harness his fundraising and catapult himself to reelection next year. Mr. Trump, who frequently derides the media as the "enemy of the people," has bucked tradition to avoid the event. Last year, Mr. Trump held a rally in Michigan instead of attending the dinner.
"President Trump looks forward to sharing the successes of his administration with the great people of Wisconsin," Michael Glassner, Chief Operating Officer of Donald J. Trump for President, Inc., said in a statement.
"Under President Trump's leadership, paychecks are now growing twice as fast for those in the bottom half of the income spectrum. Unemployment has hit generational lows, and the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement will open Canadian dairy markets to farmers all across Wisconsin."
Last year at his Michigan rally, the president spoke about a range of topics while also criticizing the press. "Is this better than that phony Washington White House Correspondents thing?" he told supporters.
Even though the president won't be at the dinner, some of his top administration officials are still expected to show, as they have in previous years.
At last year's dinner, comedian Michelle Wolf angered conservatives and some members of the press with jokes about abortion and White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders' appearance. As a result, this year's dinner will not host a comedian, and instead will feature historian and biographer Ron Chernow.