WASHINGTON — Scores of tuxedo- and fancy-dress-wearing attendees of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner defiantly partied after a madman opened fire outside Saturday’s event, which included President Trump.
Journalists and other DC Beltway figures resolved not to let the sicko ruin the night, converging at the glamorous residence of the Swiss ambassador for TIME’s afterparty, which has become one of the most acclaimed shindigs following the ritzy dinner.
The vibe was tamer than in years past, with a noticeably smaller attendance, though the security lines to get into the lavish Woodley Park residence — about a mile and a half away from where the dinner had ben taking place — appeared to take longer than previously.
Security personnel seemed more on edge while running everyone through magnetometers.
Unlike entrance into the Washington Hilton for the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, guests were required to show both their photo IDs and get checked off a list to get in.
Sprinkles of rain and somewhat chilly weather pushed most of the party inside or under the canopy, while free booze and trays of appetizers greeted guests.
Lawmakers such as Rep. Greg Amo (D-RI) and influencers including CJ Pearson swung through the party. Last year, there were a lot more lawmakers and prominent politicos at TIME’s party.
Several TMZ reporters — whose gossipy outlet’s return to DC has been all the rage in recent weeks — showed up dressed casually in jeans, mingling with the crowd filled with sharp tuxedos and ballroom dresses.
The party was filled with the typical DC schmoozing.
A few hotshot operatives were heard bragging about recent special elections and primaries in which they claimed they were the driving factor in winning.
Drunken reporters were embracing alcohol as a critical part of their job, too.
People were trading stories about what they witnessed at the Washington Hilton hours earlier, when the gunshots shut down the event. The afterparty was mixed with guests who were in the ballroom for the dinner and others who just decided to crash the afterparties.
A dinner attendee carried around a glass from the Washington Hilton ballroom as a souvenir for the night to mark the history he witnessed.
Many afterparty guests were fielding calls and texts from loved ones and friends concerned about them as news of the shooting spread.
But that didn’t seem to put a damper on anyone’s relieved enjoyment that no one was hurt.
Throngs of people packed into one of the rooms for dancing to loud music. Next to it, others went out on the deck with a plum view of the Washington Monument to smoke cigars and vape.
The lively party went on past 3 a.m., when the hosts slowly started encouraging people to leave.
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