An Assassination Attempt and a Royal Visit to Washington

The New Yorker staff writer Antonia Hitchens joins Tyler Foggatt to discuss a surreal week in Washington: the attempted assassination of Donald Trump during the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, followed days later by a state visit from King Charles III and Queen Camilla. They talk about what Hitchens witnessed inside the Hilton ballroom during the shooting attempt, and how Washington responded in the days that followed. They also discuss the state of the “special relationship” between the United States and the United Kingdom, how Trump embraced the pageantry of the royal visit, and what King Charles’s trip was meant to signal diplomatically. They also explore what the week’s whiplash reveals about covering politics during the second Trump term. This week’s reading: “ D.C. Gets a King It Actually Wants ,” by Antonia Hitchens “ Inside the White House Correspondents’ Dinner as Gunshots Rang Out ,” by Antonia Hitchens “ Can the E.P.A. Survive Lee Zeldin? ,” by Elizabeth Kolbert “ The Kirkification of Our Troubled Times ,” by Brady Brickner-Wood “ Donald Trump’s Lose-Lose Negotiations with Iran ,” by Isaac Chotiner The Political Scene draws on the reporting and analysis found in The New Yorker for lively conversations about the big questions in American politics. Join the magazine’s writers and editors as they put into context the latest news—about elections, the economy, the White House, the Supreme Court, and much more. New episodes are available three times a week. Tune in to The Political Scene wherever you get your podcasts . Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

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An Assassination Attempt and a Royal Visit to Washington is an episode from The New Yorker: Politics and More by The New Yorker.

This episode is 28:11 long.

This episode was published on Apr 30, 2026.

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