President Donald Trump’s aides will not attend the White House Correspondents’ Dinner this year, according to the White House.
Typically, news outlets invite members of Trump’s White House staff or administration to the dinner, even though the president declined invitations to attend the event.
“The president and members of his administration will not attend the White House Correspondents Dinner this year,” the White House said in a statement released to reporters.
In 2018, comedian Michelle Wolf lashed out at several women in the Trump administration including Sarah Sanders, Kellyanne Conway, and Ivanka Trump with a series of nasty jokes that many in Washington considered in poor taste.
The White House Correspondents’ Association decided against inviting a comedian host in 2019, hiring a historian to speak instead, but Trump decided against attending.
“We’re looking forward to an enjoyable evening of celebrating the First Amendment and great journalists past, present, and future,” President of the White House Correspondents’ Association Olivier Knox said in a statement responding to the news.
The dinner is scheduled for Saturday, April 26. Trump plans to attend a political rally instead in Wisconsin.