The US Department of Justice named administration officials as the target of the shooting in Washington.

The target of a 31-year-old man from California, Cole Thomas Allen, who opened fire at a reception with the participation of US President Donald Trump at the Washington Hilton hotel, were White House administration officials. This was announced on April 26 by Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche.

"We are still trying to understand the motive. Judging by the preliminary investigation, the suspect appears to have been harassing members of the administration," CNN quoted him as saying.

He added that law enforcement officers conducted a number of searches and talked to people familiar with the man who opened fire. Blanche added that in addition to firearms, Allen was carrying knives.

The Cartridge Room: the attack in Washington exposed the rise of violence in the United States

There was another shooting during an event with Donald Trump.

Trump and his wife Melania were evacuated from the White House Correspondents' Association dinner on April 25 after the sounds of gunfire. Later, the American leader announced that the shooter had been detained. The federal prosecutor in Washington, Jeanine Pirro, said that the detainee after the shooting will appear in court on Monday, April 27.

The Reuters news agency, in turn, noted that the shooting during a dinner with Trump's participation casts doubt on the quality of the security of the head of the White House. Later, Trump, commenting on the shooting at the hotel, said that he could not imagine a more dangerous profession than the president of the country.

American political analyst Mark Lowe told Izvestia that the shooting at a dinner with the participation of US President Donald Trump could be a production organized to raise his rating. According to him, the assassination attempt could have been an internal operation, possibly involving the CIA and in collusion with Trump in order to receive political dividends.