Trump claims shooting would 'never have happened' if White House had a ballroom

The US president was pulled off stage at the White House Correspondents Dinner held at the Washington Hilton Hotel as gun shots were fired.

In a TruthSocial post, he claimed the incident would "never have happened" if a "large, safe and secure ballroom" had been built on the grounds of the White House.

"It cannot be built fast enough!" he added.

"While beautiful, it has every highest level security feature there is plus, there are no rooms sitting on top for unsecured people to pour in, and is inside the gates of the most secure building in the world, the White House."

Earlier this month, a US judge halted construction of the above ground portion of the project.

The President is also facing a lawsuit brought in December by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, which is seeking to stop plans for the East Wing ballroom.

In the lawsuit, the preservation group argued the White House broke the law by starting construction without filing plans with the National Capital Planning Commission, by not seeking an environmental assessment of the project and by declining to seek authorisation from Congress.

The East Wing of the White House, which was constructed in 1902, was demolished in October to make way for the multi-million dollar ballroom.

Since then, the proposed blueprint has expanded from a ballroom with a capacity of 500 people to a space that can fit 1,350 guests.

The White House has said the project was expected to cost $400m and was being funded entirely by private donors.

The suspect, said to have been carrying a shotgun and handgun, has been identified as Cole Tomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, California.

The 31-year-old is understood to have been a guest in the hotel.

He faces charges including assaulting an officer with a dangerous weapon, but acting US attorney general Todd Blanche said additional charges will be filed.