Trump Says He'll Pass on White House Correspondents Dinner

(Bloomberg) -- President Donald Trump said he won't attend this year's White House Correspondents Association Dinner, following weeks of attacks on news organizations that included calling them “the enemy of the American people.”

“I will not be attending the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner this year. Please wish everyone well and have a great evening!” Trump told his 25 million Twitter followers on Saturday.

In his first month in office, Trump has made attacks on the media a signature policy of his administration. On Friday, his spokesman Sean Spicer held a briefing for reporters that excluded news organizations including the New York Times and CNN that have written stories critical of the president. That followed a Conservative Political Action Conference speech in which Trump again lashed out at what he calls “fake news.”

Trump, who's golfed in Florida with at least two PGA stars since taking office, decided not to attend the April 29 dinner because he was elected to speak directly to Americans and not “spend his time with reporters and celebrities” he's criticized, White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said on ABC's “This Week” program.

“It's kind of naive of us to think that we can all walk into a room for a couple of hours and pretend that some of that tension isn't there,” Sanders said. “You know, one of the things we say in the south, ‘if a Girl Scout egged your house, would you buy cookies from her?' I think that this is a pretty similar scenario.”

‘Healthy Republic'

The annual WHCA dinner -- dubbed the “nerd prom” -- is a fundraising event where Washington's journalists hobnob with politicians and celebrities. The correspondents association was founded in 1914 after President Woodrow Wilson threatened to do away with news conferences. The group started the annual dinner in 1921 and presidents have traditionally attended.

“The WHCA takes note of President Donald Trump's announcement on Twitter that he does not plan to attend the dinner, which has been and will continue to be a celebration of the First Amendment and the important role played by an independent news media in a healthy republic,” Jeff Mason, the group's president, said in a statement.

“We look forward to shining a spotlight at the dinner on some of the best political journalism of the past year and recognizing the promising students who represent the next generation of our profession.”

As it's grown in size and celebrity, the dinner has been criticized as illustrating a too-cozy relationship between journalists and politicians, undermining the news media's role as a government watchdog.

Before entering politics, Trump attended in 2011 and was famously roasted by both then-President Barack Obama and comedian Seth Meyers.

Obama said Trump “would certainly bring some change to the White House,” showing an image of the residence with golden pillars and a sign that said “Hotel - Casino - Golf Course - Presidential Suite.”

Trump later said he “loved that evening” and that Obama did “a good job with it.”

To contact the reporter on this story: Susan Decker in Washington at sdecker1@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Craig Gordon at cgordon39@bloomberg.net, Mark Niquette, Ros Krasny