Yahoo News Donald Trump skips White House correspondents' dinner to hold Pennsylvania 100 day rally
Donald Trump will on Saturday night become the first president in decades to skip the White House Correspondents' Association dinner, having opted to speak at a rally in Pennsylvania instead.
It is the first time since Ronald Reagan in 1981, who was recovering from an assassination attempt at the time, that the US president has not attended the biggest night in Washington's social calendar - an event that began in 1921.
He will, instead, be trumpeting the achievements of his first 100 days in the White House at a rally in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania - one of the several key swing states he won to take the presidency last November.
Why isn't Mr Trump attending?
The president has had a difficult relationship with the press sice he announced his presidential run in summer 2015.
He has called the media "fake" and "dishonest" and even "the enemy of the people", claiming that the majority of the media had a Democrat-bias and sought to discredit him.
He announced in February he would not be attending, tweeting:
I will not be attending the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner this year. Please wish everyone well and have a great evening!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 25, 2017
Neither will any of Mr Trump's senoir aides be attending, "in solidarity" with their boss.
“The staff is standing in solidarity with the president, who has been treated unfairly,” Sean Spicer, the White House spokesman said. “We hope, including the president, that things improve and we can attend next year.”
In pictures: Donald Trump's first 100 days
What will happen instead?
Instead of the traditional light-hearted address by the commander-in-chief and an array of Hollywood stars, this year's dinner will have a very different focus: the First Amendment and the crucial role of the press in a democracy.
"The focus will be entirely on that this year, and I think that's a great thing," Jeff Mason, WHCA president, told The Associated Press.
Even if Mr Trump had decided to come, this year's event would have been different, Mr Mason said, "based on the tension that has existed in the relationship and some of the things he has said about the press. We were preparing for a different dinner either way."
Who will be attending?
Last year's guest list included the likes of Will Smith, Emma Watson, Helen Mirren and the late Carrie Fisher.
This year's star guests will be Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists. Woodward said the two would discuss "the First Amendment and the importance of aggressive but fair reporting".
“This is clearly going to be different,” Susan Page, White House bureau chief for USA Today, told the Washington Post. “Last year, I was at a table with Kendall Jenner, and this year I’m at a table with Madeleine Albright.”
The master of ceremonies will be a comedian, as usual - this year it is Hasan Minhaj of The Daily Show.
Mr Trump's past appearances at WHCD
Mr Trump has attended the dinner in the past. Most famously, in 2011, he was the target of several jokes by Barack Obama, his predecessor as president.
Until last year, Mr Trump refused to accept Mr Obama was born in the US, promoting the 'Birther' conspiracy theory. Mr Obama responded at the 2011 dinner, stating:
Donald Trump is here tonight. Now I know that he’s taken some flak lately. But no one is happier—no one is prouder—to put this birth certificate matter to rest than The Donald. And that’s because he can finally get back to focusing on the issues that matter: Like, did we fake the moon landing? What really happened in Roswell? And where are Biggie and Tupac?
It has been speculated that it was this very public humiliation that fueled deep desire for revenge within Mr Trump – and to run for the presidency himself.
Mr Obama was not finished. In 2015 he said: "And Donald Trump is still here. Still."
The president's Harrisburg rally
The Harrisburg event is the third Trump campaign rally since he was sworn in as president. The previous two attracted thousands of supporters - and protesters.
The events are unorthodox because they are technically campaign events, not linked to the White House or Republican party. The rally is being organised and paid for by the Donald J. Trump campaign committee.
Mr Trump's victory in the state of Pennsylvania was crucial in his march to the White House as he claimed several swing states that polls had stated were expected to vote for Hillary Clinton.
People's Climate March protest rally
While they may not be attending the WHCD, there will be several celebrities in Washington on Saturday.
Protesters with the People's Climate March will rally in the US capital and cities across the country on Mr Trump's 100th day in office to speak out against his environmental policies.
Actor Leonardo DiCaprio, Virgin Airlines founder Richard Branson and former vice president Al Gore are expected to attend.
