What to Know
Footage of Trump administration officials evacuating the White House correspondents’ dinner has been circulating online and sparking a lot of backlash. One clip, in particular, has garnered a significant amount of attention because it appears to show Robert F. Kennedy Jr. leaving his wife, Cheryl Hines, behind.
The video appears to show security personnel whisking RFK Jr. away as his wife follows behind them. Some critics on social media noticed that the Health and Human Services secretary did not even appear to turn around and check on his wife.
Numerous people have made this observation.
In response to a clip of RFK Jr. and Cheryl that’s circulating on X, one critic wrote, “RFK leaving his wife’s behind not protecting her or even remembering her.” Someone else noticed that she looked like she was basically saying “Wait for me!!!” as everyone rushed off without her. Another person commented on how the clip made it look like Cheryl was “left to find her own way out,” which made some people feel sorry for her. “Poor Cheryl she’s just like alright guys I’m coming behind ya,” someone else commented.
On Instagram, one person captioned the clip with “RFK Jr. ditches his wife while fleeing for his own safety during evacuation” and sarcastically added that he was “so alpha” for this. “So we’ve got teachers who throw themselves into the line of fire to protect students and we’ve got grown a– men in lead government positions who willingly flee to safety while leaving their loved ones behind and in danger,” a critic wrote in response. “Cool.”
Somehow, the whole thing actually made Trump critics defend Stephen Miller.
View from the ground as Trump senior staff and cabinet members evacuated tonight, including Kennedy, Blanche, Stephen and Katie Miller, and Pete Hegseth. pic.twitter.com/p70geTnIF4
— Tony Dokoupil (@tonydokoupil) April 26, 2026
Although RFK Jr. has faced a lot of criticism for seemingly leaving his wife behind, people have accused other men at the event of doing the exact same thing. However, based on the footage shared on social media, the White House Deputy Chief of Staff appeared to try to protect his wife. “Remarkably, out of all the administration people present, it seems only Stephen Miller made sure his wife was safe,” one person on Instagram pointed out.
Some people defended RFK Jr. as well, though. They definitely didn’t see the footage as evidence that Kennedy doesn’t care about his wife, nor did they think he simply ran off without her. “Guys…. secret service literally snags them and separates them because the wives and them aren’t the target,” someone argued. “It’s not like he’s choosing to run away from her.”
Cheryl explained what happened from her perspective.
She took to her Instagram Stories shortly after the event. “I just got back from the White House Correspondents’ Dinner,” she said, per Entertainment Weekly. “That was a crazy, um, moment in time.
She then explained what happened. “We were there and we heard shots and, um, everybody got under the tables,” she said. “Nobody knew what was going on, and then, um, you know, Bobby’s security detail surrounded us and took us…. I mean, really, like, had to lift me over chairs, because I’m in heels and a gown, and, um, and they took us through all of the back ways, and we, uh, got in the car, and left.”
Cheryl also shared several photos and videos from that night via Instagram and captioned the post with, “This was the calm before the storm. And this was the storm at the White House Correspondents Dinner.” Clearly, some people in he comments were still skeptical of her husband’s behavior. “He ran away without your right?” one of them commented. Meanwhile, many others simply noted that they were glad she and her husband were safe.
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