Michael Collins, and John Bacon

USA TODAY

WASHINGTON – President Trump's decision to skip the White House Correspondents' Dinner in April drew plenty of buzz on social media and an assertion from the group that the annual affair will go on as planned even without the star attraction.

Trump's decision to skip the dinner comes amid his ongoing feud with the media, which he has described as "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!” the president tweeted Saturday evening.

The annual event, set for April 29 at the Washington Hilton, is a black-tie scholarship dinner hosted by the White House Correspondents’ Association and is attended by journalists, politicians and other Washington movers and shakers.

White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said on ABC's "This Week" Sunday that Trump wasn't elected "to spend his time with reporters and celebrities" and noted the ongoing tension between the White House and the media.

"You know, one of the things we say in the south if a Girl Scout egged your house, would you buy cookies from her?" Sanders said. "I think that this is a pretty similar scenario. There's no reason for him to go in and sit and pretend like this is going to be just another Saturday night."

Trump's tweet prompted a campaign on Twitter to get Alec Baldwin invited. Baldwin has drawn rave reviews for his spoofs of Trump on Saturday Night Live.

"Dear White House Correspondents Association: Please ask Alec Baldwin to stand in for Donald Trump at your annual dinner. Thank you," tweeted liberal moviemaker Michael Moore.

Chimed in author Brian Klass: "Yuge opening for Alec Baldwin to get some extra work that evening..."

The dinner has drawn fire in recent years from critics who say it has become too much of a celebrity fest and that journalists should not be cozying up to the people they cover.

Tweeted columnist Walter Shapiro: "With Trump not attending White House Correspondents Dinner, I again propose that it be masked ball where reporters bring their best sources."

The sitting president and first lady traditionally have attended the dinner, along with a high-profile celebrity guest speaker. The last president to miss was Ronald Reagan in 1981, when he was recovering from an assassination attempt. Presidents Jimmy Carter and Richard Nixon each missed the event on multiple occasions.

The WHCA website says the group itself traces its "roots back to the newspaper reporters who, in the 1890s, stood outside the White House fence to seek meetings with the president and to question visitors as they left the grounds." The dinner dates back to 1920.

“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,” association president Jeff Mason 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."

Trump has attended the dinner on at least two other occasions — in 2011 and in 2015.

In 2011, a stone-faced Trump sat silently in the audience as President Obama and comedian Seth Meyers ridiculed him from the stage, mocking his performance on Celebrity Apprentice and his embracing of the so-called "birther" movement.

Contributing: Donovan Slack

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