Joe Rogan told President Trump he hoped they wouldn't die in a terrorist attack at the White House UFC event. Trump didn't flinch. "We got to go somehow," the president replied, leaving the world's most popular podcaster momentarily at a loss for words.
The exchange, recounted by Rogan on a Saturday episode of The Joe Rogan Experience, came after the FBI revealed it had foiled an alleged mass-casualty terror plot targeting UFC Freedom 250 on the South Lawn. The June 14 event drew roughly 4,000 people to the White House grounds for a card headlined by Justin Gaethje's lightweight title victory over Ilia Topuria, and, as federal authorities now allege, nearly drew something far worse.
Five men face federal charges of conspiracy to commit murder and conspiracy to commit violence on White House grounds. Twenty-three others have been identified as involved. The alleged ringleader is an illegal immigrant from Mexico who was granted DACA protection under the Obama administration. And the president's reaction to the danger, at least as Rogan tells it, was a four-word shrug.
Federal authorities say the plan was elaborate and lethal. Explosive-laden drones would detonate above the crowd on the South Lawn, triggering a panicked evacuation. As thousands fled, they would be funneled toward a pre-positioned sniper team. Some suspects allegedly discussed storming the White House gate in the chaos.
The FBI learned of the threat on June 10, four days before the event. Investigators gained access to an encrypted Signal group chat used by the suspects. Some plotters allegedly planned to travel to Fredericksburg, Virginia, on June 12 and 13 to make final preparations.
The investigation began with a tip from a family member. A relative of one suspect contacted police in the Cincinnati area with concerns about a possible attack. That tip set the multi-state operation in motion.
FBI Director Kash Patel, as Newsmax reported, stated plainly: "Multiple individuals are now in custody and allegedly planned attacks were stopped cold."
Abraham Alvarez, 31, is identified as the alleged ringleader. Alvarez is an illegal immigrant from Mexico who arrived in the United States as a child. His B2 visa expired in 2001, and he failed to leave. In 2014, the Obama administration granted him DACA relief. That status has since been revoked, though the precise timing and circumstances remain unclear.
The Washington Examiner reported that Alvarez posted about strapping explosives to drones, writing he wanted "as many and as deadly as we can get." Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis of the Department of Homeland Security did not hold back: "This illegal alien from Mexico should never have been allowed in our country. He was the ringleader of a failed terror attack targeting UFC Freedom 250 at the White House."
The four co-defendants span the country. Tycen Proper, 19, of Ohio, admitted in an FBI affidavit to participating in discussions about an attack that authorities say was intended to "jumpstart" a revolution in the United States. Michael Thomas, 32, and Bryan Roa, 24, were arrested in California; a federal court complaint states they met in person to practice their marksmanship. Daniel K. Eskridge, 32, of Missouri, allegedly sent images of tactical gear, a rifle, helmet, and ballistic vest, to the Signal group chat.
Charging documents describe a stew of anti-government beliefs, conspiracy theories, antisemitic grievances, and anger over the Trump administration's handling of files connected to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. One suspect allegedly told investigators the goal was to target "capitalist elites," "billionaires," or politicians who received donations from AIPAC.
Each defendant faces a maximum penalty of life in prison and a $250,000 fine if convicted of conspiracy to commit murder, Just The News reported.
Rogan recounted the exchange during a conversation with Gaethje and MMA trainer Trevor Wittman. The podcaster, who has become a direct line to the president on issues ranging from veterans' policy to cultural debates, said he raised the threat directly with Trump before the event.
"I said to Trump, I go, 'I hope we don't die in a terrorist attack.'"
Trump's reply, as Rogan told it: "We got to go somehow."
Rogan's reaction was immediate and profane: "What the f***, dude?" He seemed genuinely taken aback by the president's nonchalance in the face of a credible threat against an event Trump himself was hosting.
Wittman, who trained Gaethje for the title fight, shared the anxiety. "I was honestly really nervous, Joe," he said on the podcast. "I was like, 'Dude, there's like, just again, being around everybody and something could happen.'"
Gaethje, who had just won the UFC lightweight championship in the main event, took a different view. "F*** it," the fighter said. "If I get taken out in the middle of the cage, how f***ing legendary would that be?"
The exchange captures something about the people who showed up that night. The commentator worried. The trainer sweated. The fighter shrugged. And the president cracked wise.
The immigration angle has drawn intense scrutiny. Alvarez entered the country legally as a child on a B2 visitor visa, overstayed after it expired in 2001, and then received DACA protection thirteen years later under the Obama administration. The program, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, was designed to shield from deportation those who arrived as minors, the so-called "Dreamers."
National Review noted that Alvarez's DACA status had been revoked, though the details of when and why remain thin. What is clear is that a man who overstayed his visa by more than two decades, received discretionary immigration relief, and allegedly spent his time coordinating a drone-and-sniper attack on the White House now sits in federal custody.
DHS's Bis framed the case as a vindication of stricter enforcement: "This illegal alien from Mexico should never have been allowed in our country." The case will almost certainly become a flashpoint in the ongoing debate over DACA's future, and over whether the program's screening mechanisms are adequate to identify security risks.
The broader controversy surrounding the White House UFC event has already generated political friction. But the terror plot adds a dimension that transcends partisan sniping about the propriety of holding a cage fight on the South Lawn. The question is no longer whether the event was appropriate. The question is whether the government's immigration and security apparatus is catching the right people in time.
The FBI and Secret Service say they stopped the attack before it could be carried out. But the case raises questions that federal authorities have not yet answered publicly.
Who are the 23 additional individuals identified as involved? No names or details have been released. What is the full scope of the Signal group chat, how many members, who administered it, and how long had it been active? What specific type of explosive drones were the suspects acquiring, and where were they sourcing them? And how did Alvarez maintain residency in the United States for a quarter-century after his visa expired, receive DACA, and allegedly organize a plot of this scale without earlier detection?
The White House birthday celebration on June 14 doubled as a commemoration of the nation's 250th anniversary and the president's 80th birthday. Dana White, the UFC boss, walked alongside Trump from the White House to the South Lawn. Roughly 4,000 attendees filled the grounds. The event went off without incident, but only, the FBI now says, because a family member's conscience and a Cincinnati-area police department set off a chain of events that ended in five arrests across four states.
Rogan, who has used his platform to challenge progressive orthodoxy and press public figures on policy, found himself for once without a ready comeback. Trump's dark humor landed precisely because it came from a man who knew the threat was real and hosted the event anyway.
Five suspects in custody. Twenty-three more identified. An alleged ringleader who overstayed his visa by two decades, collected DACA protection, and allegedly plotted mass murder on the White House lawn. A family member's tip that may have saved thousands of lives. And a president who, told he might die at his own party, offered a one-liner.
The system that let Abraham Alvarez stay in this country for 25 years is the same system that now wants credit for catching him four days before he allegedly tried to attack it. Americans can decide for themselves whether that deserves applause or alarm.
