President Donald Trump is nothing if not petty and vindictive, his critics say. And it seems he’s helping prove them right with his latest high-profile snub and his furious reaction to being called out over it.
Trump is skipping the annual 9/11 memorial service in New York, his hometown, an annual tradition for American presidents since terrorists attacked the U.S. in the worst assault on the country since Pearl Harbor.
The New York Times reported that Trump plans to skip the 25th anniversary commemoration of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks at Ground Zero, opting instead to speak at a ceremony at the Pentagon.
According to the paper, Trump backed out of the Manhattan event after organizers reiterated a long-standing policy prohibiting political speeches at the site.
But Trump apparently did not take kindly to that explanation.
Trump Goes on the Attack
The president crashed out on New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman on Friday. He unleashed a furious and deeply personal attack in which he called the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist a “stalker,” mocked her appearance and accused her of fabricating the story.
“Maggot Hagerman, the Fake Reporter from The Failing New York Times, an unattractive person both inside and out, and who knows less about me than most reporters on the beat (She’s a SCAMMER!), made up a story that on September 11th, I’m not going to the World Trade Center, in New York City, because they won’t let me make a speech, and I’m going to the Pentagon in D.C., because I’m a featured speaker,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
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“This is more Corrupt News, I’ve been to New York many times over the years, and no one ever speaks, it’s a ‘solemn ceremony!’” he continued. “I never even thought of what Maggot made up, and besides, I would love not to speak, because I’m speaking all the time, and this is a day to remember the victims, and their beautiful family members.”
Trump wasn’t finished.
He went on to invoke his legal battles with the Times and attack Haberman’s reporting. Then he concluded, “She’s been falsely writing about me for years — She’s a stalker, and should be forced to turn over any and all money that she’s made through her fake reporting on me.”
Trump’s Initial Plan Revealed
The Times, however, reported that Trump’s team had previously indicated he would attend the Manhattan ceremony and had conducted advance visits to the site. The newspaper said his desire to speak was then relayed to organizers.
Since 2012, the National September 11 Memorial & Museum has barred politicians from speaking at the Manhattan event. The strict policy is intended to keep the ceremony focused on victims and their families.
According to the Times, travel logistics also factored into Trump’s decision. He is scheduled to depart the following day for his golf course in Doonbeg, Ireland. Flying from Joint Base Andrews would cause fewer disruptions than departing from the New York area.
Trump is instead expected to mark the solemn occasion at the Pentagon, which was also attacked on 9/11 and where he can deliver remarks. Vice President JD Vance is expected to attend the Ground Zero ceremony in his place.
Trump’s Old Comments Resurface
Social media has a long memory, and the receipts on Trump’s comments when the Twin Towers were still crumbling quickly resurfaced.
“Nobody wants to hear him on 9/11. He said enough when he said ‘I guess I have the tallest building now’ as the towers went down and people were dying!” a Threads user remembered.
Trump was in New York during the attacks and gave an interview to local television station WWOR, according to news reports at the time. He bragged that his building at 40 Wall Street was now the tallest in the city.
Despite the inappropriateness of the comments and the timing, it wasn’t true. A nearby building, 70 Pine Street, was the tallest after the towers fell, the Times reported.
Others are glad he won’t be there.
“On the one hand… good; you know he’d make it both partisan and about himself. On the other hand… OMG! – What a petty, petty, tiny, tiny man.”
“I’d be terrified to hear what he would say. He is unstable,” this commenter stated.
Another poster said, “Guess he was upset because he couldn’t make a campaign speech or blame Obama for 9/11.”
What’s Happening at the Manhattan Remembrance Ceremony
Also expected at this year’s Manhattan remembrance are former President Barack Obama, former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former President George W. Bush and former First Lady Laura Bush, and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
In his efforts to upend longstanding norms of the U.S. presidency, Trump has also skipped other important events.
Among the notable breaks, Trump chose not to attend Biden’s inauguration on Jan. 20, 2021. The decision followed the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, where Trump urged supporters to march to the building as lawmakers gathered to certify the election results.
Islamic terrorists linked to Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaida network hijacked four commercial airliners on September 11, 2001. They struck the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon, while a fourth plane crashed in a Pennsylvania field.
Nearly 3,000 people were killed in the attacks. In response, then-President George W. Bush declared a global “war on terrorism” and launched the invasion of Afghanistan, where bin Laden was believed to be hiding. It also led Bush to establish the Department of Homeland Security.
