President Donald Trump has shared his most detailed account yet of what he saw and did on the morning of the 9/11 attacks.

Published on: Sep 8, 2026, 07:39:38 IST

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President Donald Trump, a native New Yorker, will skip the ground zero ceremony for the 25th anniversary of the September 11 terror attacks and will instead mark the day with remarks at the Pentagon, according to two people briefed on the plans, as per CNN.

But where was Trump when the attacks happened in 2001? Here is what he has said about that morning.

Trump describes how he first heard the news

President Donald Trump shared the most detailed account of his actions on the morning of the Sept. 11 terror attacks during a speech at the Pentagon on the 18th anniversary, on September 11, 2019, as per ABC News.

He said he "vividly" remembers first hearing the news in 2001. Trump said, “I was sitting at home watching a major business television show early that morning. Jack Welch, the legendary head of General Electric, was about to be interviewed when all of the sudden they cut away. At first there were different reports. 'It was a boiler fire.' But I knew that boilers aren't at the top of a building. 'It was a kitchen explosion in Windows of the World.' Nobody really knew what happened. There was great confusion.”

Trump says he watched the second plane hit

Trump said his view of the attacks was shaped not just by news coverage, but by what he saw with his own eyes. He said, "I was looking out from a building in midtown Manhattan directly at the World Trade Center when I saw a second plane, at a tremendous speed, go into the second tower."

As per ABC News, Trump Tower is located on 5th Avenue between 56th and 57th Streets, a little more than four miles away from ground zero.

He also said, "Soon after, I went down to ground zero with men who worked for me to try to help in any little way that we could. We were not alone. So many others were scattered around trying to do the same, they were all trying to help."

What Trump has said about the day before

Trump has spoken about his whereabouts on the morning of the attacks in the past too. During a campaign stop in Columbus, Ohio, in November 2015, Trump said he was in his Manhattan apartment. But in his 2019 Pentagon speech, he went further and said he could see people jumping from the towers, as per ABC News.

At that 2015 event, he had said, “I have a window in my apartment that specifically was aimed at the World Trade Center, because of the beauty of the whole downtown Manhattan. And I watched as people jumped, and I watched the second plane come in. Many people jumped, and I witnessed that. I watched that.”

There is also footage of Trump doing a video interview with a German news station near ground zero two days after the attacks, on September 13, 2001. In that 2001 interview, he said, “I've never seen anything like it — the devastation, the human life that's been just wasted for no reason whatsoever. It is a terrible scene. It's a terrible sight. But New Yorkers are very strong and resilient, and they'll rebuild quickly.”

Why Trump is skipping the World Trade Center 9/11 ceremony

This year, Trump will not attend the World Trade Center ceremony because he wants to give a speech. However, politicians have not been allowed to speak at the event since 2012. The National September 11 Memorial and Museum has kept the ceremony nonpartisan, which led to the change in plans.

Vice President JD Vance will attend the World Trade Center ceremony instead, as per CNN.

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