Donald Trump Clarifies Comments About Firefighters 'Lifting' Him Up on 9/11 After Fact-Check But Maintains 'Everything I Said Was Exactly Accurate'

Following intensive media fact-checking, President Donald Trump clarified his controversial claims on Truth Social, stating that he was not at the World Trade Center site on the actual day of the collapse on September 11, 2001, but rather "shortly thereafter.” He maintained that "everything I said was exactly accurate.”

During a White House Ellipse event honoring 9/11 first responders on Tuesday, September 8, Trump recounted a story from the aftermath of the 2001 terrorist attacks. He alleged that while he was near Ground Zero, the U.S. Steel Building (One Liberty Plaza) began creaking loudly.

Trump stated that two "big, strong" firefighters grabbed him under the arms, "literally lifted me up," and ran with him to safety because they feared the building would fall on top of them. He also repeated his claim that he took his entire construction crew down to Ground Zero "right after this happened" to help.

Prominent fact-checking organizations, including CNN and PolitiFact via PBS NewsHour, scrutinized the timeline and details of his remarks.

While Trump's speech implied he was there in the immediate, chaotic aftermath of the collapse, the earliest documented video or photographic evidence of him near Ground Zero is from September 13, 2001— two days later.

No official record or independent verification shows firefighters physically carrying Trump away from the area. Historical records confirm widespread panic about a potential collapse of One Liberty Plaza, leading to building evacuations on September 12 and September 14, but no documentation places Trump at the scene during those moments.

In addition, fact-checkers found no evidence that Trump deployed a large workforce to clear rubble. In interviews from September 13, 2001, Trump initially claimed he had about 100 to 125 men down there "to spur them on."

Official emergency responder logs from the era have no record of an uncataloged crew under his company's direction.

In addition to Trump's personal clarification, White House spokesperson Davis Ingle minimized the literal wording of the speech, explaining that the president was "relaying his experience of a city reeling" in the days and weeks following the tragedy.

Nephew Fred Trump III publicly rejected his uncle’s claims in a series of social media posts, saying the stories "so offended" him that he felt compelled to speak out.

Fred refuted the assertion that his uncle brought a massive crew of construction workers to help clear rubble.

He pointed out that the POTUS wasn’t even building a skyscraper in Manhattan at the time, as the Trump World Tower had already completed construction months prior.

He added that the only employees his uncle could have brought would have been "secretarial and accounting employees from Trump Tower," noting that while they certainly would have tried to help if they could, they were not physically equipped to clear debris.

He also disputed the claim that firefighters had to carry Donald away due to the U.S. Steel Building (One Liberty Plaza) creaking and being on the verge of collapse.

Fred noted that, coincidentally, one of the building's original engineers was the grandfather of a close friend, and he knew another engineer who was called in for an immediate structural inspection after the attacks.

He stated that while there was brief initial concern in the area, the building was built strong and was quickly cleared as structurally sound — not "creaking and ready to fall.”