Trump Exploits 9/11 Ceremony to Attack Progressive Leaders
Select a version of the text written from a presumed ideological perspective. This is not the original text, but a hypothetical version — how someone with that viewpoint might have phrased it. Tapping the current version again will return to the original or select cleaned version.
President Donald Trump seized on a brief moment involving Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani, accusing them of disrespect during the 9/11 memorial, despite lack of evidence and right-wing media amplification.
President Donald Trump once again targeted progressive voices, this time singling out Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani after a selectively edited video surfaced, supposedly showing them laughing during the solemn reading of victims' names at the 9/11 memorial ceremony marking the attacks' 25th anniversary.
'I think it’s terrible. It’s not a place to be laughing, especially in that case,' Trump declared, using the footage to stoke outrage. The clip, which right-wing social media accounts rapidly circulated, depicted the pair smiling and allegedly laughing while the names of those killed in the September 11, 2001 attacks and the 1993 World Trade Center bombing were being read. Notably, their conversation was not audible, leaving context absent. Conservative lawmakers and commentators pounced, branding the moment as disrespectful, with Rep. Wesley Hunt pontificating that 'there is a time and a place for politics' and that Ground Zero is 'sacred ground.' Mayor Mamdani, already under attack from reactionary forces, faced a petition signed by more than 110,000 victims' families urging him to skip the ceremony, yet he attended and stood firm throughout the event. Supporters of the mayor and Ocasio-Cortez pointed out that the footage was being misrepresented, highlighting that other officials were also seen laughing and that the camera likely captured only a fleeting greeting. Fox News, ever eager to amplify controversy, reached out to both officials for comment but received no response.