Former President Donald Trump released a statement congratulating his ex-fixer Rudy Giuliani for being ‘the greatest Mayor in the history of New York City,’ to honor his time as mayor after the 9/11 attacks.
On the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Trump shared a video attacking President Joe Biden who is attending events to honor the horrific attacks.
He then issued a statement saying ‘Congratulations to Rudy Giuliani (for the 20th time!), the greatest Mayor in the history of New York City, for having shown such leadership and doing such an incredible job during and after the attack on our Nation!’
Donald Trump paid a visit to NYPD and FDNY officers on the 20th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks, after deciding not to make his own solo trip to Ground Zero
Saturday morning, Trump sent out a statement complimenting Rudy Giuliani ‘for the 20th time’. Giuliani (at the annual 9/11 Commemoration Ceremony at the National 9/11 Memorial and Museum) was mayor of New York City on 9/11 and was also Trump’s personal attorney who pushed the false claims that the 2020 election was ‘stolen’
Giuliani is pictured on September 12 2001 while serving as mayor of NYC. He was hailed for his response to the COVID crisis
Trump released a statement on Saturday congratulating Giuliani for his time as New York City mayor during the 9/11 terrorist attacks
Giuliani was the mayor of New York City and heralded for his response the 9/11 attacks.
He coordinated the response and organized the support of state and federal authorities for the World Trade Center site, for citywide anti-terrorist measures, and for restoration of infrastructure.
He has since become a controversial figure over his support for Donald Trump’s election fraud claims.
Giuliani’s Upper East Side apartment was raided by the FBI in April amid a probe into his dealings with the Ukraine, although he is yet to be charged with any crime, and denies all allegations of wrongdoing.
On the eve of the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attacks, Giuliani and former New York Governor George Pataki were reunited with NYPD and FDNY officials for the first time since September 1, 2001.
Trump paid a visit to NYPD and FDNY officers on Saturday, shunning a trip to Ground Zero – one day after saying he would visit the site.
The former president surprised officers at NYPD’s 17th Precinct in East Midtown in Manhattan, New York City, Saturday afternoon where he posed for photos with a group of cops and held a brief question and answer session
Trump said very little about America’s darkest day and instead took aim at Joe Biden over the ’embarrassment’ of his Afghanistan withdrawal
Trump was the only surviving president not to attend any of the three crash sites or any of the official memorial ceremonies on the 20th anniversary of America’s darkest day
The former president surprised officers at NYPD’s 17th Precinct in East Midtown in Manhattan, New York City, Saturday afternoon where he posed for photos with a group of cops and held a brief question and answer session.
He said very little about the largest attack on U.S. soil. Instead, he took aim at Joe Biden over the ’embarrassment’ of his Afghanistan withdrawal, continued to push his false claim that the 2020 election was ‘rigged’ and plugged his 2024 White House run.
‘It was gross incompetence and I hate to talk about it on this day,’ Trump said of the withdrawal from Afghanistan last month.
Trump is scheduled to comment on a boxing match in Florida on Saturday night.
Trump will host a boxing match between Evander Holyfield and Vitor Belfort in Hollywood, Florida, Saturday night
President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden attended a wreath-laying ceremony at the Flight 93 memorial in Shanksville, Pennsylvania – their second stop Saturday as the country marks the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks.
Earlier, the Bidens joined the Clintons and the Obamas at the New York City ceremony at Ground Zero.
At the western Pennsylvania site, Vice President Kamala Harris had called for a ‘united America’ Saturday as she joined former President George W. Bush at the 9/11 memorial ceremony in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, to mark the 20th anniversary of the terror attacks.
The vice president urged Americans to remember the ‘unity’ that came out of the tragedy two decades ago, saying it is ‘essential to our shared prosperity, our national security, and to our standing in the world.’
‘On the days that followed September 11th, 2001, we were all reminded that unity is possible in America. We were reminded, too, that unity is imperative in America. It is essential to our shared prosperity, our national security, and to our standing in the world,’ Harris said.
Harris, a Democrat, followed Bush, a Republican, who used his speech to condemn ‘violent extremists abroad and violent extremists at home,’ calling them ‘children of the same foul spirit’ – an apparent reference to both the 9/11 hijackers and the January 6 Capitol insurrectionists.
The Bidens and Harris will lay a wreath at the Pentagon as well.
Queen Elizabeth sent a heartfelt message to Biden as the U.S. marked the anniversary of the tragedy.
‘As we mark the 20th anniversary of the terrible attacks on September 11 2001, my thoughts and prayers, and those of my family and the entire nation, remain with the victims, survivors and families affected, as well as the first responders and rescue workers called to duty,’ the Queen said. ‘My visit to the site of the World Trade Center in 2010 is held fast in my memory,’ she added.
His visit to the precinct came after Biden was joined by former Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama at the official 9/11 memorial ceremony at Ground Zero Saturday morning (pictured above)
President Joe Biden visited all three attack sites to mark the 20th anniversary. He and First Lady Jill Biden lay a wreath at the Wall of Names during a visit to the Flight 93 National Memorial in Shanksville
Biden, First Lady Jill Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff lay a wreath at the Pentagon
Former President George W. Bush (above), a Republican like Trump, attended the commemoration at the Flight 93 memorial site in Shanksville where he spoke to the family members of victims
The Bidens filed into the Manhattan event with former President Barack Obama and Bill Clinton and former first ladies Michelle Obama and ex-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
Biden didn’t speak at the ceremony in New York – as he chose to release a video Friday sharing his reflections instead.
Members of Congress, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, also attended the New York memorial service.
Former President Donald Trump, a native New Yorker, said on Fox News on Friday that he will travel to Ground Zero to mark the attacks’ 20th anniversary, but didn’t specify timing.
He didn’t run into Biden on Saturday. Giuliani attended the Ground Zero ceremony.
Giuliani was among the high-profile Trump allies who pushed the so-called ‘big lie’ – that Biden wasn’t the legitimate winner of the 2020 election.
Biden avoided some additional awkwardness at Saturday’s ceremony by signing an executive order that ordered a review of the classified documents related to the attack – something 9/11 families, first responders and survivors have demanded.
The president had been told by nearly 1,800 Americans impacted by the terror attacks last month not to come to any of the 20th anniversary events unless he declassified documents that potentially show Saudi government links to the September 11, 2001 hijackers.
Biden’s order makes no mention of Saudi Arabia.
Trump took aim at Joe Biden over the ’embarrassment’ of his Afghanistan withdrawal, continued to push his false claim that the 2020 election was ‘rigged’ and plugged his 2024 White House run
Trump told Fox News Friday he would be attending Ground Zero in New York City Saturday. He had been expected to make a trip around 1:30pm to avoid any chance of bumping into Biden
Members of the 9/11 Honor Guard salute at the end of their duty at the National 9/11 Memorial following the ceremony
Survivors and family members visit the 9/11 memorial in New York City to pay their respects on America’s darkest day
Bush, who rarely makes public appearances, used his address domestic terrorism. He also told veterans and servicemembers that their sacrifices in the War on Terror weren’t for nothing. And the former leader pushed the nation to display the same sort of unity that was present in the days following the September 11, 2001 attacks.
‘Many Americans struggled to understand why an enemy would hate us with such zeal,’ Bush said. ‘The security measure incorporated into our lives are both sources of comfort and reminders of our vulnerability. And we have seen growing evidence that the dangers to our country can come not only across borders but from violence that gathers within.’
The former Republican president noted that there is ‘little cultural overlap between violent extremists abroad and violent extremists at home’ except for their ‘disregard of human life.’
‘In their determination to defile national symbols they are children of the same foul spirit and it is our continuing duty to confront them,’ Bush said – an apparent refrence to both the 9/11 hijackers and the January 6 Capitol insurrectionists.
Bush also aimed to assuage concerns voiced by veterans and servicemembers that their time in Afghanistan was all for naught – with the Taliban quickly taking over the country ahead of President Joe Biden’s August 31 messy pull-out.
‘One thing is certain, we owe an assurance to all who have fought our nation’s most recent battles,’ Bush said. ‘Let me speak directly to veterans and people in uniform.’
The One World Trade Center is seen during the 20th anniversary of the September 11 attacks in New York City
United Airlines Flight 175 is seen flying toward the South Tower of the World Trade Center on September 11 2001 after the North Tower had already been struck by a first hijacked plane
‘You have shielded your fellow citizens from danger. You have defended the beliefs of your country and advanced the rights of the downtrodden. You have been the face of hope and mercy in dark places. You have been a force of good in the world,’ said the former commander-in-chief.
Saturday’s ceremony in New York included a playing of the National Anthem and bells chiming for when each of the four planes crashed into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and finally a field in Somerset, County, Pennsylvania – sparing either the White House or the U.S. Capitol.
Family members read the names of the deceased, giving tributes to husbands, wives, uncles, sisters, brothers and children who were among the 2,977 killed.
Bruce Springsteen played ‘I’ll See You In My Dreams,’ after a bell chimed at 9:03 a.m., marking when Flight 175 hit the second World Trade Center tower.
General Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs, and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke at the Pentagon.