According to a new report from the New York Times, President Donald Trump is planning to skip the 25th anniversary ceremony at Ground Zero in New York. The reasons behind his decision are even more pathetic and self-absorbed than I expected.
The Times' Maggie Haberman, Zolan Kanno-Youngs, Dana Rubinstein, and Sally Goldenberg reported that for a time, Trump had indicated that he intended to attend the somber event in Manhattan. He even went so far as to make multiple advance visits to the site.
However, it seems that when he learned that he would not actually be allowed to make the entire event about himself, coupled with the fact that the ceremony was going to interfere with his scheduled golf trip the next day, he made the call to skip the ceremony marking this country's greatest tragedy altogether.
In true Trump fashion, the President was looking to deliver one of his trademark nasty speeches at the ceremony, and his team had spent the past few weeks trying to line that up with organizers. But the National September 11 Memorial and Museum has had a rule in place since 2012 that strictly prohibits anypoliticians from delivering remarks during the annual ceremony. This rule was put in place to prevent politicians from doing exactly what Trump would have done -- delivering partisan speeches that effectively strip the focus from where it belongs, the victims and their families, on such a solemn day of remembrance.
But that's fine, because apparently the ceremony was going to disturb his golf plans anyway.
The Times report says that Trump's travel schedule about a golf trip the next day also played a large role in his decision not to throw one of his typical temper tantrums over the speech thing and skip the event altogether.
The day after the Ground Zero ceremony, Trump is scheduled to travel to his Doonberg, Ireland, golf course for the Irish Open. The newspaper noted that departing for Ireland from New York vs. Joint Base Andrews in Maryland would cause a significant disruption to road and air traffic.
And God forbid something makes Trump late to golf, right?
Instead, Trump will mark the 9/11 anniversary with a speech at the Pentagon, as he did last year, and Vice President J.D. Vance will attend the Ground Zero ceremony in Manhattan in his stead.
When the Times reached out to the Trump White House for comment, White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly failed to address Trump's schedule directly and simply stated, "On the 25th anniversary of this tragic day, the President will remember those who were killed at the hands of evil terrorists, honor their loved ones, and pay tribute to the brave first responders who put their lives on the line to rescue their fellow Americans.”
Trump last attended the Ground Zero anniversary ceremony in 2024, joining his soon-to-be VP Vance as well as then-President Joe Biden and then-Vice President Kamala Harris. None of them delivered remarks.
This year, the ceremony is expected to be attended by former President Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton, former President George W. Bush and his wife Laura Bush, former President Barack Obama, and former NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
