Trump Chooses Pentagon Over Ground Zero for 25th Anniversary of 9/11 as Dispute Emerges Over Speech
President Donald Trump will commemorate the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks at the Pentagon rather than at Ground Zero, following reports that New York organizers would not allow him to address the ceremony.
The decision has attracted attention because Trump is a native New Yorker and his administration had initially indicated that he might attend the milestone observance in Lower Manhattan. Advance personnel reportedly visited the site while preparations were still underway.
But those plans changed after the administration was reminded of a longstanding rule governing the Ground Zero ceremony: elected officials and political figures may attend, but they are not invited to deliver speeches.
Trump has disputed the suggestion that the restriction influenced his decision.
When reporters asked why he would not be in New York, the president answered simply, “Because I’m going to the Pentagon.”
He later said he understood that no politicians speak during the Ground Zero observance, describing it as a solemn ceremony intended to remember the victims and their families. White House communications director Steven Cheung also rejected reports portraying the decision as a snub.
A tradition designed to keep politics away
The policy preventing politicians from speaking has been in place since 2012.
It followed years in which political disputes and tensions surrounding the rebuilding of the World Trade Center threatened to overshadow the purpose of the annual gathering. Organizers and victims’ families ultimately sought to preserve the event as a quiet, nonpartisan act of remembrance.
At the center of the ceremony is not a political address, but the voices of the families.
Relatives of those killed gather on the Memorial Plaza and read aloud the names of the victims of the September 11 attacks and the six people murdered in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. The complete reading honors 2,983 people.
Seven moments of silence are also planned. They correspond to the times when the two towers were struck and collapsed, the attack on the Pentagon, the crash of Flight 93 in Pennsylvania and those who later died from illnesses and injuries connected to 9/11.
The format is intentionally restrained. Presidents, candidates and other elected leaders may stand alongside the families, but they do so as attendees rather than featured speakers.
Why Trump will speak at the Pentagon
The Pentagon holds a separate memorial ceremony for the 184 people killed when American Airlines Flight 77 struck the building on September 11, 2001.
Unlike the Ground Zero commemoration, that observance traditionally includes formal remarks from national leaders. Trump is expected to speak there as the country marks a quarter-century since the attacks.
The president also attended the Pentagon ceremony in 2025, where he delivered remarks honoring the victims, their families and those who risked their lives to help others.
This year, Vice President JD Vance is scheduled to represent the administration in New York. Other administration officials are expected to attend commemorations at the Pentagon and near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, ensuring that all three attack sites receive official representation.
Former Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama are also expected among the prominent attendees at Ground Zero.
The White House addresses Trump’s absence
The White House has not directly confirmed the claim that Trump originally requested permission to speak in New York.
Instead, deputy press secretary Anna Kelly emphasized his personal connection to the city and his memories of witnessing the events of September 11. She said the president would honor those who were killed, recognize the continuing grief of their families and remember the first responders who placed themselves in danger to save others.
Trump last attended the Ground Zero anniversary ceremony in 2024 while campaigning for president. He stood alongside Vance, then-President Joe Biden, then-Vice President Kamala Harris and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
None of them delivered remarks.
Now, as the United States prepares to observe one of the most significant anniversaries since the attacks, the competing accounts surrounding Trump’s plans have generated political debate.
The ceremony itself, however, will follow the tradition established more than a decade ago.
There will be no campaign speeches and no political addresses at Ground Zero. Instead, the plaza will once again belong to the relatives carrying photographs, memories and names that have been spoken there year after year.
Twenty-five years later, organizers remain committed to the same principle: the most important voices on September 11 are those of the families who never stopped living with its consequences.
