Donald Trump is calling out what he sees as a major sabotage plot at the United Nations, pointing to a sudden escalator halt, a blank teleprompter, and spotty sound during his recent speech. The former US president shared his frustrations on Truth Social, insisting these weren’t random glitches but a coordinated attack.
“This wasn’t a coincidence—this was triple sabotage at the UN,” Trump posted on Wednesday. He’s demanding a full investigation, arrests for those responsible, and even wants security tapes from the escalator preserved, including footage of the emergency stop button.
The drama unfolded Tuesday during Trump’s nearly hour-long address to world leaders at the UN General Assembly in New York. As he and First Lady Melania Trump rode the delegates’ escalator toward the hall, it lurched to a stop mid-ride. Trump later wrote that they barely avoided a nasty fall, thanks to gripping the handrails tightly. “It’s amazing that Melania and I didn’t fall forward onto the sharp edges of these steel steps, face first,” he said. “This was absolutely sabotage.”
They ended up walking the rest of the way, with their team close behind. Trump referenced a Times of London report about US staffers joking that the UN might shut down escalators to save money, forcing him to climb stairs. “The people that did it should be arrested,” he added.
UN officials moved quickly to respond. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’s spokesperson, Stephane Dujarric, announced late Tuesday that Guterres had ordered a thorough probe and pledged full cooperation with US authorities. Trump noted that the Secret Service is also digging into the matter.
On the escalator incident, Dujarric explained that a preliminary check pointed to a White House videographer filming Trump while walking backward. The crew member likely tripped a built-in safety feature designed to stop the escalator if something gets caught in the machinery. “The videographer may have inadvertently triggered the safety function,” Dujarric said.
Things didn’t smooth out at the podium either. Trump found the teleprompter completely dark when he started speaking—it didn’t light up for about 15 minutes. He quipped to the crowd, “Whoever’s operating this teleprompter is in big trouble.” After the speech, Melania told him the audio had cut out in the hall, forcing presidents, prime ministers, and other dignitaries to rely on earpieces for translation.
Trump plans to send his formal complaint directly to Guterres. It’s worth noting that UN escalators usually run smoothly, but elevators and other systems sometimes go offline due to budget squeezes or maintenance issues. The US covers about 22% of the UN’s budget, and delays in payments have led to cost-cutting measures before. One elevator in the UN’s secretariat building was completely down that day too.
As the investigation unfolds, Trump’s UN visit mishaps are sparking plenty of online buzz and conspiracy theories about what really went wrong.
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