Trump demands UN investigation after escalator, teleprompter malfunctions at UNGA
President Donald Trump has called for a United Nations investigation into what he described as a “triple sabotage” after experiencing a series of technical malfunctions during his visit to the UN General Assembly in New York.
The incidents, which involved a malfunctioning escalator and a broken teleprompter, have sparked conflicting explanations from the White House and the UN, highlighting tensions in the US-UN relationship.
Escalator and Teleprompter Issues
During his address, Trump pointed to the two main problems: a halted escalator and a teleprompter failure. As he and First Lady Melania Trump rode the escalator, it came to an abrupt stop, forcing them to walk the remainder of the way. Trump later joked about the incident in his speech, saying, “These are the two things I got from the United Nations: a bad escalator and a bad teleprompter.”
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, however, adopted a more serious stance. She demanded a full investigation and suggested on X that the Secret Service was examining the possibility of sabotage. Leavitt cited a report from The Times of London, which claimed that UN staff had joked about turning off escalators to embarrass Trump amid US funding cuts.
The UN denied any wrongdoing. Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric explained that a built-in safety mechanism on the escalator had been triggered, likely by a videographer from Trump’s own delegation walking ahead. The escalator was quickly reset and returned to operation.
Regarding the teleprompter, a UN official told Reuters that it is operated by the White House, a detail confirmed by a former Biden speechwriter. Dujarric stated that the UN had “no comment since the teleprompter for the US president is operated by the White House.”
Calls for Accountability
Leavitt told Fox News, “If we find that these were UN staffers purposely trying to trip up, literally, trip up the President and the First Lady of the United States, well, there better be accountability for those people, and I will personally see to it.”
Trump’s demand for an investigation comes amid a broader context of strained relations with the UN, including cuts to US funding and criticism of the organization. The UN’s own investigation, however, concluded that the incidents were not intentional acts of sabotage.
