POTUS Donald J. Trump has once again put himself into the story of September 11, 2011 claiming that two firefighters carried him to safety as a nearby skyscraper appeared to be in danger of collapsing.
It is a dramatic story, complete with “big strong guys,” a daring escape, and Trump insisting that he was perfectly capable of running himself.
There is, however, a problem with the story.
The Story Trump Tells
Speaking at a September 8 ceremony on the White House Ellipse honoring 9/11 victims and first responders, Trump recalled being near the World Trade Center after the attacks.
According to Trump, One Liberty Plaza, formerly known as the U.S. Steel Building, was “creaking” and appeared to be at risk of collapse.
“Two fireman, big strong guys, and I’m not the smallest guy in the world, they grabbed me under the arms and said ‘got to get out of here!’ and they literally lifted me up. This is not easy to do. I’m big. They lifted me up and they started running with me.”
It certainly makes for a vivid mental picture: two firefighters carrying a very large Trump away from danger.
Trump claims he was basically lifted out of the rubble on 9/11: “Two fireman, big strong guys, they grabbed me under the arms — ‘got to get our of here!’ — and they literally lifted me up, and they started running with me.” pic.twitter.com/63k48q7o4d
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 8, 2026
The Fact Check
PolitiFact has previously examined Trump’s accounts of his role in the aftermath of 9/11. While news reports placed him near Ground Zero in the days following the attacks, there is no record of him directly assisting first responders there or even coming out of the rubble.
On the day of the attacks, DJT told WWOR-TV that he was watching the destruction from his office in Trump Tower, about four miles from the World Trade Center. Richard Alles, a New York City Fire Department battalion chief who worked at Ground Zero, later told PolitiFact that he had no knowledge of Trump or his employees being at the site.
DJT has also previously claimed that he sent construction workers to Ground Zero to assist with recovery efforts, another account that has not been substantiated.
Footage from Trump being interviewed on 9/13/2001.
Notice the absence of any claim that he was just rescued by a couple of big burly firemen. pic.twitter.com/U5mdjcfIYO
— Johnny Akzam (@JohnnyAkzam) September 9, 2026
That makes the latest story particularly difficult to reconcile with the documented record. Firefighters did evacuate buildings in the area amid serious concerns about structural safety, but there is no corroboration for Trump’s account of being carried away by two of them or being sent by Trump.
READ: The Trump Admininstration Wants You to Build a Border…Arcade Style.
The Irony Is Hard to Miss
The ceremony was supposed to honor the people who actually ran toward danger on 9/11. Instead, DJT offered another story in which he is surrounded by heroic first responders, this time with two “big strong guys” literally scooping him up and carrying him to safety.
And there is something almost comically ironic about the image.
DJT has spent decades cultivating an image of strength, toughness, and larger-than-life masculinity. Yet the anecdote he chose to tell has him being carried like a particularly hefty toddler by two firefighters.
The joke almost writes itself.
But behind the irony is something more serious. The courage of the firefighters, police officers, emergency workers, and ordinary people who responded that day does not need a Trump-sized embellishment.
Their heroism is already documented.
Their stories already happened.