Trump calls for arrests after UN escalator incident amid General Assembly

Former President Donald Trump said he was the victim of sabotage after an escalator at the United Nations stopped as he and First Lady Melania Trump stepped onto it during the General Assembly, forcing him to walk up a flight of stairs. In a Truth Social post on Wednesday, Trump described the moment as part of a trio of alleged 'sinister' events at the U.N. gathering, alongside a teleprompter malfunction and a sound system problem during his remarks.

The incident occurred Tuesday in New York as Trump prepared to address the General Assembly. Video showed the escalator halt suddenly with Trump looking around in confusion while Melania advanced ahead. A United Nations spokesperson attributed the stop to a built‑in safety mechanism that had been inadvertently triggered by a White House videographer moving up the escalator ahead of the President. 'The safety mechanism is designed to prevent people or objects accidentally being caught and pulled into the gearing,' Stéphane Dujarric said in a note to correspondents.[^1]

Trump seized on the moment to call for arrests and suggested the United Nations staff were responsible. He wrote that the escalator ‘stopped on a dime’ and said, without proof, that those who caused it should be arrested. He also said the Secret Service would review the episode and that he had sent a letter to U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres demanding an 'immediate investigation.' A U.N. official told Reuters that the White House was responsible for operating the teleprompter and that the venue’s sound system was designed so attendees could hear translations in six languages.

Trump also alleged that the teleprompter went ‘stone cold dark’ and that the sound was off during his speech, leaving attendees to hear through interpreters’ earpieces. He recalled that the first person he saw after his remarks was Melania, who told him she could not hear a word he said. Trump framed the episodes as triple sabotage at the United Nations.

Reaction from Washington followed a familiar pattern. White House officials and Republican allies pressed for accountability if any UN staff were involved. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt posted on X that if the UN staff were intentionally trying to trip up the President and First Lady, there should be swift firing and an investigation. Mike Waltz, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, posted that the United States would not tolerate threats to its security or dignity at international forums and that the embassy had requested the complete results of the UN’s internal investigation, including whether the stoppage was intentional sabotage.

Conspiracy theories quickly circulated on social media and among some conservative commentators. A right-wing influencer posting on X claimed UN staff would have conspired to embarrass Trump. Others urged more drastic actions against the U.N., including calls to defund or even dissolve the organization. Critics said the uproar reflected broader political motives and could distract from other legal and ethical controversies surrounding the Trump administration. But others in conservative media and politics urged caution, noting that there is no confirmed evidence of wrongdoing by UN staff and that conclusions should await a transparent internal inquiry.

Observers pointed out that funding pressures have affected UN operations in recent years. An Associated Press report cited a liquidity crunch that has driven some cost-saving steps in New York and Geneva, including limited escalator use during financial strains dating back to the previous U.S. administration. Critics used those financial strains to argue that the incident might reflect ordinary maintenance issues or safety protocols, rather than a targeted act against Trump.

Some critics said the spotlight on the UN escalator distraction could obscure other controversies involving the Trump administration. Writers and commentators noted the timing amid ongoing scrutiny over documents related to Jeffrey Epstein. Tara Dublin described the uproar as a 'weak and dumb' distraction, while Joanne Carducci highlighted the Epstein matter and suggested Trump’s refusal to release certain files continued to cast a shadow over the presidency.

With the UN and U.S. authorities conducting or preparing investigations, no immediate public finding had been released by the time of these notes. The White House said it would pursue answers and that it would coordinate with the U.N., while the U.N. maintained that its own internal processes would determine responsibility. In New York, officials stressed that the escalator incident, whether seen as glitch or plot, would not alter the flow of UN proceedings during the General Assembly, which convenes global leaders to debate security, climate, and other issues.

Notes

[^1]: The U.N. statement attributed the halt to an inadvertently triggered safety feature.