In his speech to the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on September 23, 2025, Donald Trump said that he had encountered “triple sabotage.” This speech was delivered in New York City’s Cooper Union. The ex-prez wants us to believe a broken teleprompter, a mid-speech escalator arrival and some microphone problems ruined his much-hyped Temple of Doom speech.
When they arrived at the U.N. headquarters with First Lady Melania Trump, Trump immediately ran into technical snafus. He explained that the teleprompter failed to work for the first portion of his speech, compelling him to rely on written notes for approximately 15 minutes until the device finally resumed functioning. Per Trump, all world leaders without an interpreters’ earpiece wouldn’t have heard a word he said.
Trump sowed even more confusion by telling the story of what happened with an escalator. He recounted that as he and Melania were getting on, it just all went dead. The sudden stop almost led to a terrible tumble. A U.N. official later informed the Associated Press that a member of Trump’s entourage inadvertently hit the stop lever on the escalator.
Trump expressed his frustration in a statement, writing, “The people that did it should be arrested!” He announced that he’d be reaching out to U.N. Secretary General Ban-Ki Moon to call for an independent and immediate investigation into those events.
“I’m sending a copy of this letter to the Secretary General, and I demand an immediate investigation.” – Donald Trump
After giving the speech, Trump recounted the story of Melania approaching him afterwards. She asked him, almost pleadingly, why she couldn’t hear a single word when he spoke.
“I couldn’t hear a word you said.” – Melania Trump
These defeats notwithstanding, President Trump went on to assert that everyone liked his speech. He remarked, “The good news is the Speech has gotten fantastic reviews,” suggesting that many appreciated his ability to deliver under pressure.
He criticized the U.N., stating, “No wonder the United Nations hasn’t been able to do the job that they were put in existence to do.” Verma’s comments echoed a deeper frustration with the structure’s overall workflow and effectiveness.