When President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump boarded an escalator at the UN headquarters, the escalator suddenly stopped working. The incident, which happened mere seconds into their arrival, fueled rumours after a news report by British paper The Times reported that UN employees recently made light of “turning off the escalators and lifts” to force Trump to walk.
White House Demands Inquiry
Responding to the episode, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt called for a thorough investigation. “If someone at the UN purposely halted the escalator as the President and First Lady were boarding it, they should be fired and investigated immediately,” Leavitt wrote on social media. The White House’s demand for an investigation implied it was considering the report of staff joking.
If someone at the UN intentionally stopped the escalator as the President and First Lady were stepping on, they need to be fired and investigated immediately.
The Times reported this on Sunday. pic.twitter.com/NitsWbGYG0
— Karoline Leavitt (@PressSec) September 23, 2025
UN Blames Trump’s Videographer
The United Nations explained it in a different way, however, citing a safety feature as the cause of the incident. UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric explained that an examination of the escalator’s central processing unit indicated that a “built-in safety mechanism on the comb step was triggered.”
When the escalator came to a sudden halt, Secret Service just looked around hoping someone would fix the problem.
That wasn’t supposed to happen and it turned Trump into a stationary target. Why did they not cover and evacuate him immediately? pic.twitter.com/Crtg2yPKbq
— Wall Street Mav (@WallStreetMav) September 23, 2025
As stated by Dujarric, the man walking in front of the Trumps might have been at fault. “The videographer probably accidentally activated the safety feature,” said Dujarric, adding that Trump’s media aide had been walking in reverse on the escalator to capture the arrival of the couple.
Trump Pokes Fun At UN For “Bad Escalator And A Bad Teleprompter”
The escalator was not the only technical glitch Trump experienced. The teleprompter at the podium also malfunctioned as he started delivering his speech to world leaders. Trump used the mishaps as a punchline during his speech.
POETIC JUSTICE: Someone thought it would be funny to ‘break’ the escalator as soon as Trump stepped on. Presumably the same people ‘broke’ his teleprompter just as he began his 15 minute speech. Due to the ‘malfunction’ Trump extended is speech an additional 40 minutes – those… pic.twitter.com/eI5ZlwZTxq
— @amuse (@amuse) September 23, 2025
“These are the two things I got from the United Nations: a bad escalator and a bad teleprompter,” he joked, getting some chuckles.