It’s the 17th anniversary of 9/11, which is known as the deadliest terror attack to ever take place in the U.S. All together, 2,977 were killed, most of them in New York City. Nineteen hijackers took over four commercial airplanes, crashing them in NYC, Washington, DC and just outside of Shanksville, Pennsylvania. The attack was orchestrated by al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden, who was killed during a US Special Forces operation under Barack Obama’s White House administration.
It’s an understatement to say that the anniversary of September 11th is a pretty dark day. Memorial services take place all over the country, most of which are attended by high-ranking politicians. That includes the president. Unfortunately, our current president has all the dignity and comportment of a walrus in a suit, so the day got off to a bad start. First, Donald Trump tweeted a 9/11 message that can only be described as basic math:
17 years since September 11th!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 11, 2018
Well, can’t argue with that! This already not great opening to the day’s ceremonies was noted by the many American citizens hoping for something less inane from the president:
The exclamation point. No words. https://t.co/GDZR3cps8I
— Chris Cillizza (@CillizzaCNN) September 11, 2018
Con…grats? https://t.co/cBTR8345al
— Jake Maccoby (@jdmaccoby) September 11, 2018
One doesn't expect much from Trump anyway, but it really doesn't get less than this does it! https://t.co/Dr6F22EXSz
— Clare Cosgrove (@Grooveyleddy) September 11, 2018
But you gotta hand it to Trump—no matter how bad he gets, he always manages to top himself. He and Melania Trump headed to Shanksville for a memorial service and Trump was photographed at the airport fist pumping and biting his lip like he’s celebrating a football touchdown:
.@realDonaldTrump First Lady Melania Trump greet supporters as they arrive in Johnstown, PA to attend the Flight 93 September 11 Memorial Service in Shanksville, PA pic.twitter.com/SRMBvlDLKJ
— Doug Mills (@dougmillsnyt) September 11, 2018
Folks quickly noted the wildly inappropriate gesture and attitude of a man who is supposed to be headed to a service of reflection and mourning. It’s pretty bad!
My man is psyched! https://t.co/KS9TWHjVGn
— rob delaney (@robdelaney) September 11, 2018
Who else is fucking PUMPED for 9/11 guys https://t.co/gPIGeStHAR
— Drew Magary (@drewmagary) September 11, 2018
The president of the United States takes the death of almost 3000 Americans very seriously and wants only to honor their memories….. and play golf and grown the Trump brand and make money off the presidency. https://t.co/GQcnmKIdbf
— Molly Jong-Fast (@MollyJongFast) September 11, 2018
This is @realDonaldTrump greeting supporters as he arrives in PA to attend the Flight 93 #Sept11 Memorial Service. To all those who lost loved ones on this day 17 years ago, our hearts goes out to you! And please know that our country is with you, even if our President is not. pic.twitter.com/GVbfAS2iBJ
— Morgan J. Freeman (@mjfree) September 11, 2018
what a raging embarrassment https://t.co/d9V9OLCKJ6
— christine teigen (@chrissyteigen) September 11, 2018
here's President Trump, who accuses black athletes of disrespecting America by kneeling silently to protest racial injustice, shortly before his speech on hallowed ground to commemorate 9/11 https://t.co/IMOO6T25VH
— John Harwood (@JohnJHarwood) September 11, 2018
If you think trump didn’t mean any disrespect with this gesture, you might be right. He may just be so insanely self-centered that he doesn’t get why what he’s doing is wrong. As a native New Yorker (sigh), Trump has been around to make an ass of himself over 9/11 since the very beginning, like in this interview where he brags about having the tallest building in the city after the Twin Towers went down:
Yes, there's audio of Trump patting himself on the back for having the tallest building in Manhattan after the WTC fell on September 11th. pic.twitter.com/vQFFcAibQz
— Josh Jordan (@NumbersMuncher) September 11, 2018
He also lied during his 2016 campaign about hearing Muslim people in Jersey rejoicing as the towers fell, a total and complete lie, saying, “I watched when the World Trade Center came tumbling down, and I watched in Jersey City, New Jersey, where thousands and thousands of people were cheering as that building was coming down. Thousands of people were cheering.”
If we want to be generous on this terrible day, it’s possible Trump has no idea where he is; maybe he’s overexcited because he thinks he’s headed to a rally, where he can pay people to look like they don’t think he’s talking nonsense.