Ted Cruz Accidentally Insults Trump While Defending Weird 9/11 Story

Never forget? Senator Ted Cruz suggested that President Donald Trump may not be able to remember what happened on 9/11.

CNN’s Kaitlan Collins asked the Texas Republican Tuesday night what he made of Trump’s widely publicized—and decontextualized—comments at his weird 9/11 tribute earlier that day.

In the midst of claiming that he’d taken a large group of construction workers to Ground Zero “right after it happened,” Trump recounted being carried out from under One Liberty Plaza by firefighters who were afraid the building would collapse. Trump’s disjointed retelling left open the possibility that he was describing an incident from the same day.

“He’s saying that there is evidence that he was there right after, I mean, he’s kind of making it seem like he was pulled out of the rubble, though, with the firefighters,” Collins said. “Do you think that’s appropriate?”

“September 11th was 25 years ago,” Cruz said. “It was a horrific moment for our entire country. And you can doubt whatever you want about Donald Trump, but the man is a New Yorker, he loves New York, and I have every doubt that what he’s conveying there is what he experienced and it was a traumatic experience for all of us.”

Cruz appeared to misspeak about his “every doubt.” Still, his comment suggested that Trump’s memory may not be what it used to be. Add it to the list of dozens of other instances of the president’s apparent cognitive decline.

The president’s early-bird 9/11 tribute was undoubtedly a total Trump-fest. He repeatedly veered into rhetoric boosting his own disastrous agenda, supporting the war in Iran, and attacking Democratic Socialists.

One Liberty Plaza did not fall down, and Trump’s anecdote only served to make light of the experience of New Yorkers who didn’t have their own skyscrapers from which to survey the damage and chaos of 9/11.

President Trump isn’t happy that his half-truths about where he was during the September 11 attacks are being called out. 

On Truth Social Tuesday night, Trump posted an angry rant attacking New York magazine for questioning his story of where he was on 9/11. 

“The Failing New York Magazine wrote a story that I wasn’t down at the World Trade Center after the Tragedy of September 11th, because nobody saw me there. Well, I don’t think I would be the first thing on anyone’s mind but, I was there, obviously not on the same day as the collapse, but shortly thereafter, with a large group of Construction Workers,” Trump posted. “The Fake News doesn’t want to listen, even when they know their story is false. That’s why their approval ratings are at an All Time LOW, but mine are VERY HIGH!”

In a speech at the Ellipse in Washington, D.C., Tuesday, Trump claimed that he was working on a “big building” during the attacks, and that he took a construction crew to Ground Zero “right after this happened.” Then, Trump claimed, while he was at the U.S. Steel Building, it began to creak and two firefighters were forced to pull him away from the area. 

“I’ll never forget. Two firemen—we thought it was coming down on top of us and two firemen, big strong guys—and I’m not the smallest guy in the world—they grabbed me under the arms and said, ‘Gotta get out of here.’ And they literally lifted me up. This is not easy to do. I’m big. They lifted me up and started running with me. I said, ‘Fellas, I can run myself.’ But they were amazing,” Trump said. 

CNN’s Daniel Dale debunked Trump’s narrative, posting on X that Trump’s story Tuesday wasn’t the same story that he’s told in previous years. 

“While campaigning in 2016, he told a version of today’s story about being whisked away from One Liberty Plaza by big firemen, but he said in 2016 that the alleged incident happened ‘a couple of days’ after 9/11 and claimed the creaky building was ‘not so far from us,’ instead of leaving open the impression he might’ve been a) inside it b) on 9/11 itself,” Dale posted. 

That was one of the many refutations of Trump’s story in the New York article, which cited other tall tales Trump has told about the 9/11 attacks. But to Trump, with his ongoing cognitive decline and massive ego, “Everything I said was exactly accurate.”  

The Justice Department has essentially ghosted the European law enforcement agencies investigating deceased sexual predator Jeffrey Epstein, refusing to respond to their requests for assistance, according to The Washington Post.

Law enforcement officials in Poland, Norway, and Latvia told the Post they reached out to the U.S for mutual legal assistance, but none of them received responses. Britain, which has asked for unredacted copies of some Epstein files, did not publicly comment, though investigations there have stalled as well, thanks to the DOJ.

“We are in communication with officials from the Department of Justice, but they have not at this time approved the request,” Marianne Bender, state prosecutor for the Norwegian Okokrim unit, said in a statement. “This is very unfortunate for the Norwegian investigation, and Okokrim hopes that the U.S. Department of Justice will approve our request at some point.”

Lativian state police spokeswoman Simona Gravite made a similar claim, stating that Latvia “sent several requests for mutual legal assistance to the relevant authorities in the United States. However, no responses have yet been received.”

The DOJ has even refused to cooperate with Britain in its investigation into longtime politician Peter Mandelson—who was stripped of his title as U.K ambassador to the U.S. and forced to resign from the House of Lords. The Telegraph reported last month that the DOJ would not hand over unredacted copies of some files to assist in the investigation into whether Mandelson gave confidential government information to Epstein.

This stunning lack of cooperation from the DOJ is par for the course at this point. Domestically, it has done everything they can to deny the victims—and the American public—straight, unredacted answers into an investigation that President Trump made a crucial part of his campaign platform.

If Attorney General Todd Blanche can’t bring himself to meet genuinely with Epstein survivors in the U.S., it should come as no surprise that the Justice Department is acting in bad faith in European investigations as well. This is particularly sad. Epstein was extremely active in Europe, and international cooperation could have very well led to new connections in Epstein’s universe. Yet the DOJ continues to be uncooperative and nontransparent.

While golfing over the weekend, President Trump appeared to have some concerning bruises on his arm.

Trump spent Labor Day weekend at his Bedminster, New Jersey, golf club, and while he hit the links in his usual white polo shirt, dark bruises were visible up and down his left arm. The president’s former aide, John McEntee, who co-founded the conservative dating app The Right Stuff, posted a picture of Trump to Instagram Monday revealing the bruises.

It’s not the first time extensive bruising has been spotted on Trump’s skin. Trump often has bruises on his hands, which he tries to cover up (poorly) with makeup. The president has acknowledged this, claiming that the marks are the result of him taking “big aspirin” or shaking hands too aggressively. However, some speculate that he could be receiving some undisclosed intravenous treatment. Trump was last spotted with bruises on his arm while at the same golf course about a month ago.

The White House hasn’t been fully transparent about the president’s health, only revealing snippets about Trump’s medical checkups. On May 26, Trump saw a record 22 specialists, but offered no explanation as to why. He reportedly used to take a hair-loss drug that was conspicuously left off of his May trip to Walter Reed Medical Center, raising questions about what secrets are being kept about the 80-year-old’s health.

Trump frequently falls asleep in public and goes on off-topic rants that often make little sense. These diatribes and his physical appearance offer the only clues as to his health and mental state. For some bizarre reason, Trump was also sporting darker brown hair in New Jersey too.

The president’s weekend jaunt also involved him making sure the Secret Service agents charged with protecting him ate his country club’s hot dogs—which the agency then had to pay for. His inseparable aide Natalie Harp was also on the trip, presumably to post to his social media accounts and feed him his usual diet of article printouts. What else is the president consuming that the American people should be worried about?

Flock Safety wants to record millions of Americans—but apparently no one is allowed to record it.

The disturbing double standard was revealed Tuesday by Atlanta News First, which found itself in a load of trouble after one of its investigative reporters stopped on the side of the road to film a Flock Safety employee upgrading one of the company’s cameras near his house.

Brendan Keefe—a Peabody, duPont, Murrow, and Emmy award–winning journalist—pulled ahead of the Flock Safety site in a marked press van, donned a high-visibility vest, and began snapping pictures. Almost immediately, the Flock Safety employee chucked his equipment into his truck and fled the site.

Keefe tried to tail the vehicle, but his efforts were interrupted by the Milton Police Department, which sent out three police vehicles after the Flock employee summoned them.

“I work with Flock Safety and I’m getting followed, harassed, pretty much, taking video and pictures,” the employee said in a 911 call obtained by the local news network.

When the operator prompted the employee to provide his name, he opted not to, claiming that he didn’t “want them to hear my full name” on the call “when they get it.”

Taking pictures and videos in public spaces where there is no reasonable expectation of privacy is protected under the First Amendment. But Flock Safety’s close relationship with police departments across the country seems to have afforded the company protections beyond the scope of the Constitution.

“When you are lawfully present in a public space—such as streets, sidewalks, and parks—the First Amendment generally protects your right to photograph or film anything in plain view, including federal buildings and law enforcement,” according to the American Civil Liberties Union.

Flock Safety deployed its first mass surveillance camera (which was, at the time, an Android phone placed inside a waterproof box) in Atlanta in 2017. Since then, the company has deployed tens of thousands of cameras to record and document the movements of everyday Americans, regardless of whether or not they’re suspected of a crime. That data is then sold to law enforcement agencies, offering them a seemingly infinite portal into the potentially consequential habits of their countrymen.

In April, the company—and its business model—were valued at $8.4 billion.

In most cases, the cameras were installed without community consent. The company has repeatedly defended its product, claiming that the cameras have provided more safety, and that the cited abuses stem from the way that police use their data, rather than the collection of the data itself.

“Ultimately, I would argue that the whole community is our customer,” Flock Safety chief communications officer Josh Thomas told Atlanta News First.

“Why can’t I opt out? Why can’t the spouse or ex-spouse of a police officer opt out of this kind of data collection on their movements?” asked Keefe.

“Why can’t a person opt out?” repeated Thomas. “It’s because if your car gets stolen, if something were to happen, moreover the government requires you to have a license plate.”

“It’s plain viewing information,” Thomas continued, missing the bitter irony of the situation. “Why can’t you opt out? You can, if you want to opt out of society.”