President Donald Trump and former presidents, along with members of Congress and Cabinet officials, honored the victims and heroes of Sept. 11, 2001, in ceremonies both in Washington, D.C., and in New York City on the 25th anniversary of the terror attacks.
Trump was joined by first lady Melania Trump, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine and former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, on Friday to honor the thousands of Americans who were killed when al-Qaida militants hijacked planes in three locations.
The event Friday at the Pentagon honored the 184 people who died 25 years ago when American Airlines Flight 77, which took off from Dulles International Airport outside of Washington, crashed into the Department of Defense headquarters.
Trump administration at the Pentagon for 9/11 and Iran
Trump began his remarks on Friday speaking about American unity after the attacks, which upended national security and U.S. foreign policy.
“With the events of that morning, 2,977 beautiful souls were ripped from our world, and many more died in the weeks and years after, horrible, grotesque injuries, so many were sustained,” the president said. “Today, we renew the sacred oath that we first swore in their names a quarter century ago, we will never, ever forget.”
“That’s why we fight today. We don’t have a choice. There can only be victory,” Trump continued, likely alluding to the war to stop Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. “We fight hard. We fight to win.”
Trump, a New Yorker, has honored the anniversary both at the Pentagon and at Ground Zero in Manhattan in recent years. He noted Friday that “no words” can do justice to the anguish Americans felt that day when the first plane hit the North Tower of the World Trade Center.
“Free people must never avert their eyes from such hideous cruelty. We cannot forget that moment of immense and horrible evil that took place in this world, bent on the destruction of all that is good,” he said. “But this morning, we also remember how America responded to that wickedness. On days like 9/11, we learn what a country is truly made of. We’re learning right now what we’re made of, and we have to be strong and we have to be smart.”
Trump went on to say that the U.S. is being tested today in 2026, but the country was “winning that test very handily.”
He honored the U.S. military troops who have given their lives and time in the years since the terror attacks to protect Americans from foreign threats.
“No one can ever prepare for a day like 9/11, but we can always choose to be the kind of nation the world saw in those days after,” Trump said. “We can raise our children to know that their country is good, that their fathers are brave, and that our flag is a symbol of justice and freedom. And we could be a nation whose heroes are not fanatics for an abstract cause.”
Trump concluded his remarks by highlighting how that day 25 years ago showcased evil but in the years since, America has shown its spirit can endure and prevail.
Rice, who was serving as Bush’s national security adviser at the time of the attacks, recounted being ushered into a safe zone at the White House. She remembered visiting the Pentagon after the attack, the smoke and fire still smoldering. Rice noted that citizens came together in acts of patriotism and she felt her own spirit was renewed for her country. Still, she shared the responsibility that fell upon those in leadership in 2001.
“Those of us in authority on that day did not see the nature of the danger in time to prevent the attack of 9/11. We did what we knew to do, but by definition, it was not enough,” Rice said, thanking U.S. armed services for their work following the attacks. “I will always carry deep personal remorse for the pain that you, the families of the fallen, still feel, and for the trauma that our country endured.”
“Yet as I look back, I’m also mindful of what our actions in response taught us about ourselves,” she added.
Other Trump administration officials honored the anniversary, with Hegseth detailing how at the Pentagon they are “ever vigilant” after what occurred. He shared that the Trump administration has “laid waste” to Iranian terrorists who “cheered on 9/11.”
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick honored his brother, Greg, who was killed in the Twin Towers at age 36 for “going to work that morning.” He also honored his best friend Doug, who was a father and husband killed in the attacks.
Former presidents project unity for Americans
Meanwhile, in New York City, former presidents, current members of Congress and others gathered at Ground Zero, the site of the Twin Towers that now stands as a memorial for the fallen and a museum to honor the day.
Among those in attendance were former Presidents George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama and Joe Biden, along with Vice President JD Vance, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, former New York City Mayors Michael Bloomberg and Rudy Giuliani, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and current New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
Prior to the event Friday, Giuliani, who is credited with the immediate emergency response and was nicknamed “America’s Mayor” after the attack, publicly called on Mamdani not to attend the event. Mamdani, the city’s first Muslim mayor, was seen shaking hands with Giuliani at the ceremony.
Victims’ families, first responders and others were gathered at the site of the attack for the annual ceremony, this time marking a quarter century since the day the country changed forever.
The National September 11th Memorial and Museum has enforced a strict policy of banning political speeches to ensure the annual ceremony remains nonpartisan as a tribute to the victims, meaning none of the elected officials in attendance delivered remarks on Friday but rather showed support through their presence.
However, the former presidents showed their support online or in other speeches.
Biden said he and Jill Biden were holding the families who lost loved ones close, those who rushed into the crash sites to help others and people who “stepped up to serve in the aftermath.”
“Even now, we remember the greatest lesson of one of our nation’s darkest days: at our most vulnerable, unity is our most powerful strength,” he said.
Obama posted online reiterating the message of American resiliency in the aftermath of the attacks and the admiration for those who gave their lives to aid the destruction.
“Today Michelle and I are remembering those we lost that day, and those who made the ultimate sacrifice in the wars that followed. We pray for their families,” he said. “And we hope Americans everywhere remember the true lesson of 9/11: that we can survive even our darkest days as long as we move forward as one nation and one people.”
Clinton shared how after the attacks, he was honored to help create the Families of Freedom Scholarship Fund, which gave money to children and spouses of those who were killed or permanently disabled due to the attacks. He shared that those funds are just as important today as they were 25 years ago.
“We can’t erase the nightmare that so many have lived through and are still living with today, but we can support the people who have given and lost so much by treating one another with respect, in person and online, and recognizing that what we have in common is far more important than what divides us,” he said.
Bush reflects on Sept. 11, 25 years later
Bush, in conversation with Rice at the George W. Bush Presidential Center in Dallas, recalled his messages to Americans after the attacks as the nation’s president.
The 43rd president and Rice recalled the early moments, learning after the second plane hit the South Tower that it wasn’t an accident and instead a terrorist attack. Rice, in Washington, told Bush, who was at a school in Florida, to stay put and not come back to the nation’s capital since “America was under attack.”
“I became a wartime president,” Bush said at the event. “There’s no doubt in my mind that this was not a law enforcement event. This was a war, and that the job of the president and the country and his team is to rally the nation to do what’s necessary to protect our people.”
He discussed how he wanted to get Americans “back to normal” since banks were closed, air travel suspended and citizens in shock of the attacks.
“I didn’t want us to lose our soul,” Bush said. “As we defended our freedoms, I wanted people to remember how precious they are.”
He highlighted how in the aftermath of the attacks, he visited with first responders and families, and went to a mosque since he was “deeply concerned” about the harassment of Muslim Americans. Bush noted that it was clear it was going to be an “ideological struggle” among Americans over differing faiths and that’s what the “enemy” wanted.
“We saw this as an ideological conflict, and for people who have no idea what we’re talking about, just understand there are people in the world who can’t stand America because of our freedoms,” Bush said. “And what changed on that day of September the 11th was that those who can’t stand what we stand for had the capacity to come and kill, and that’s what really changed the whole strategic equation for a president in the country.”
Bush argued that he hopes more younger Americans, particularly those who weren’t born when the attacks happened, will learn about recent U.S. history and the lessons learned from Sept. 11.
“I worry about the fact that kids don’t have a real understanding of our nation’s history, not only the history of 250 years ago, but recent history, Sept. 11, 2001,” he said. “I would hope these civic courses teach the lessons of 9/11 so another generation can understand what we all went through, but why it’s important that we went through was necessary to safeguard what we believe.”